[Lab] Help choosing a stepper motor

Thu Nov 7 16:59:09 EST 2013

I also like seeing what people fully have to say on a project/idea/issue,
if all we saw was a HELP message this list would be pretty boring....

Richard.

On Thu, Nov 7, 2013 at 4:55 PM, Tom Burns <tom.i.burns at gmail.com> wrote:

> Considering how low-traffic this mailing list is I personally do not mind
> hearing the decisionmaking behind which stepper motor to choose.
>
>
> On Thu, Nov 7, 2013 at 4:49 PM, Aurelius R <maxrowsell at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hey guys!
>>
>> I might be in the wrong here, but is this not the type of conversation
>> that would be best carried out off-list? After the initial call for help,
>> of course. It doesn't really bother me that much, but I'm not sure what the
>> list rules are here. Other lists I'm on are against anything not directly
>> on-topic.
>>
>> ____________________
>> Peace, Love, Empathy
>>
>> Alexander Max Rowsell
>>
>>
>> On 7 November 2013 01:03, Michael Grant <michael at krazatchu.ca> wrote:
>>
>>> I'm sure a NEMA 17 size stepper would suit purpose.
>>> The EasyDriver is more than capable for this application.
>>>
>>> Michael
>>> --
>>> http://krazatchu.ca/
>>>
>>>
>>> On Wed, Nov 6, 2013 at 5:37 PM, Wesley Ellis <tahnok at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> My project involves rotating the platform by small increments then
>>>> checking if there's something in range with an ultra sonic sensor, so a
>>>> stepper motor where I can move my platform by a fixed amount easily seemed
>>>> like a better idea than a regular motor and deriving my distance travelled
>>>> based on how long I had the motor on for.
>>>>  On Nov 6, 2013 10:22 AM, "Chris de Groot" <cdegroot at adobe.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> It would be interesting to know how Wesley decided a stepper motor was
>>>>> suitable for your use case.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> There are several of different options.
>>>>>
>>>>> Stepper Motors are good for very precise control of fairly slow
>>>>> rotation where you may also want to rotate by very precise amounts. They
>>>>> have downsides, they require a lot of electronics and often some software
>>>>> to work, are not that powerful relative to other motors, consume more amps
>>>>> for similar work and are more expensive.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> If you wanted to do something like rotate a platform continuously,
>>>>> even reversing it backwards and forwards, and did not care too much about
>>>>> fine accuracy or specific speeds a regular motor may be something to look
>>>>> at. For example a windscreen wiper motor(from princess auto surplus) is a
>>>>> nice usable package. With a small amount of electronics you can get speed
>>>>> control and backwards/forwards motion.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Consider this simple circuit for a “most useless machine ever”
>>>>> project. Simple and effective
>>>>> http://9x20lathe.blogspot.ca/2010/01/components-and-schematic-for-useless.html
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Speed control is fairly easy with a regular motor. But for a stepper
>>>>> can actually get pretty complex with ramp up and down for starts and stops
>>>>> etc.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> C.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> *From:* Lab [mailto:lab-bounces at artengine.ca] *On Behalf Of *Bob
>>>>> *Sent:* Tuesday, November 05, 2013 8:05 PM
>>>>> *To:* Lab at artengine.ca
>>>>> *Subject:* Re: [Lab] Help choosing a stepper motor
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> As a non-technical person my suggestion may be way off base, but
>>>>> perhaps working with the guts of a scanner would fit the bill. Motor and
>>>>> belt already to go.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Bob
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> *From:* Lab [mailto:lab-bounces at artengine.ca<lab-bounces at artengine.ca>]
>>>>> *On Behalf Of *Wesley Ellis
>>>>> *Sent:* Tuesday, November 05, 2013 7:28 PM
>>>>> *To:* Michael Grant
>>>>> *Cc:* lab
>>>>> *Subject:* Re: [Lab] Help choosing a stepper motor
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> No, the stepper motor is going to drive a pulley to rotate a platform
>>>>>
>>>>> On 11/4/2013, 9:52 PM, Michael Grant wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> Does the mass need to be lifted against gravity?
>>>>>
>>>>> Michael
>>>>> --
>>>>>
>>>>> http://krazatchu.ca/
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Mon, Nov 4, 2013 at 9:45 PM, Wesley Ellis <tahnok at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> The mass isn't very heavy (probably 500g) and I don't need the
>>>>> resolution of something like a cnc or 3d printer motor and speed isn't
>>>>> super important
>>>>>
>>>>> On Nov 4, 2013 9:36 PM, "Michael Grant" <michael at krazatchu.ca> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> The easy driver is for bipolar only, it's a good choice for small
>>>>> steppers (NEMA17).
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> There are many choices on eBay as well, about $11 will get you a
>>>>> serious CNC driver for larger steppers (NEMA23).
>>>>>
>>>>> http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Good-CNC-Router-Single-1-Axis-Controller-Stepper-Motor-Drivers-TB6560-3A-New-/251369064893?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a86c389bd
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> What resolution and speed are you looking to achieve?
>>>>>
>>>>> The mass you are rotating, is it heavy and will you require fast start
>>>>> and stop?
>>>>>
>>>>> Michael Grant
>>>>> --
>>>>>
>>>>> http://krazatchu.ca/
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Mon, Nov 4, 2013 at 9:22 PM, Wesley Ellis <tahnok at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> Hey all,
>>>>>
>>>>> I'm pretty new to electronics and I'm having trouble choosing a stepper
>>>>> motor for a project I'm working on.
>>>>>
>>>>> I'm ordering from robot shotp, and it looks like this EasyDriver board
>>>>> (
>>>>> https://secure.robotshop.com/ca/en/sfe-easydriver-bipolar-stepper-motor-driver.html
>>>>> )
>>>>> will let me control whichever motor I end up choosing, but the number
>>>>> of
>>>>> motors on robotshop is pretty intimidating.
>>>>>
>>>>> I'm going to be spinning a small platform so I don't need a lot of
>>>>> power. Basically, I'm wondering whether I need a bipolar or unipolar
>>>>> motor? What kind of voltage? Amperage? Any help would be appreciated
>>>>>
>>>>> Wesley
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> Lab mailing list
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>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> Lab mailing list
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>>>>
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