Adding Electronics to our Models

[NZEOD]

2 hours ago, arbit said:

NZEOD,

This is my sketch for the Fan Racer.

Feel free to edit your own ideas, and I can upload it and show everyone the result.

An open-source kit! Might be fun.

Fan_Racer_Fading.ino

Sweet! I'll have a play tonight!

 

Ok so standard single colour LEDs

Edited January 18, 2017 by NZEOD

[arbit]

7 hours ago, NZEOD said:

Sweet! I'll have a play tonight!

 

Ok so standard single colour LEDs

Yes, to be honest, I simply forgot to install a neo in the engine! The project grew and I hadnt planned for a Trinket at all, until I was outvoted by my wife and son.

[MechTech]

Thanks for the links and info guys, I'll check them out! - MT

[arbit]

I have been reading about persistent light.

Seems interesting if we can make cannon fire leave a momentary trail.

 

Edited January 25, 2017 by arbit

[arbit]

NZEOD,

Here is the Yamato sketch.

Have at it. Lots of fun in there!

Yamato_3_Guns_new.ino

[arbit]

Mechtech, This shows details of the Gun Gauge. It seems he just drills holes.

 

[derex3592]

that is freaking awesome. Wish I had the talent to do fiber optic lighting

[arbit]

It's relatively easy. If you want tips for a project, be our guest.

I've come to appreciate that electronics are incredibly stable. It's old school technology. If you follow instructions, it just works.

Take arduino, it is rock solid and stable. I have been shocked over and over that it works.

Its science, not art. Painting for example needs years of skill and experience. Science can't go wrong unless you screw it up.

Edited February 16, 2017 by arbit

[arbit]

I feel I got really lucky with Arduino first time out getting the Yamato to work.

Getting a DC motor to play nice with lights on the Nautilus has been very challenging.

Study continues...

[NZEOD]

running a motor shield board?

[arbit]

Nope. Just the trinket with a motor-running transistor from Adafruit. Havent learned how to use shields yet. But I assume they are the way to go to avoid clashes in the programming?

I may end up powering the DC motor off the trinket, but not actually include it in the sketch. The DPDT switch would be manual to open and close the wings.

Edited March 17, 2017 by arbit

[arbit]

I'm looking at these belt drives to rotate the platform on the hanger. 

Any suggestions what kind of gears could i use to open those doors?

 

Thats an online photo. Not mine.

Edited March 19, 2017 by arbit

[MechTech]

Sorry Arbit, I just now saw that you guys have been posting here (busy with school and museum stuff).  That Yamato fiber looks great!  The problem is you can still see the fiber.  I think he sliced it at an angle and laied it in the rifle grooves of the barrel.  Watching your video, this one popped up too, talk about "wave motion!"

 

I have the fiber and I have a board from something else that I think will work.  I thought of gluing the fiber to the other side of the clear barrel piece or drilling holes, the problem is the fiber or holes are always visible.  Trying to work that one out before I leap into it.

Did you try using those small motors for the doors?  You could go direct drive or have some sort of clutch for model safety.- MT

Edited March 19, 2017 by MechTech

[MechTech]

Oh, make yours R/C like this dude (wish I could read Japanese:  - MT

 

[arbit]

9 hours ago, MechTech said:

Oh, make yours R/C like this dude 

I would say it's impossible, but you never know, right? Gotta keep dreaming.

 

9 hours ago, MechTech said:

Did you try using those small motors for the doors?  You could go direct drive or have some sort of clutch for model safety.- MT

I have no idea how to open the doors. Need to see some simple examples of the types of gears to use. 

[NZEOD]

Screw drive

 

 

Edited March 21, 2017 by NZEOD

[arbit]

25 minutes ago, NZEOD said:

Screw drive

Cool! NZEOD to the rescue.

I will look into it.

[arbit]

8 hours ago, NZEOD said:

Screw drive

Where did you find that? On Ebay they are all refab 4-wire stepper motors.

Can I run a screw drive with a normal 2-wire DC motor?

[NZEOD]

drive it off one end, use microswitches that get hit by the door as the stoppers/limiters and to close the current gets reversed. should be easy...ish

[arbit]

On 3/21/2017 at 10:32 PM, NZEOD said:

drive it off one end, use microswitches that get hit by the door as the stoppers/limiters and to close the current gets reversed. should be easy...ish

Thanks. I understand limit switches. I understand reversing DC motors. That's fine.

But there are 4 wires in a stepper motor (2 pairs).

What do you mean by drive it off one end? Do you mean with the stepper motor, or reversing a DC motor?

Can I find a screw drive without a stepper motor, or is that the only option?

 

[MechTech]

Go to the hardware store and get some threaded rod with matching nut, then you can use the motor of your choice!  NZEOD has a great idea by the way.  The Daedalus had several screw drives, they are some of the strongest and easiest to make.  You can couple the motor with a u-joint or gears.

Part of the Daedalus ramp (similar to doors) was also direct drive from metal geared servos (below). You could easily do that too with a cheap servo.- MT

[arbit]

That's exciting! I will open those doors one way or another!

So here's the plan for the hanger: revolving platforms, opening and closing bay doors, leds everywhere, sound effects, and lowering chain.

See you in about a year!

Edited March 24, 2017 by arbit

[chyll2]

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1599799146700391&id=100000109647350

 

Something I saw on FB

[NZEOD]

13 hours ago, arbit said:

That's exciting! I will open those doors one way or another!

So here's the plan for the hanger: revolving platforms, opening and closing bay doors, leds everywhere, sound effects, and lowering chain.

See you in about a year!

Race you... I'm doing the same with the H-Hangar kits and the 1/72 launch arms - have 2 of them.

[NZEOD]

11 hours ago, chyll2 said:

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1599799146700391&id=100000109647350

 

Something I saw on FB

yeah its the way of the future of modelling. Mechatronics

The ones FAR too rapid and twitchy in the movements though, needs reduction gearboxes.

Edited March 24, 2017 by NZEOD

[MechTech]

I've noticed that the metal geared robot style motors are now less than $5.00, so that's cool!  They were like $10-15.00 on average. Someone's even got a 6mm diameter with metal gears in it for about $10! You guys could kick butt with all that. - MT

[arbit]

5 hours ago, MechTech said:

I've noticed that the metal geared robot style motors are now less than $5.00, so that's cool!  They were like $10-15.00 on average. Someone's even got a 6mm diameter with metal gears in it for about $10! You guys could kick butt with all that. - MT

Links?

[arbit]

On 3/25/2017 at 1:25 AM, NZEOD said:

Race you... I'm doing the same with the H-Hangar kits and the 1/72 launch arms - have 2 of them.

Uhhhh, that's not a fair race.

[MechTech]

Just look up "geared motors" on ebay or "brushed motors" at Hobby King. Hobby King has had great service to include a return so I'd trust them. Maybe a cheap servo would be the same and a better way to go? - MT

[arbit]

This rack and pinion might open the doors.

[arbit]

One thing I haven't figured out yet is how to power multiple leds with one 3v coin cell battery.

Most tutorials say it cant be done.

But, for example Bandai's Patlabor runs over 6 flashing leds off a coin cell and I've seen kids toys do it.

I've tried parallel, I've tried serial, the battery runs out in a matter of seconds.

[David Hingtgen]

That sounds more like the LED's burning out in a matter of seconds.  There's no way 6 LED's would drain it that fast.  Maybe 600...

[arbit]

56 minutes ago, David Hingtgen said:

That sounds more like the LED's burning out in a matter of seconds.  There's no way 6 LED's would drain it that fast.  Maybe 600...

It's true for same color leds, but not for mixed colors. I made this demo to explain what I am trying to do.

 

[MechTech]

Hey Arbit! Finally on semester break! From experience, not all LEDs are created equally. It looks like some are drawing more amperage than others since they are higher voltage. The dim ones look like they are 4.5v vs 3v. You may need to go with one manufacturer. I've had that same issue with a special flashlight I made with multiple colors on it. - MT

[arbit]

2 hours ago, MechTech said:

Hey Arbit! Finally on semester break! From experience, not all LEDs are created equally. It looks like some are drawing more amperage than others since they are higher voltage. The dim ones look like they are 4.5v vs 3v. You may need to go with one manufacturer. I've had that same issue with a special flashlight I made with multiple colors on it. - MT

The goal is to have a lighted robot without an external source.

Which led me to an experiment, because resistor calculators don't do it:

I put a green, a blue, and a red on a 3v coin cell.

I slowly increased the resistors for each by trial and error until I got balanced power with no one led sapping light from the others.

In this case I gave 270 and 680 Oms for the green and the red, and 47 Ohms for the blue.

This set up has been running steady for a couple hours now.

Edited May 13, 2017 by arbit