As the title states, I am looking to interface two 12V 12A Linear Actuators with an Arduino.
I am looking at motor drivers. At that curent rating, the cost is way too much so I was hoping to put multiple lower current motor drivers in parallel. Would this work?
I was thinking putting 6 L298N motor drivers, each with a (single bridge) max operating current of 2A, in parallel to run my two linear actuators.
I am a total noob at this stuff and would love to hear from someone with more experience. Will this work? I don't want to fry my drivers.
I'm not sure why you're recommending a relay and transistor though?
Sorry for the dumb question.
Won't the Arduino be responsible for turning on and off the power to the motors?
Are you recommending using the relay to completely shut off power to the drivers (in an attempt to minimize the power dissipation and stress to the drivers)?
I plan on mostly using on/off but would like the ability to use PWM.
You need the linear actuator to go both directions? Then you need an H-bridge.
With 12A, you want really low Rds parts, as power dissipated in the MOSFET = I^2R
So 121210mOhm (milliohm) = 1.4W for example.
The cooler the MOSFET is, the smaller the heatsink needed.
Some examples:
N-channel
<4.5mOhm at Vgs = 4.5V, 1212*.0045 = 648W
