This is my 2nd independent arduino project. It's an art installation where I am trying to create an animated effect on a wall (made of mesh, jute and some other layers, the total weight per section can be around 10kgs). I am placing 4-5 servo motors with a stick attached on the back and letting a PIR sensor activate the whole motion.
Anything I need to keep in mind?
The motors are metal gear 10kg/cm around 4.8- 7.2V , & they will have a separate power supply coming in.
Do I need an L293D motor driver too for this?
I have worked with a 12v DC motor earlier and used this H-bridge then.
No, the neat thing about servos is they only need data from the Arduino. Just one small wire (and connect the grounds) and you can use servos as big as your power supply allows.
I find it difficult to find a servo's power specification. They don't seem to give you listings of the peak current that the servo requires. You may have to buy a few and test.
Keep in mind that the 10kg/cm could be a distorted claim made by supplier of the cheaper servos. Adding a "stick" to the servo will quickly depreciate any claimed output as will any supply voltage especially under load. As they can be perhaps 2amp each depending on load, at the low voltage, voltage drop caused by this high current will become an issue. Ratings are at maximum voltage also. As you are sharing the load over 4 or 5 servos, depending on how it is set up, you may have the load being transferred to one or two servos at any particular instant which will make the above more of a problem.
bluejets:
Keep in mind that the 10kg/cm could be a distorted claim made by supplier of the cheaper servos. Adding a "stick" to the servo will quickly depreciate any claimed output as will any supply voltage especially under load. As they can be perhaps 2amp each depending on load, at the low voltage, voltage drop caused by this high current will become an issue. Ratings are at maximum voltage also. As you are sharing the load over 4 or 5 servos, depending on how it is set up, you may have the load being transferred to one or two servos at any particular instant which will make the above more of a problem.
Umm.. that sounds very complicated. There's this fabric wall of plants which I am trying to push with servos. It's to create an uneven surface on the facade. I just need that animation effect to happen.
So the load isn't directly on the machine, it comes when it moves towards 180 degrees, which causes the stick attached on it to move forward and push the fabric. I am using metal gears so that the load and continues action doesn't harm the machine. it's going to be on the whole day ( say around 12-15 hrs).
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