Programming Help Needed with Servo Clock

[DillyDog]

Hi All

I am a product designer, mainly working in lighting, but recently been interested in clocks - unusual clocks. Currently I am working on a clock that will use 4 servos for 4 hands; hours, minutes, seconds and AM/PM. Although I have played around with the Arduino platform, I feel, to get this project off the ground, I need help.
So, I'm looking for someone to make my servos do what I want them to do. In return I can offer a production clock (or a late prototype), or perhaps even hard CA$H!! I can handle all the hardware side, 'cos that's what I do.
PM me if you're interested.

Cheers

Tim

[MarkT]

Well do you have any particular servos in mind - many only do 180 degrees (or a bit less) of rotation.  There are
continuous rotation servos too.  Do you have any idea of how to mechanical couple servos and hands (3 concentric
axles for the hands will be a rather specialist bit of construction for instance - and if you are using gears then the
180 degree range can be converted to 360 with a 1:2 gear ratio - the hand might have to nip back the wrong way on
every full rotation!!

[DillyDog]

The servos I am playing with at the moment are cheap little 9g ones, although I will use best quality ones on the final product. The clock will have 4 hands, one on each servo, and they are all separate. Mechanically, I have it all sussed. I will only need 120º sweep on each servo, so I'm guessing 2º movement for each minute and second and 10º sweep for the hours. The AM/PM hand can be 30 or 45º. I will send you a rough picture if you are interested.

[PaulS]

How will you set the time on this clock? Just grabbing a hand and moving it isn't going to do anything.

How will you keep time when the Arduino resets? It, by itself, does not make a very good clock.

I will send you a rough picture if you are interested.

Post it here, instead.

[retrolefty]

The servos I am playing with at the moment are cheap little 9g ones, although I will use best quality ones on the final product. The clock will have 4 hands, one on each servo, and they are all separate. Mechanically, I have it all sussed. I will only need 120º sweep on each servo, so I'm guessing 2º movement for each minute and second and 10º sweep for the hours. The AM/PM hand can be 30 or 45º. I will send you a rough picture if you are interested.

Sounds like an interesting project and depending on the artistic form achieved could be an attractive clock. However as Paul mentioned you really could use the help of adding a real time clock module that would allow the clock to be able to start-up knowing the correct time and move the servos to initial their proper starting position.

https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10160

Lefty

[Bainesbunch]

https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10160

Lefty

Or if like me you are trying to keep costs down build it into your PCB using these

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/170798024540?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

and these

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/130814355984?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

and these

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/150961254851?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

Cheers Pete.