The Make It Last Build Series Newsletter, Build #3, Dispatch #4
This is the latest installment of the Make It Last Build Series, sponsored by Microchip and Energizer.
The goal for this week is to finish getting the stepper motor controller working properly. When done, you should have at least one stepper motor turning in both directions, on command. Check out the Build Series landing page for full info, prize details, and the rundown on the first two builds in the series.
And don't forget to submit your images to the MAKE Flickr pool, tagged "makeitlast."
Cheers,
Shawn Wallace
back to top The Stepper Driver Circuit
[To see a jumbo version of this image, click here]
OK, so maybe this wasn't the easiest circuit to build on a breadboard! Hopefully you succeeded, and you now have a stepper motor driver on your board. Your breadboard should look something like the above photo. To hook it up to the controller circuit we built in Dispatch #2, grab that breadboarded control circuit and follow these steps:
- Take the 4 LEDs off the controller circuit board
- Connect line C1 to RA0 and C2 to RA1
- Connect the GND of the driver circuit with the GND of the controller circuit
Connect the motor to the driver circuit on the following pins:
- Black to H-Bridge Out 1
- Green to H-Bridge Out 2
- Red to H-Bridge Out 3
- Blue to H-Bridge Out 4
Note that the pinout of your stepper motor may be different if you are using one that is salvaged or a different brand.
Now download the modified Hello World Stepper code, compile, and upload to your controller. The motor should turn one revolution in one direction, then reverse itself. Once you've gotten one to work, build a second driver for the other motor as instructed in the last Dispatch.
back to top Next Steps
Next week we'll actually hang our Drawbot on a wall and rig it up to start drawing!
back to top Microchip Discount Code
Want to pick up a PIC programmer or development kit? As part of this series, Microchip is offering a 20% discount on the following development tools:
* PICkit 3
* PICkit 3 Debug Express
* ICD 3 In-Circuit Debugger
* XLP 16-bit Development Board
* F1 Evaluation Platform
* F1 Evaluation Kit
If you've been thinking about getting started with PIC programming, this could be a great opportunity to get a good deal on a programmer. To request a discount code, send an email to makeitlast@makezine.com.
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