Hey everyone, I am trying to control a proportional solenoid valve using an Arduino. The valves I have controlled before have all been 0-5 V and I could use a relay with them. Could you please suggest how I could go about controlling this 0-6 V valve?
Components:ASCO R202A546L0V00E7 valve (datasheet )
The datasheet also shows the following:
Does that indicate that PWM is optional?
The simplest way to get 0-6 V that I have found is using as Op-amp with a gain of 1.2 or a pull-up transistor.
If there are any resources or topics on the forum that I may have missed, I would love to have them linked in this post. Thank you guys.
Looking at this part of the datasheet:
It states a frequency of 1000 Hz for PWM. However, the UNO R4 WiFi can only do around 500 Hz. Would it be a better option then, not to use PWM?
An op amp wont give you 420mA.
Isnt that the max. operating current?
Use the relay (or a MOSFET) and a 6V DC power supply.
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Thank you! I will use it to get 6V and then control the valve.
I will have to figure that out now.
I think I will have to power the valve with my power bank and a buck converter to get constant 6V.
To get the 6V to control the valve, I will have to use an op-amp with 1.2 gain and Arduino.
jim-p
August 5, 2025, 9:57am
11
Op-amp that can provide 500mA output at 6V are somewhat rare.
Try this circuit:
An Uno can output 980Hz PWM on pins 5 and 6, that may be close enough to 1000Hz for it to work
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tigger
August 5, 2025, 10:36am
12
See Nick Gammon's article on PWM frequencies (Gammon.au)
I'm currently running a 160-V DC motor on PWM at 10 Kilohertz.
1000 Hz easily achieved, standard Nano 328
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I am a bit confused about the wiring.
I have two 6v wires with this setup:
One from the power bank through the buck converter to power the valve (constant 6V and GND wire)
Another for PWM from Arduino through an Op-amp
The valve itself only has two wires as shown in the datasheet for + and - .
Would this setup be able to control and power the valve at the same time? I hope my question makes sense
I already have the valve on the way unfortunately.
jim-p
August 5, 2025, 12:03pm
16
Yes.
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Thank you, that was really really kind of you. Its a lot clearer to me now.
jim-p
August 5, 2025, 12:08pm
18
Since the solenoid does not draw a lot of current, you can build this circuit on a solderless breadboard for testing.
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Perfect, that makes it so much easier for me to test.
How do you know that 0-5 volts would not give you the control you need for this valve? I certainly would test it before going to spend more money on a new control system.
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