Hi everybody!
Forgive me for being noob in Arduino(:
A month ago I came across a project (cannot find it at this moment) about using a Arduino board as a joystick. As a airplane-enthusiastic I would love to have a realistic simulator. One other hobby is building things, so I came up with the idea of building a joystick with analog Voltagemeters as speedindicator and so on. In my simulator I would love to have some kind of active feedback (will come later, possibly) and passive feedback for the throthle. The latter I want to create using servo's and at the same time read the servo's in some kind of way, so I would be able to measure the rotation, is that possible? Or any ideas how I should accomplish such passive feedback?
Thanks!
Andrew
P.S. I already have a Arduino Mega board and a breadboard + wires.
With almost all hobby-grade servos, there is no way of knowing how the output shaft is oriented. If you want feedback in terms of a knob or shaft position you will need a shaft (or rotary) encoder. There are many possibilities.
Thanks for your quick reply!
I have also thought of a rotary encoder, but I am not sure how to mount it. If this is the solution, I will probably find a solution;)
When I attach a servo to my arduino (in the future) for active feedback, I should use diodes, right?
You do not need diodes with a standard servo. You should not try to power any servo or motor from the Arduino, instead use a separate power supply and connect the grounds together.
Thanks for your help!
I am affraid I have to need a lot of help, but fortunately there is a great community!
P.S.
I find it hard to find rotary encoders which have more then 20 pulses per rotation; what I do find are potentiometers, aren' t they (being variable resistors, thus voltage-changers) suitable for my intentions? And what resistance should I take, 10KOhm, 500KOhm etc?
Yes, a potentiometer is a good solution for something which only rotates a finite amount (encoders are needed for things that rotate continuously). The resistance doesn't matter much for what you're doing. Look instead at the number of turns required to go through the whole range.
Also, servos contain potentiometers. The servo's internal circuit uses these to measure an angle which is compared to the command signal. It's usually possible to open up a servo and solder some extra wires onto the potentiometer which you can use for reading out angles.
That said, I don't think that servos are a good idea for force feedback. They're intended for position control, which is very different from force control. It's also not a good idea to be constantly overpowering a servo, which is effectively what you'd need to do.
Use an ordinary DC motor with potentiometer feedback instead. This is probably easiest with a servo which has had its control electronics and mechanical stops removed. You then get the potentiometer, motor, and a nice gearset in one compact package.
Thanks for your extensive reply!
If I understand you correctly, I should take a servo and remove the internal chips and solder wires to the integrated potentiometer?
(I'm sorry for not completely understanding, my English is not as good as my German)
Andrew
Yes, that's right. Good luck!
After finishing my GCSE's (or CE as we call it here), I will order a lot of stuff and start my summer break with some nice DIY'ing:)
Thanks again for your help!