arduino mega + 4 stepper motors

Forum 2005-2010 (read only) Hardware Interfacing
1

So i've done a few searches and it seems that there are NO threads

for anyone trying to run 4 stepper motors off an arduino MEGA

^^^ this is the motor

and thats really all i need to do !

and if anyone could direct me to an appropriate powersupply which would DRIVE these guys as well ... that would be just phenomenal!

2

http://www.ladyada.net/make/mshield/index.html

I've seen this one ...
but it doesnt look like that will do!?

3

IDK but can you use a transister and a PWM pin? That's what I do for motors, but will it work for steppers? I don't think so but it's an idea.

4

The EasyDriver stepper motor controller the SparkFun sells will drive those steppers, using just two pins per controller.

5

I don't think PWM works for steppers. For a unipolar stepper you need to coordinate pulses to power the coils in a certain order. Sending the coordinated pulses faster will increase angular velocity. You can connect each stepper wire to a transistor to increase current handling capacity, and each transistor would be controlled by the microcontroller.

6

@ PaulS

I thought about that.. would that mean im just controlling 4 motors via 4 separate easyDrivers?

bc that would work ...

@convoluted

I am 100% new to all the hardware .. just ordered my first breadboard yeasterday !!! ( stoked !!! )

so a transistor has 3 wires ...

and it can AMPLIFY or SWITCH electronic signals...

so are there any examples of circuits out there i could checkout ??

and the LAST IDEA i had was to build one out of this fancy thing:

which is a shield kit for the MEGA .. and im thinking that once i have a concept of how hardware works .. that i could wire something like that up to handle 4+ bi polar steppers

thanks guys!

7

Look at the reprap project that uses 4 stepping motors at the same time. Three for axis control and the fourth for the extruder.

8

yeah reprap as well as the makerbot are all fairly complex ...

im not sure if id be able to handle the diagrams ... YET

working on my first set of youtube diagrams as we speak !

9

Here's a very good article on controlling a simple stepper setup, including some great diagrams and explanations (it has a 2nd page as well). Good luck!

10

Do you intend to control the motors independently of one another or with coordinated motion (as in a CNC machine)?

11

so a transistor has 3 wires ...

Yes, but usually called 3 terminals or leads.

and it can AMPLIFY or SWITCH electronic signals...

Yes, depending on the circuit they are used in.

so are there any examples of circuits out there i could checkout ??

Lots of examples all over the arduino site showing switching applications like: Arduino Playground - HomePage

Not as many examples of using transistors as amplifiers, and really small 8 pin opamps offer so much more features when needing amplification and much easier to design with.

Lefty