Im looking for someone to fabricate a PCB to operate a servo motor with several functions. I dont have the experiance or the time and would prefer the PCB to be made from scratch. If you or anyone you know is up to the job for some extra cash then please let me know as soon as possible.
Objective:
To operate a 6v high torque servo motor possibly a Futaba S3305/6 (to be confirmed) via a rechargeable battery.
Main PCB to have a on/off switch.
4 seperate degree settings. i.e. Possition 1= 0-30 degrees, Poss 2= 0-40 d, Poss 3= 0-50 d, Poss 4= 0-60 d via a selector switch.
If possible the motor should stop at the 0 degree setting each time but this is not essential.
Infrared remote (433Mhz) to control speed and a stop and go button. I have an infrared remote ready made from a previous project that I believe is 433Mhz, so if this could be used then all the better, (pictures available).
It is my intention to use a lithium polymer rechargeable battery and have the appropriate circuitry included in the PCB, but for now, if simpler, an alternative power supply would be acceptable.
If this is not a project for you but have suggestions as to how this project could be presented in more friendly electronic terms, this would also be much appreciated.
Infrared remote (433Mhz) to control speed and a stop and go button. I have an infrared remote ready made from a previous project that I believe is 433Mhz, so if this could be used then all the better, (pictures available).
Well IR remote controls don't operate at 433MHz.
433MHz is the frequency of a radio transmitter.
IR uses light normally modulated between 30 to 40 KHz.
Are you asking only for a PCB design, or for a full schematic of a design, with a PCB layout, to meet the design requirement you have laid out? Also, where does the Arduino fit in this (I am assuming that you are wanted to control the servo with a ATMega processor - probably an ATMega8 would be best for such low requirements - but you don't mention this).
If you are wanting such a ground-up design and are willing to pay for it, that's ok; just realize that for good design work it won't be cheap or fast - if I were bidding for the job (which I'm not - too much on my plate, plus I don't have any PCB design experience), I would probably start at about $1000.00 US (and would still likely eat extra hours); this would be for a full schematic, breadboarding, programming, pcb design, prototyping, QA, revisions, etc thru to a working board design.
I don't think that amount would be unfair (in fact, I would be willing to bet it being a low-ball price - but then again, I have never bid on such a design, my experience is in software development - what do others think?).
You should describe what the remote buttons do. It's not clear what this thing does. You also need to say what the accuracy of position is: if it has to be really accurate, then you need some kind of a position sensor. Related to that, you need to say whether it can have a "stop" = something that will physically hold the servo from rotating past the stop. If you can't have a stop, you need some kind of zero sensor.
You need to specify how fast you want the servo to slew.
You also need to specify how much battery capacity you want. A 6V high torque motor is going to pull a fair amount of current. Using packs like a power tool is likely to work. In fact, if you are trying to minimize cost, I'd just use one of those and their chargers.
A "real" engineer is going to charge a lot more than $1000 to get this done. A hobbyist might do it for less.
I don't think this needs a mega. A base Arduino, or clone will be fine. He only has one motor, one 4 state input switch and the remote receiver.
Why do you want a PCB? Do you need a bunch of them or is this for appearance? There is so little here, I'd be inclined to just breadboard it unless you really want the charger on the board. A servo shield, an IR receiver breakout, and some wires is all this really needs.
As you can see it can handle any kind of power source you need up to about 36V. Between this, the proper receiver that will work with your existing remote, and some good coding for the arduino and your all set.
I wasn't saying an Arduino Mega was needed, but rather the Atmel ATMega8 (8k version) - you know, the original Arduino microcontroller.
I think a 168/328 would be overkill, but then again, maybe the 8 has been end-of-life'd (I heard that was the case for the 328 - at least, from Digikey?).
BTW - if these chips have been EOL'd - where/what is the next Arduino going to be based on (will there still be a thru-hole option)...?
We might see ourselves going the Pro/Nano route (kinda like the Basic Stamp 2 did) with an SMT Arduino PCB in the footprint of a 28-pin wide DIP...?
Ah, guilty of scanning without reading. Yes ATmega8 is fine.
I'm a Teensy fanboy myself. More IOs, better USB, physically smaller, and costs less. I think you take that idea as the base, and then have a breakout board to get to back to shield connectors if you need them.
Agree that you only need an entry level chip for this. Depending on the volume, you may find that it's cheapest to drop a Teensy or even an RBBB on a simpler board. If it was a full custom job, we go by price of the chip, and often in small volumes, the chip cost doesn't really correlate with features, but rather production volume, etc.
He hasn't told us enough, but it sure sounds like you could cram this into 4K. 8K would be roomy. Doesn't need too much library.
maybe the 8 has been end-of-life'd (I heard that was the case for the 328 - at least, from Digikey?).
BTW - if these chips have been EOL'd - where/what is the next Arduino going to be based on (will there still be a thru-hole option)...?
(I don't know what people are looking at at digikey; I can't see and "eol" notices for any 328 varieties...)
The ATmega328 is not so much end-of-lifed as replaced by the nearly identical ATmega328P. I think that the current generation of Arduinos has ALWAYS used the ATmega328P variety; it's just that the differences haven't been particularly relevant to the audience. Certain particularly paranoid microcontroller customers will have to do another round of "qualification" testing of the chip within the context of their product to make sure that it REALLY hasn't changed in any significant way, but Arduino is not likely among these.
The Atmel site says that ATmega8, ATmega168, and ATmega168P, are ALL "not recommended for new designs." They're replaced by ATmega8A and ATmega168PA respectively...
I never verified it myself; I do remember that the person who wrote that was one of the more "prominent" (in my opinion only) members on these forums (but I don't remember exactly who - I want to say Osgeld, but that might be wrong).
Whomever it was, they didn't mention any particular rev (P vs A), they just mentioned having to go with some other non-DIP part that was similar. Again, of which I don't remember.
I you can provide me a hand drawn schematic I'd be willing to be on it. I am a EE and can do the PCB design. What is your target cost per board and how many?
