Arm Base Assembly Guide v2.0.
Updated 11/29/2010
Safety first! Wear eye protection and never touch a powered robot!
Arm Base mounted
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Step 1.
Insert the stainless steel pins into the plastic bearings as shown.
** 5 x**
Figure 1.
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Step 2.
Install the bearings into the base as shown. They will fit snugly.
Note, the notch in the bottom edge of the base indicates the back.
Figure 2.
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Step 3.
Lay a piece of 400 grit sandpaper on a flat surface and move the base (upside down) in small circles on it. This will remove any imperfections on the bearings.
Figure 3.
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Step 4.
Figure 4 shows the circle pattern on the sandpaper and the inset shows the bearings after any imperfections have been removed.
Figure 4.
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Step 5.
Figure 5 illustrates a typical standard-size servo with its output horn (the round white part) at center position. Make sure your servo looks like the image, and then carefully remove the servo horn screw and pull the horn straight off of the servo.
Table 5.
[table=1,320,#000000][tr][td=50,#808080,#C0C0C0,center,1,1]Kit[/td]
[td=50,#808080,#C0C0C0,center,1,1]Servo[/td][/tr]
[tr][td=50,#808080,#C0C0C0,center,1,1]AL5A[/td]
[td=50,#808080,#C0C0C0,center,1,1]HS-422[/td][/tr]
[tr][td=50,#808080,#C0C0C0,center,1,1]AL5B, C, D[/td]
[td=50,#808080,#C0C0C0,center,1,1]HS-475 or HS-485[/td][/tr][/table]
Figure 5.
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Step 6.
Place the servo in the base as shown and screw it in tightly using four #4 tapping screws.
** 4 x**
Figure 6.
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Step 7.
Attach the ASB-201 bracket onto the base top, using four 2-56 x .250" phillips head machine screws and four 2-56 nuts as shown. Note, the bracket is included in the arm kit, not the base kit.
** 4 x**
** 4 x**
Figure 7.
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Step 8.
Add a drop of 3-in-1 oil to each bearing.
Figure 8.
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Step 9.
Install the base top. The hole pattern should line up as shown in Figure 9, with one line pointing to the servo wire hole, and all of the lines pointing between the mounting tabs.
Note, this top piece is manufactured to be a tight fit. You might have to press very hard.
Attach the top with the servo horn screw.
Figure 9.
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Step 10.
Route the base servo’s cable through the hole in the back of the base. This will keep the base level to the mounting surface.
Figure 10.
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Step 11.
Attach the 3/8" hex spacers as shown, using four 1/4" hex socket screws.
** 4 x**
** 4 x**
Figure 11.
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Step 12.
Install the power switch bracket using two 3/8" hex socket screws and two nylon insert lock nuts.
** 2 x**
** 2 x**
Figure 12.
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Step 13.
Install the power plug wiring harness as shown. Use a tie wrap to hold the wires in place as shown.
The pre-wired harness and wall pack must be checked before they are connected to the SSC-32. Put the black lead from a voltmeter on the black wire, and the red lead on the red wire. Plug the wall pack into the wall and insert the other end into the matching connector. Turn the voltmeter on and set it to measure DC volts. Turn on the power switch on the wiring harness. The voltmeter should read around +6vdc. If it reads -6vdc then DO NOT connect it to the SSC-32 and contact us. Yes, we found one of the wiring harnesses assembled backwards.
Figure 13.
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Step 14.
Install the 9vdc battery wiring harness as shown.
Figure 14.
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Step 15.
Install the ARC-32 as shown. Use four 1/4" hex socket screws.
** 4 x**
Figure 15.
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Step 16.
Attach the 9vdc wires to the ± main inputs. Attach the power plug wires to the +S1- inputs. Make sure the black wires goes to (-) and the red wires goes to (+). This will isolate the servos’ power from the microcontroller’s power and will prevent the ARC-32 from “browning out”.
A brownout can occur when a single power supply is used for servos and logic. If they are sharing a single supply it is possible for the servos to draw too much current, causing the microcontroller to reset.
Figure 16.
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Step 17.
Mount everything to a piece of plywood or the like. Attach the electronics carrier as shown. Make sure to route the base rotate servo wire through the holes, and verify that it isn’t being pinched. Use the #4 x .500" tapping screws to secure the assembly to the plywood.
** 4 x**
Figure 17.
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Step 18.
Plug the base rotate servo into the ARC-32 channel 0 as shown. Note that the black wire goes closest to the outside of the board.
Figure 18.
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Step 19.
Plug in the 6vdc 2amp wall pack and USB data cable as shown in Figure 19.
Download and install BasicMicro Studio. Connect the ARC-32 to the USB port and apply power. The red power LED should light. Open BasicMicro Studio. Click Preferences/Find. After a few seconds the ARC-32 should be detected.
Figure 19.
You arm base is now assembled and ready for the arm.