Hello! Im sorry if i am being confusing, very new to this, we have been asigned a school project, which requires us to make an autonomous forklift robot (with bluetooth controls, follows a black line etc... not the main point). It has to at least lift 100g from the ground , to a height of 4 cm (1.6 inches).
I want to use an arduino uno with a l298d motor driver ( the blue one with quadriple motor slots) since i already own one, but i wonder if it would be better to use a l298n ( the red one with 2 motor slots) ?
I plan on using up to 4 line follower sensors and I am intending to use 2DC motors for the wheels and a servo to spin a threaded rod which would move the forks up and down. Id program the servo so that it stops when forks reach the top position and that it stops when they reach the bottom one. Is this a possible design?
Have you calculated the power required to lift the weight through 40mm in the required time, allowing for friction in the gearbox and the leadscrew? If you know the battery voltage that will tell you what current is needed so you can assess if the driver is suitable. However the L298 is an old and inefficient bipolar chip and it would be better to use a modern one.
I am thinking of this design ( image isnt mine but its the closest of what i have in mind) and as you can see in this image the motor stops moving the forks is when the micro switch detects forks, but i wouldnt like to use switches. Instead i was thinking of ditching the normal DC motor on this image and using a servo dc motor , ( as far as i know servo motors are basically same as dc ones but you can also program their working time, or am I wrong? ), so it would stop when reaching the bottom and also when reaching the top position. Is this how it could work? I am yet to even calculate the necessary parameters, given that i have no idea on how to ( trying to find resources on it..we have only been given the project yesterday and have a week to come up with a plan), but i at least need to have a concrete design to base my research around
Which is it? DC motor and threaded rod or "the servo"?
If you use a 'continuous rotation servo' instead of a DC motor you would not need a DC motor driver for it. You still need limit switches for the top and bottom positions.
As is the usual case, people start with the easy part and then wonder why it doesn't work. Begin with the physical part and then worry about the motor and control and Arduino and software.
You pretty picture does not show the thrust bearing at the bottom of the threaded rod. Without that the design will not play. A thrust bearing must support all the weight and be able to turn at the same time.
Are you intending to make the parts yourself? 3D printed, or metal or? That will be key to your proposal.
( trying to find resources on it..we have only been given the project yesterday and have a week to come up with a plan), but i at least need to have a concrete design to base my research around