Motor and Controller Selection for Odd Project

Help & Support Robot Parts
1

Hello,

I’m working to design a machine at work and I need to have a motor pulse occasionally to wrap up a spool of ribbon. The ribbon only moves about a half inch at a time through the machine so it really isn’t moving much. Also, as the spool winds up, the amount of rotation needed by the motor goes down. I’m thinking of using some sort of a small DC motor but I need help with the motor selection and the motor controller selection.

In addition, I’m trying to use a small PLC to control the rest of the machine. What kind of inputs would be needed on the motor controller? Or would I need to use an Arduino or similar to get a high enough output speed?

I’m very new into programming robotics so all the help is appreciated!

Thanks,
Chris

2

So, as I continue to develop this design…

I think I’m going to use a small stepper motor with a slip clutch to wind up the ribbon spool.

Could y’all help me in figuring out what I would need to have a arduino like this: (robotshop.com/en/arduino-meg … -rev3.html) control a Nema 17 stepper?

Thanks!
Chris

3

Have you chosen the stepper motor? This will help us determine which stepper motor controllers would be appropriate. We would need to know voltage and current, and if it’s bipolar or unipolar.
robotshop.com/en/stepper-mot … llers.html

4

Thanks for the reply!

I’m thinking the following motor…

robotshop.com/en/3v-17a-68oz … motor.html

and then possibly the following driver?

robotshop.com/en/dual-bipola … duino.html

with this power supply…

robotshop.com/en/12v-5a-power-adapter.html

I really don’t need high precision… the slip clutch will take care of any errors when I overshoot!

5

A few flags:

The stepper operates at 3V nominal whereas the controller starts at 8.2V to 45V.
The stepper can consume 1.7A whereas the controller can provide up to 1.6A.

The power supply is 12V which does not seem to correspond with anything.

What are you basing your choice on?

6

I’m really not sure what to base it all on! haha!

I’m a mechanical guy. This is my first time delving into this kind of thing!

I sure appreciate the help though.

The only things I know for sure are the need for a Nema 17 size stepper and that I want to use that Arduino Mega 2560

Thanks!
Chris

7

You would ideally need a torque value as well. For example the following is NEMA 17 but a lot less powerful:
robotshop.com/en/12v-350ma-2 … motor.html

8

Sorry! That’s why I had selected the stepper I linked to before… I need the 68 oz-in torque.

robotshop.com/en/3v-17a-68oz … motor.html

9

3V input is really on the low side for many stepper controllers. Consider a geared stepper motor which operates at 12V nominal. This will slow the overall maximum speed, but also lower the required current. Most are NEMA mount compatible (check the description / specs).

10

Well… That’s all I could find on here for a Nema 17 with 68 oz of torque. I don’t want a geared motor. I want this project to be simple and cheap.

I need to know about how to match up a driver and power supply with the arduino I selected and a Nema 17 with at least 68 oz in of torque. Can you help me with that or not?

Thank you,
Chris