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Starting out on my project

Discussion in 'DIY Motion Simulator Projects' started by Dicky, Apr 11, 2026 at 18:34.

  1. Dicky

    Dicky New Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
    2DOF, Arduino
    Hi everyone, I'm new here and I'm just starting to build a 2DOF simulator with Arduino. Could someone please tell me where I should start? Thanks in advance for any advice.
    Dicky, Apr 11, 2026 at 18:34
    #1
  2. Dicky

    Dicky New Member

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    Hi everyone, I've started this project. I'm about to test it with the SMC3, but nothing moves when I set it to motion or manual. Can anyone help me? Thanks to anyone who can give me some advice.
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 13, 2026 at 00:19
    Dicky, Apr 12, 2026 at 15:27
    #2
  3. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, JRK
    Can you please post pictures of all your SMC3 settings and detail the control hardware being used.
    Last edited: Apr 13, 2026 at 00:20
    noorbeast, Apr 13, 2026 at 00:14
    #3
  4. Garrett

    Garrett Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
    2DOF
    I know you cant post photo's initially, but please do once the forum rules allow you to do so.
    • Agree Agree x 2
    Garrett, Apr 13, 2026 at 01:00
    #4
  5. Dicky

    Dicky New Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
    2DOF, Arduino
    I'm building 2dof taking inspiration from scruck's tutorial, using arduino uno r3, two ibt7960 and angle sensors.

    I followed the SMC3 setup from the tutorial for motors 1 and 2:
    step 1;
    fpid/1;
    kp=300;
    Ki=0;
    Kd/Ks=1;

    Fpwm=20kHz;
    PWMmin=0;
    PWMmax/PWMrev=130;

    Max Limits=10;
    Clip input=200;
    Deadzone=0.
    Dicky, Apr 13, 2026 at 07:21
    #5
  6. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, JRK
    Is the code set to Mode 2: https://www.xsimulator.net/community/threads/problems-with-my-simulator.15382/#post-207320

    If so, at what point in the setup steps did it fail to respond as expected, using the suggested settings?
    1. Disconnect the motor power supply
    2. Make sure Simtools is not running – we’re not ready for that yet!
    3. Wire up the Arduino (with SMC3 installed) to your H-Bridges and connect to your computer via USB
    4. Run the Windows SMC3 Utility software and make sure it communicates with the Arduino (There is no need to set baud rates, they are not configurable)
    5. Set the Kp, Ki, Kd, PWMmin, PWMmax, PWMrev to 0 for ALL motors (This will make sure the motors don’t move)
    6. Set Clip to 255 (you need to do this first) and Limit to 255 (This will give you plenty of margin if something goes wrong while setting up)
    7. Turn on the power to your motors – nothing should move at this stage!
    8. Set Kp to about 400
    9. Now slowly, increase PWMmax… at some point the motor should start to move. When it does check the “Green” feedback line is moving toward the “Blue” target position.
      • If it is then that motor and feedback is wired correctly - proceed to test other motors.
      • If it is moving away turn off motor power immediately (or quickly reduce PWMmax again). In this case you need to either reverse the wires to the motor being tested –OR– reverse the +5V and GND wires to your feedback pot for the motor being tested (do not do both). Restart the test from the beginning.
    10. Do the above for each motor
    • Like Like x 1
    noorbeast, Apr 13, 2026 at 10:11
    #6
  7. Dicky

    Dicky New Member

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    @noorbeast I performed the procedure, the yellow line moves towards the blue line but nothing moves.
    Dicky, Apr 13, 2026 at 21:57
    #7
  8. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    So I presume it fails at step 9, increasing PWMmax, if so what value did you push it up to?

    Can you please post a picture of this test settings.
    noorbeast, Apr 14, 2026 at 01:04
    #8
  9. Jon Amico

    Jon Amico Member Gold Contributor

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    And you Didn't answer Noorbeast... Did you change the Arduino code to Mode2? lol

    If you cant figure that out... It wont work!
    • Agree Agree x 1
    Jon Amico, Apr 14, 2026 at 08:34
    #9
  10. Dicky

    Dicky New Member

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    Yes…i loaded the SMC3 program in mode 2 on arduino UNO. I ran the process a second time.

    upload_2026-4-14_13-8-3.jpeg
    upload_2026-4-14_13-8-33.jpeg
    Dicky, Apr 14, 2026 at 13:08
    #10
  11. Garrett

    Garrett Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    It looks like the Green line (feedback position from the Hall effect) is sitting on the Clip Limit. The software thinks you are at the limit and prevents motor movement.

    When setting up the feedback position, have SMC3 running but no power to the motors. It's easier if you can prop up the sim very close to the center position, or Home Position.

    You then have to adjust the Hall effect/Potentiometer so the Green line is in the center, matching the Blue line (commanded position). Do this for all motors.

    Once all the Hall effects are aligned to your motor lever arm center position you can then apply power to the motors. Then manually move one axis at a time and look for clearance issues and verify the Green line in at the true center position (Home Position). It takes a little tweaking to get them perfect but worth the time.

    The Blue line is the output telling the motors to move. The Green line is telling the software if the motors have reached that position. This feedback loop is what makes the whole thing work.
    • Like Like x 1
    Garrett, Apr 14, 2026 at 15:26
    #11
  12. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, JRK
    The pot needs to be centered and Max Limit needs to be set to 255 as part of the initial setup.
    • Like Like x 1
    noorbeast, Apr 14, 2026 at 16:02
    #12
  13. Dicky

    Dicky New Member

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    Good evening...I performed manual calibration by bringing the blue line to coincide with the blue line. I repeated the illustrated sequence, resetting all the values, setting Clip 255, turning on motors 1 and 2 (i.e., plugging them into the mains), and gradually increasing PWMmax.

    I didn't see any movement.
    Dicky, Apr 14, 2026 at 23:20
    #13
  14. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, JRK
    noorbeast, Apr 15, 2026 at 04:32
    #14
  15. Dicky

    Dicky New Member

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    I checked that the output sine mode is not feeding current to the motor.
    I also rechecked all the connections and power continuity, with positive results.
    Dicky, Apr 15, 2026 at 07:47
    #15
  16. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, JRK
    Do you mean that while the Sine test is running the green line tracks and there is associated power from the IBT2 to the motors, or something else?
    noorbeast, Apr 15, 2026 at 08:20
    #16