Hi - I'm pretty much new to motors, so I'd like some advice about the best way to approach this problem.
I would like to use an 16-position rotary switch to switch between HP lines (I want only one line ON over 16 then the other, then the other, etc.). I'd need its position to be modified based on software input. I don't know with kind of electronic device. It exists something like small motorized rotary switch ?
Thanks a lot!
What are you switching on these "HP lines" (what does that mean?),
is it signal, power or what?
Does it have to be a motorised switch? You can switch pins easily in an Arduino, and have software doing the switching of 16 i/o pins connected to some kind of transistor or solid state relay setup....
So the Arduino is the virtual rotary switch.
A lot hangs on what an HP line is, though.
What are you switching on these "HP lines" (what does that mean?), is it signal, power or what?
Sorry, it's is the signal to the loudspearkers. "HP lines" : Loudspeakers lines
Does it have to be a motorised switch? You can switch pins easily in an Arduino, and have software doing the switching of 16 i/o pins connected to some kind of transistor or solid state relay setup....
I am already using a relay setup to switch on or off some equipments and it works well. But I need 16 relay to control 16 lines. I would prefer to use a selector. Only one selector to control 16 lines.
What's the basis for the selection?- time? ie, just scroll through the lines in a never ending loop or what? Does it require manual intervention?- in which case I guess a normal rotary switch would do 8) so I guess not?
Why not use a 16 bit multiplexer?
Why not use a 16 bit multiplexer?
It's what I did to use the 16 relays...
What's the basis for the selection?- time? ie, just scroll through the lines in a never ending loop or what? Does it require manual intervention?- in which case I guess a normal rotary switch would do smiley-cool so I guess not?
The selection should be controled by computador, by the program and it will be probably done one scroll by day. It will change something like every minutes between each loudspeaker.
It doesn't require manual intervention.
in which case I guess a normal rotary switch would do smiley-cool so I guess not? Yes but I need a motorized control to pilot it from the computador (o arduino)
Up 
There IS a rotary switch that has a single solenoid magnet that advances it to the next position. It is usually called a "Stepper Switch" or "Stepper Relay". This type of technology was used in the first non-electronic telephone exchanges for the newfangled Dial Telephones.
Stepper Relay:
I used these in early automatic data loggers for broadcast stations, as the "Analog Multiplexer". History...
looks great ! I will search it
I've made motorized rotary switches like below using servos.
I have never heard of speaker wires being called "HP lines". Google has no relevant matches in the first three pages.
A stepper motor on a 16 throw, 2 pole switch. Or a set of 16 relays.
Make sure the contacts are rated for a suitable level of current.
I've made motorized rotary switches like below using servos.
This would work easier with servos if the "Detent" spring was made weak so the rotary force (AKA Torque) needed would be less. Or the small ball bearing in most detent mechanisms can be removed.
polymorph:
I have never heard of speaker wires being called "HP lines". Google has no relevant matches in the first three pages.
OP pierromond has a name that sounds quite French.
Therefore HP must relate to Haut Parleur, which translates to loudspeaker, and is probably a very common short for this to the French.
terryking228:
I've made motorized rotary switches like below using servos.
This would work easier with servos if the "Detent" spring was made weak so the rotary force (AKA Torque) needed would be less. Or the small ball bearing in most detent mechanisms can be removed.
Below is the whole story from ~10 years ago. I think hobby king now carries a sail winch that makes ~1 turn, which would make it ideal for turning pots, switches, and 360 rotation for sensors and such.
Good old uniselectors used to be pretty common when I was young; we had them in quantity at the local scrap metal yard - which happened to be not far from the PMG engineering depot.
I think you will find them a bit hard to come by nowadays as they are no longer really used - and probably not cheap either. What they were replaced by - called a "crossbar" - could be useful however, but of course, digital switching is used nowadays.
Other factors in your problem include whether you want to switch stereo speaker pairs which would require two switching "poles" - but I presume not - and whether you need to switch both wires to the speakers - again requiring two switching poles, or four if it was stereo.
Small audio amplifiers of a watt or so are actually so cheap that it may actually be just as practical to use 16 amplifiers and switch the signal with analog multiplexers, or the power supply to the amplifiers (something like the TPIC6B595 comes to mind).
Now you would not need 16 relays to switch 16 single poles, as the relays are usually "double throw" - they switch between two alternatives. And if they are at least double pole or four pole, they can be cascaded whereby the NC and NO contacts of the first then each go to a changeover on the second so that two relays select four outputs, three relays select eight and if you allow for switching either line to the speaker, four relays can select sixteen outputs (presuming DPDT relays).
Couldn't find a diagram to illustrate this ...
Can you sketch something? I can only see how that would save one relay. IE, 8 inputs. Two to each of 4 DPDT relays, reducing it to 4 lines.
Output of a pair goes to another DPDT relay, reducing it to 2 lines.
A last relay selects between those two. But that is 8 inputs and 7 relays. But at the cost of requiring more than one relay be activated for some inputs, increased complexity, and a bunch of connections in series.
I am not picturing what you are seeing. Or are you talking about mono with DPDT?
Using DPDT relays, you need four relays to switch 8 outputs as two together make a four pole switch.
You would in fact need another four DPDT relays to make that sixteen. Of course, that means that up to three relays need to be energised at once but they do not take much current really. You can either gang the relays at each "level" of switching, or energise only those necessary to define the "path".
Thinking ...
May be just as well to use two of these.
w~~60_12.JPG).