Project Help for

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rafaelpk
 
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Project Help for

Post by rafaelpk »

Hello,

I am a complete novice and starting a project that has some size constraints which will likely govern what I need. I was hoping for some guidance as to what to purchase after reading a ton of posts and looking over the various matching projects and getting confused. I have a 1 in x 3.5 in space that has to hold a specific 1 in x .5 in micro stepper motor that I have no specs for (and it has no model or id info), the feather board and driver, and the rechargeable battery with an induction charging system. I will need to move the motor back and forth using a cell phone via wi-fi, bluetooth, and cell network. I have the Adafruit Feather nRF52 Bluefruit LE, and an Itsy-Bitsy, so I am hoping one of these will work. Then I was looking at the Stepper FeatherWing Add-on, and I need a battery that will fit and can be slow-charged by induction. I'm trying to make sure once I get it put together, it will all actually fit in the space. Can anyone please suggest the best way to put this project together as a newbie, what parts to buy that will fit, or where to start with some tutorials or guidance? This will be my first project, so I really appreciate any help. Thanks so much.

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

I have a 1 in x 3.5 in space
That is only two dimensions. How deep is it? A diagram would be helpful.
a specific 1 in x .5 in micro stepper motor that I have no specs for (and it has no model or id info),
You will at least need to measure the resistance of the windings to determine if it is compatible with the driver you want to use. https://learn.adafruit.com/all-about-st ... he-stepper

The ItsyBitsy is smaller than the feather. But the Feather has a built-in charger & wireless capability. So it may be more space efficient than the Itsy plus separate charger & wireless modules.

One possible show-stopper may be the inductive charging requirement. All of the inductive receiver coils we stock are > 1" and would not fit into the dimensional limits mentioned above.

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rafaelpk
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by rafaelpk »

Hello,

Thanks so much for the reply. Sorry I forgot the 3rd dimension. Here is the attached jpg for the enclosure dimensions 1.75in (w) x .6in (h) x 3.5in (l). I will endeavor to get more information on the stepper, but I can substitute any motor as long as it is the same size.
Attachments
enclosure.jpg
enclosure.jpg (46.13 KiB) Viewed 270 times

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rafaelpk
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by rafaelpk »

Hi,

The stepper motor is a DC3V 5V 2-phase 4-wire mini precision 10mm linear screw slider nut. Resistance is 20 ohms =- 7%

Thanks again

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rafaelpk
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by rafaelpk »

I am trying to shave off a bit more space to fit the induction charger in but that is not critical to the project. Tnx.

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Looks like you have enough room for an inductive coil in there. And that motor should be compatible with any of the stepper driver options we stock.

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rafaelpk
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by rafaelpk »

Much appreciated. I have been reading on the difference between drivers. If I am going to use the feather and I want the project to be robust and well engineered (so to speak), which option driver should I choose? If my device just needs to rotate the stepper either back or forward, but needs to be reliable, should I get a more expensive driver? Any chance you could point me to an good choice please? I don't want to choose the wrong one. Thanks again.

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

That motor should be a fairly easy load. You don't need a high-end driver for it. The TB6612 drivers on the Motor/Stepper wing will easily handle it. And it is designed to plug directly into a Feather.

However, since space is limited, you might be able to make better use of available space using a DRV8833 or TB6612 breakout board connected via jumpers:
https://www.adafruit.com/product/3297
https://www.adafruit.com/product/2448

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rafaelpk
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by rafaelpk »

I really am grateful for the help. I am going to order everything you suggested and then see what fits best. May I ask you to recommend a good rechargeable battery to fit in the space? There are so many options. Since I am just learning, I figured I should start with more parts than I need so I can experiment and make mistakes.

Thanks again.

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

One of the flat-style LiPo cells is probably your best bet for that space. If you will be powering from a LiPo, the DRV8833 is the better choice for a motor driver. (The TB6612 has a minimum voltage of about 4.5V).

What kind of run-time do you need from a full charge? Mike has a guide on the topic here to help determine the battery capacity requirements: https://learn.adafruit.com/energy-budgets

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rafaelpk
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by rafaelpk »

Hi.

Cheers. So here's my requisite parts list to go with the feather and micro stepper motor I already have:

Battery: Lithium Ion Polymer Battery - 3.7v 2500mAh, Product ID: 328
Driver: DRV8833 DC/Stepper Motor Driver Breakout Board, Product ID: 3297

Is there anything else I need before I place the order?

I do not know what kind of run-time really. I just want it to be as robust as possible.

Also, and will there be any issue with adding cell connectivity to the project (as it stands) so my cell phone can connect and control the stepper via wifi, bluetooth and cellular network? Is that the super sim and does that work with this feather or only the Fona version?

Thanks.

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

The battery should plug directly into the Feather board. You will need some hookup wire to connect the DRV8833.

For communication via cell networks, you would also need a Fona module: https://www.adafruit.com/product/2687

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rafaelpk
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by rafaelpk »

I ordered all the components and am excited to get started. Thanks ever so much for your assistance.

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rafaelpk
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by rafaelpk »

Hi,
I was about to order the FONA card you recommended but noticed it is 2in x 1.8in and I am not sure I have that much space left for it in my housing (see above) after the feather, driver and battery go in. Do you know if there are options for this if I do not have the room? I'll have to find a solution if it won't fit. Thanks.

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Project Help for

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

We do have the bare modules, but it is unlikely you could fit that plus all the necessary support circuitry into less space than one of our breakout boards.
https://www.adafruit.com/product/2637

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