I'll just start off by saying I am new here and fairly unreliable as a programmer. And in a nutshell I have a stepper motor that doesn't seem to move.
I work in a lab and we are trying to create a test fixture that will rotate a solid disk through a jet flame and water bath at various speeds. To this end we have decided to use a NEMA 23 1.9Nm Stepper motor. stepper motor
To drive the motor we ordered the SainSmart CNC Microstepping Driver Driver
I am using a 24V 3A power supply connected to the driver, which is connected to an Arduino Uno. I have made all connections as outlined in the schematic and online sources. I tried various codes that have been posted on here or other sites, and yet the motor doesn't turn.
I used a voltmeter to check the terminals and it seems everything up until the driver is working properly (There is a pulse wave going from the arduino to the driver). All appears to be in order but the motor will not turn, but I know SOMETHING is happening because it is getting warm. There is an Enable (ENA) pin which I have tried connected to power, ground, and completely open to no effect.
If anyone has any clue what the problem is please let me know. I could post one or two of the codes I tried but again they are just standard test codes you'd find on any site. If there are any other details you need to provide an answer feel free to ask, and thanks in advance for the help!
These stepper drivers are typically opto isolated, you probably need to drive all 3 inputs, step, direction and enable.
Each has two connections, and all need to be wired as you basically are talking to 3 LEDs (with series
resistors, usually). Was there a manual with it? follow the markings on the case and connect all the +ve
inputs to 5V, and drive the -ve inputs (remember its an LED, it should be active low if driving the cathode side)
Here is a rough schematic of my setup. As I've noted the ENA terminal is either shorted, connected to ground, or to the 5V and it never seems to make a difference.
I should point out that the manual for the driver states that you don't need a resistor between the controller and the driver if the controller is running at 5V.
I'm running two of the older versions of this driver and just mounted this driver along side the other two. Have not wired M5045 up yet. The two 4045-A1s work fine with the enable pin disconnected. The inputs are pulled up internally with a 240 ohm resistor on the 5045 (330 ohm on the 4045s). So with nothing connected, the pins are pulled high.
Mine are connected like yours. I have the steppers wired as follows:
A+ Black
A- Green
B+ Red
B- Blue.
I did not see the wire colors on you schematic. I looked at the layout of your drivers and the wiring looks the same as the ones I am using (Nema 23 4.2 amp) from Here
I was able to get the first two motors tested today. I did have to invert the enable logic from Grbl on the enable pins, but the drivers worked fine if both of the enable inputs are left disconnected.
Looking at the datasheets and the covers, there are only a few differences between the drivers. The 5045 requires a higher minimum input voltage (24VDC vs 12VDC). The low range on the current limiter is a little higher and the 5045 has more micro stepping options.
Yes those are the wires for the stepper I use. I'm sorry I did not post the color scheme since it was listed on the page with the stepper.
From everything I have read and seen the problem is not with the wiring, which elads me to believe it is a coding issue or a problem with the hardware.
Do you mean 5-8 ON? In my documentation that is how you get 400 steps per rev.
I have 1-3 ON-OFF-OFF (3 amps)
4 is ON
5-8 are all OFF because I did not want micro-stepping. Could this be my problem? I assumed setting them all to off would just turn of the micro-stepping and provide the standard 200 steps per rev of a 1.8 degree motor.
WSU_dropout:
Do you mean 5-8 ON? In my documentation that is how you get 400 steps per rev.
I have 1-3 ON-OFF-OFF (3 amps)
4 is ON
5-8 are all OFF because I did not want micro-stepping. Could this be my problem? I assumed setting them all to off would just turn of the micro-stepping and provide the standard 200 steps per rev of a 1.8 degree motor.
Try 5-8 on. My data sheet does not show all off as a valid choice. There are only 14 positions listed there (out of 16).
WSU_dropout:
5-8 are all OFF because I did not want micro-stepping. Could this be my problem?
It could be a problem - why don't you want microstepping? If you don't have
mechanical damping you probably want microstepping to reduce resonance issues.
The choice between full steps or microsteps should not affect the basic functioning of the motor for initial no-load tests at low speed. I would much prefer to use the simplest full-steps to prove that a motor works.
I looked at the 4045 data sheet again. On that driver if all of the microstep dip swiches are off, the driver is in standby. 5045 has no entry for that value.
