Content in “Brains, microcontrollers and logic”

MD23 - Dual 12Volt 3Amp H Bridge Motor Drive

Nicola — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 03:44:11 -0400

Althou i just burned one, i think i could still share some info here :)

This is an advanced motor driver for 12V motors. It is usually coupled with EMG30 motors, but you can run it with any other 12V motor. It handles up to 3A per motor.

Make Controller

buhatkj — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 01:40:43 -0400

The Make Controller Kit is a fully programmable,open source hardware platform for projects requiring high performance control/feedback, connectivity, and ease of use. It is based on the Atmel SAM7X256, which is an ARM7TDMI processor with 64k of ram and 256k of flash. It is programmable in C and includes an RTOS for multitasking, though this is optional.

Application board features:

Arduino Nano

TheOther1 — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 22:32:23 -0400

What is Arduino?

Arduino is an open-source electronics prototyping platform based on flexible, easy-to-use hardware and software. It's intended for artists, designers, hobbyists, and anyone interested in creating interactive objects or environments.

Pololu Micro Dual Serial Motor Controller

TheCowGod — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 12:35:00 -0400

This tiny module can control two motors, 1 A peak each, and you can daisy-chain multiple units to control up to 62 motors with a single serial line. The new version provides up to 2 A to a single motor, or 1 A each to two motors. The motor supply can be as low as 2 V, making the unit a perfect match for small DC motors. Using one serial output from your microcontroller, you can independently set each motor to go forward or backward at any of 127 speeds, coast, and brake.

The controller takes up almost no space on a breadboard or PCB:

L293D Motor driver

fritsl — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 10:37:38 -0500

This chip enables you to take 4 outputs and turn them into 2 that can be reversed.

Note that the chip can get quite warm, but it is designed for that.

Benefits:

You can control 2 motors in both directions instead of 4 in only one direction.

Disadvantages:

There is a 1.5V voltage drop within the L293D driver chip.

If you run both motors and servos on the same circuit, your servos will allways get 1.5V more than the motors - and typically you would want it the other way around!