I have a 12v DC car seat motor (car seat motor) that I like to use to control steering for Power Wheels. I tested the motor with a battery and it works. My question is, how can I control this using a radio and receiver? I’m new to RC, and I’ve never created anything RC before.
I also like to control the Power Wheels 12v DC motors also using RC.
Just by researching online, I think I can use Sabertooth 2x32 to do this, but is there any cheaper alternative? I’m still doing research, but I think I can also use a h-bridge also?
Hello @tonynsx and welcome to the RobotShop community,
My question is, how can I control this using radio and receiver?
Well, you’ve practically answered your question, but yes, you will need a DC motor controller that supports R/C. In order to choose one you will need to know the nominal voltage (you already mentioned that it is 12V), the continuous current (or the stall current) and the control method (you already mentioned that you want to control it remotely). You can check this guide for more details about this:
The Sabertooth Dual 2x32A can work between 6-30V so if the continuous current of your motor is less than 32A and the stall current is less than 64A you can use that motor controller. If not, you can find other options in the R/C DC Controllers section. Note that the sabertooth 2x32A can control two motors, so if you only need to control one you can definitely find some cheaper options, for example:
And you will also need the transmitter and receiver. You can find some options in the Wireless RC / PWM Servo Controllers section, then you’ll simply need to connect the receiver to the controller (the manuals explain how to do so), activate the R/C mode and bind the receiver to the transmitter.
Thank you for the response. So I have a 12v dc car seat motor (steering), then 2 power wheels motors. So I actually have 3 motors, but I think I can control the 2 power wheels motors at the same time correct?
Also since I’m new, I’m trying to do this cheap as possible as a way to learn. I know I need a transmitter and receiver, but that seems that’s the easy part. What about using an h-bridge?
I’m sure I’ll have tons of questions, this is my first RC project.
So I have a 12v dc car seat motor (steering), then 2 power wheels motors
Could you share the specs of these motors? (nominal voltage, continuous and stall current)
but I think I can control the 2 power wheels motors at the same time correct?
It depends, if the motors only draw less than half of what the controller can provide continuously then you can connect them in parallel and control them using the same channel. But if they draw more than half you can’t because you’ll be asking for more current than what the motor can provide.
What about using an h-bridge?
An h-bridge is just a common circuit used for controlling DC motors, actually lots of the motor controllers you’ll find actually use an h-bridge.
