My name is Théo and I am new here. I am new to electronics and Arduino to be exact. The closest I have come so far to 'programming' is with my 3d printer. So I have an Arduino MEga 2560 and RAMPS board combination on my printer. Like I said, the closest I have come to programming is (with help of a 3D group) 'hacking' an existing Marlin profile to change setting for the printer.
I am not a programmer by any means. I have been in the IT field for a number of years, so I don't really see myself as completely dumb though. HOWEVER, I feel I have ventured into really deep waters and feels like I am struggling to swim.
So, after all this verbal diarrhea, I need help with the following... I would like to know which section of this forum I need to consult, to build a rotating table of some kind that can rotate 0-10 RPM for welding? I have tried to do some searching around, but the more I read, the more confused I get. There are some really complicated projects out there. Mine seems to be very simplistic though.
ZeroAxe:
I would like to know which section of this forum I need to consult, to build a rotating table of some kind that can rotate 0-10 RPM for welding?
You need to provide a lot more information - I had assumed you were waiting for the question to be moved to a suitable Section before doing that.
I presume you have a mechanical design for the table in mind - please give us the details.
How big is it?
How heavy is it?
What weight will it be required to carry?
What will be happening when it is rotating?
How many revolutions will it need to do?
Will the angular position matter?
etc etc etc
and then you probably have some ideas about the motor needed to make it rotate ...
A diagram of the project and links to product specifications will help.
The way I plan on the table itself will not be right next to the electronics.
That makes things even worse. Long wires pick up interference better than short ones.
We have had many projects here over the years and that is always the problem. I don't know if any one has solved it. What ever it is this is not a beginners project. Electric arcs do generate one hell of a lot of interference.
Robin2:
You need to provide a lot more information - I had assumed you were waiting for the question to be moved to a suitable Section before doing that.
Indeed sir, I just wanted to make sure the subject is in the right section before I delve in further
I presume you have a mechanical design for the table in mind - please give us the details.
How big is it?
How heavy is it?
What weight will it be required to carry?
The items to be welded will not be heavy by itself. However I am going to have a small lathe chuck as part of the rig. I guesstimate in the region of 5kg max
What will be happening when it is rotating?
I will be welding lol. No seriously, I am not sure how to answer this without sounding like a smart @s$ I need it to rotate small tubes smoothly so that I can have the torch in the same position and have a ascetically (and structurally sound) weld
How many revolutions will it need to do?
Only one or two rotations (thinking about it, I think two would be best). But I would like to be able to adjust the speed. This is because of different thickness materials needing different speeds.
Will the angular position matter?
I am not sure I understand the question? Would you clarify please?
and then you probably have some ideas about the motor needed to make it rotate ...
I already have a Nema 23.
A diagram of the project and links to product specifications will help.
I actually found this one and have mostly all the exact same components. Please view the following link. The code also seems ok, no? However, I am also a bit unsure how to load it to the Arduino Uno.
Grumpy_Mike:
That makes things even worse. Long wires pick up interference better than short ones.
We have had many projects here over the years and that is always the problem. I don't know if any one has solved it. What ever it is this is not a beginners project. Electric arcs do generate one hell of a lot of interference.
Dear Sir,
What I actually mean by the plate being a little further from the welding is it will be running on a shaft and gear combo. I want the electronics/wires to be as short and compact as possible. Hope this makes sense?
Perhaps you don’t need an Arduino at all. Consider a belt drive with a heavy duty, continuous rotation servo motor, which will have it’s own driver, inside a metal enclosure.
The box with the wires is just the power switch and fuse. The driver is under the motor behindthe max speed dial. The lever on the left is for a mechanical foot pedal speed control:
ZeroAxe:
I need it to rotate small tubes smoothly so that I can have the torch in the same position and have a ascetically (and structurally sound) weld
There is nothing smart-ass about that information and now we have a much clearer understanding of your project.
Will the angular position matter?
I am not sure I understand the question? Would you clarify please?
Do you need to start or stop at a specific angle of rotation?
I already have a Nema 23.
My question was hoping to get from you a description of how the motor and turntable would be connected together - the mechanical system that you plan to use.
Robin2:
There is nothing smart-ass about that information and now we have a much clearer understanding of your project.
I am not sure I understand the question? Would you clarify please?
Do you need to start or stop at a specific angle of rotation?
No sir. I will be starting at any point on the circumference of the tube and it will rotate until the full weld/360° are welded (and then start with second rotation just for gas coverage after weld).
My question was hoping to get from you a description of how the motor and turntable would be connected together - the mechanical system that you plan to use.
I have a GT2 20T gear for the Nema 23 motor with a GT2 belt. Then, on the shaft (that goes to the lathe chuck via shaft/thrust bearings) I will have a GT2 60T gear. So the 20T and 60T gears are 'connected' with a belt drive.
ChrisTenone:
Perhaps you don’t need an Arduino at all. Consider a belt drive with a heavy duty, continuous rotation servo motor, which will have it’s own driver, inside a metal enclosure.
The box with the wires is just the power switch and fuse. The driver is under the motor behindthe max speed dial. The lever on the left is for a mechanical foot pedal speed control:
Dear Sir,
That looks like a really nice motor. Unfortunately, here in South Africa, to try and find something like that is near impossible and/or ludicrously expensive
ChrisTenone:
It wasn’t that expensive (~100 USD), and it came from China.
It’s gonna cost you a bit to get up to speed on Arduino as well.
I can look into this option too I suppose. Our government system is so messed up with importing though (if you import anything more than 3 items per year, they see you as an importer and you need to register a business and pay importers taxes!! :o )
Do you have a link for it please?
I would like to continue on the Arduino idea too though
ZeroAxe:
No sir. I will be starting at any point on the circumference of the tube and it will rotate until the full weld/360° are welded (and then start with second rotation just for gas coverage after weld).
One thing that is not clear - will the welding be automatic or are you controlling it yourself?
If it is automatic then the Arduino will need to know when the job starts and when a subsequent 360° have elapsed.
I have a GT2 20T gear for the Nema 23 motor with a GT2 belt. Then, on the shaft (that goes to the lathe chuck via shaft/thrust bearings) I will have a GT2 60T gear. So the 20T and 60T gears are 'connected' with a belt drive.
Have you connected it up and tried a simple program to see if it all works? Try this Simple Stepper Code
Because your rotating parts are heavy you will either need to use a very slow step rate or use acceleration to get to the desired speed without missing steps.
Here’s a link to the $100 motor I have, it’s made for a commercial sewing machine and goes as slow as 6 rpm, which can be throttled down to a dead stop with the lever. Except for start and stop though, I think Arduino control would be non-trivial.
are you using the table as part of the welding ground ?
electricity does not move through bearings very well.
I made a spinner with a 5C collet indexer. I put the pulley on the shaft. this allowed me 360 degrees and the ability to clamp my parts with the Collet.
The hard part is to get the ground wire to be through the parts and not the machine tools.
As for the problem with welding and close proximity to electroncis, I would offer that the CNC guys with plazma tables would be the best source for information on how to keep things working. They run the plama electrode wires next to the stepper control wires.
In my opinion, you could be able to have a potentiometer that you set for speed, a forward and reverse switch
an off switch to shut power off to the stepper so you can spin things by hand.
and a foot switch in case you want to have a manual table at some point.
I need it to rotate small tubes smoothly so that I can have the torch in the same position and have a ascetically (and structurally sound) weld
