How do I control 4. Pq12 actuators. Simultaneously
If it requires 4 control boards
It depends on which model of the PQ12 you purchase.
There are three main families of PQ12:
]-P
This version has a potentiometer feedback and runs on 12 V DC. Ex: RB-Fir-44. This allows you to use your own motor controller/h-bridge circuit/etc. Your controller can determine the position of the actuator using the potentiometer’s.
/:m]
]-S
This is the “limit switch” version. Ex: RB-Fir-50. In this version, the actuator, when powered, simply runs until the end of its limits. When it reaches it, the power is cut off. There is also an output pin that can be used to detect when the limits are reached.
/:m]
]-R
This stands for RC Control. An example is the RB-Fir-164. This version runs at 6 V DC and requires a R/C-type control signal, which is a pulse that indicates the position (read more here).
In this case, there is a controller inside the linear actuator to control the position based on the signal sent. This RC-type control signal can also be sent to the actuator using a microcontroller board, such as an Arduino and using the Servo library./:m]
If you need to control 4 at the same time, the easiest may be the -R version, since it will only require one microcontroller pin or R/C channel per actuator.
We recommend that you check the datasheet under Useful Links on each product page for details about the interfaces and how to use them.
Sincerely,
I’m interested in creating a spoiler that can simultaneously control 4 of the Pq12 actuators. However my first question is which controller will be the most easy and fastest to program. My options are the actuonix and arduino. Arduino is my first option. However I run into the problem of simultaneous integration of four 4 PQ12 actuators controlling the spoiler simultaneously on each angle wirelessly from a remote. Which controller will be the best option in terms of solid background in wireless sensor communication and to control 4 PQ12 actuators with no integration problems of all four actuators. My second question is a follow up to your suggestion of controller. Will it need driver for your suggested controller. And my third question is in the below comment… you stated three different families of Pq12 actuators for my design. If I were to make a a spoiler for a car that needs 40 N - 50N and supply of 6V- 12V . Which family would you suggest to give easy programming, low cost, no problems with integration with 4 PQ12 actuators. I have a thoery how this can work with arduino nano and wireless sensors but would love to hear your input. Im working on this design for school so any input will help a great bunch. I’m interested in any discussion. I’m interested in any criticism. I may be wrong. But I feel the best option would be 4 arduino nanos on each PQ12 with a separate arduino uno to control them all simultaneously. The purpose of the arduino uno will to reduce cost of wireless sensors that way there is one instead of four. User presses the remote. Signal is transmitted the arduino uno as 1 to turn on. That way the arduino uno signals to the four arduino nano controllers 1 which shifts its position. This will eliminate the need for a driver. Howver this is my theory please let me know any input.
Thank you,
Jesse
This is for a large scale RC car by the way
Scharette
If I were to use the r model with Arduino would I need a driver?
Hi,
Lets address all of your points one at a time and then go with recommendations from there:
The -R family of actuators is by far the simplest (or the -I, which includes the RC interface and others). See below for more details as to why.
If you use the -P or -S families of actuators, then you need to provide a way to drive the motor forward and backward. This can be any regular DC motor controller that can provide the required power (and supports up-to 12 V DC).
If you go for such a setup, we would strongly recommend -P since it allows you to control the position, which seems like something important for your project.
Please note that with the -P actuator connected to a motor driver and its position feedback, you would most likely need 1-2 output pins for the motor driver and 1 input pin per motor. You would also need extra code to handle position changes and motor control (a standard PID could do it well, maybe even only a P or PI controller could work, too).
The advantage of using the -R there is that it has this controller and driver integrated into the actuator directly.
Therefore, if using an Arduino, the -R would be the simplest.
Well, most of the PQ12 seem to have a peak power point well below 40-50 N (more around 27 N). The RB-Fir-164 (-R) has a peak power point of 40 N, so this one may work but it will be at the limit of what you require.
You may be interested in the L12 or L16 families instead (go for -R or -I). Just make sure it has enough force for your needs.
In most cases, the -R would be recommended for the simplicity of using it since the motor driver/controller is embedded in it. Because of this, you can control them by simply connecting a proper power source (6 V DC) to their power lines and the signal to a PWM pin output from the Arduino. You would need 4 pins from an Arduino to control 4 of them. The standard Servo library should be able to handle all of this for you with a few lines of code.
There are quite a few options that are reasonable. Here are a few ideas if using the -R family:
- Use one Arduino-compatible microcontroller to control all 4 motors. This will require 4 output pins and the Arduino Servo library. You can then add a wireless connection to your Arduino and the appropriate code to handle that.
- Use a RC servomotor control board, such as the SSC-32U. This board can control up-to 32 RC servomotors (including -R family actuators). It also can handle providing power for them. It has 3 interfaces available:
2)a) USB: This allows you to test your setup with a computer quickly.
2)b) UART: The board exposes a UART TX/RX/GND 3-pin connection (standard 100mil header spacing) that can be used to connected directly by TTL UART, such as with an Arduino (Serial or SoftwareSerial library).
2)c) BEE: The board also has a Bee socket that allows you to connect any device with a compatible pinout using up-to ~200 mA, which should support most of them. This opens up the possibility of using XBee, ZigBee, Bluetooth (2.0, 4.0 BLE), LoRa (NA/915 MHz, EU/868 MHz), etc. - Since the -R family is RC compatible and using 6 V DC, you could also simply use an regular RC receiver (and matching controller). We have many available here.
We hope this helps clarify some stuff! 
Sincerely,
I wish to use the actuonix control board the smallest possible items to move 40 Newtons. However I want the control board placed inside the trunk of the car or in the console of the car to control the pq12 actuators wirelessly and simultaneously. How can this be possible with the most reliability and best response time wirelessly.Thank you
If you wish to use the Actuonix control board, you will have to use actuators of the -P family (potentiometer feedback).
Here is a short list of some -P actuators that we sell: RB-Fir-05, RB-Fir-09, RB-Fir-112, RB-Fir-113, RB-Fir-114, RB-Fir-115, RB-Fir-116, RB-Fir-117, RB-Fir-118, , RB-Fir-119, RB-Fir-120, RB-Fir-143, RB-Fir-144, RB-Fir-145, RB-Fir-146, RB-Fir-147, RB-Fir-148, RB-Fir-157, RB-Fir-165. You can see those here. Just make sure that its peak power is larger than your continuous requirement, as you do not want your linear actuator to be working at peak power continuously.
You will also need 4 controllers (1 per actuator) and some kind of microcontroller to handle all the commands and the wireless part.
As mentioned above, it would be simpler for you to use the -R family and simple RC receiver/controller. Most RC receivers have 4 channels are or more.
If you go the Arduino (or other microcontrollers) route to control the actuators (either -P actuators through the Actuonix control board or -R directly), you will need to add your own wireless solution. This means you will also need a wireless controller of some kind. This could be as simple as a using 2 joysticks or 4 sliders / potentiometers (or less if the resulting actuator positions are more limited / not fully independent).
Sincerely,