> Very slick.
>
> Are you going to publish some of the technical details?
That's the plan. Main push was to get it finished and get some video
documenting the project. I plan to release the 3D parts and cut files.
> How big are the motors (I think they're steppers, from the look)?
They are NEMA 17 motors. Don't have the spec on the torque, but they were
ones I had bought to drive my RepRap Mendel 3D printer. The motor itself
didn't have enough power to drive the coil with any load, so I put a 4:1 gear
ratio on it with some 3D printed double helix gears.
> Did you calibrate the lead screw, or is it consistent enough that the turns
> lay down nicely? Do you have some thing to put drag on the supply spool?
It's 8mm threaded rod. It has a consistent thread, so no need for
calibration, though I did check that it worked as expected.
> What happens if the supply spool snags: sometimes, you get a turn that wedges
> down between the flange and the next layer on the spool? Does it just stop
> (or you hit the stop button quickly), and then you figure out what to do to
> fix it?
I haven't had that problem at all. Maybe I've been lucky, or the drive speed
was set low enough where it was a non-issue.
> Do you lay a piece of double stick tape on the form before winding so that if
> you get a break or a tension drop, the turns don't "sproing" loose?
I had meant to put a layer of hair spray down to help hold the wire, but alas
in my excitement to wind a coil, I didn't. The wire spool is on bearings but
has a spring to provide constant tension. Similar to how a wire feed welder
works.
> What's the underlying processor? Arduino? something else?
That's something I plan on documenting more, but it's running on an Arduino.
I'll be posting the code, once I have a chance to clean it up a little.
> Very interesting base panel. It looks like an optical bench, but I assume it's
> wood and drilled on some sort of NC drill? Is that an off the shelf thing for
> breadboards? Where do you get them?
All cut out on the ShopBot we have at the hacker space (SYN Shop, in Las
Vegas, NV). In fact, all the wood I used was scrap we had around the shop, so
building this, apart from buying a few bolts and washers I didn't already have
on hand, cost me pretty much nothing.
perl -e 's==UBER?=+y[:-o]}(;->\n{q-yp-y+k}?print:??;-p#)'
_______________________________________________
Tesla mailing list
Tesla@xxxxxxxxxx
http://www.pupman.com/mailman/listinfo/tesla