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wannabeaflyers 6 DOF with 24V DC gearmotor

Discussion in 'DIY Motion Simulator Projects' started by wannabeaflyer, Feb 2, 2014.

  1. BlazinH

    BlazinH Well-Known Member

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    It appears you have proven that encoders are the way to go when attempting to use DE's Kangaroo controllers! :) :cool::cheers:popcorn
    • Agree Agree x 1
  2. SilentChill

    SilentChill Problem Maker

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    Well done @wannabeaflyer2 looks pretty good to me :) Hows the heat in the motors are they getting hot after a while ?

    I will get those pictures of my strut mounts too when I remember to, been too busy playing :D
  3. wannabeaflyer2

    wannabeaflyer2 Well-Known Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    BlazinH it was your help and the input from others that got me this far , so it goes without saying Thanks Guys one and all,

    Next step is the Crank things up speed wise and increase the Actuator Travel.. at the moment i have the actuators using the 50mm CTC and so far in these very short test the thing that impressed was the holding of position ,and so far with no apparent back driving as yet , This may all change when i increase the actuator travel but so far im happy to have gotten this far... the control system seem responsive and the Lag is partially due to the Aircraft selected , I need to Buy A car race sim to really do stress / speed tests

    Silent Chill mate i totally understand the Play time thing im hoping i too will get to that stage , as for the motor heating i had not noticed any serious heat but then again my tests so far have been short n sweet , the Sabertooth's are not yet mounted on any kind of heat-sink so these bits need to be sorted before some sort of duration test can occur . mind you thanks to your reminder i'll be able to put my Flea bay laser pointer type Temperature monitor to some use after all :)

    Cheers Guys
    • Like Like x 3
  4. SilentChill

    SilentChill Problem Maker

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    My rig was fine with 50mm CTC arms, as soon as I went longer I got heat issues at 75mm after about 20 mins of play almost to the point of wires melting close to the motor. Now running at 95mm CTC with the gas struts and no issues anymore can play for hours
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  5. wannabeaflyer2

    wannabeaflyer2 Well-Known Member

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    Hi Craig ( Silentchill) thanks for the heads up with that info. thats the sort of Stuff that save a lot of time , im going to check the Platform Tilt Angles today ... Need to ask a question guys, i understand changing the Actuator Arm CTC will increase the but increase the load on the Motor/Gearbox. What other areas should i look at whilst tweaking to get more travel ( is that even possible given the geometry of the design ) i.e will longer platform Support rods , narrow or wider actuator spacing or by alter inclusive angle factor , which would be the best option ?
  6. wannabeaflyer2

    wannabeaflyer2 Well-Known Member

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    well guy sad to say i F@#?ed up big time this morning and it gonna cost me big time .. long story short my mistake no two ways about it , and to say im pissed at myself would be an understatement...

    had some great testing done yesterday and found 2 important bits of info , i moved the CTC to 100 mm for each actuator to see how the motors held up , well without weight they were sweet, extra angle of movements were as expected and speed was increased at 65KG Sandbags in seat all was well until at some point i lost power in which case an error code was displayed ( no problem as i expected that anyways ) ...

    Did the same again at 75mm CTC and the Platform movements seemed ok this time No Error so That was good , i Thought i smelt Burning but all motors were cold , but then during next test power died ?? Turns out one of the battery clips failed ,, that was last night so , still happy with the way the tests went . i decided to call it a night ,,

    Come this morning i set up a new 23" Monitor on the sim and repaired the Battery clip ( these Crock clips were just for quick connection at this testing stage Hindsight lesson 1 ) ,, anyways whilst moving the 2 x 12 Volt car batteries in series that i used for sim testing . in my excitement to see the sim performing again i messed up big time .....Yep you guessed it i connected the Polarities REVERSED ( OFFS meaning Oh for F---K sake) and in so doing the one thing that will kill these bullet proof controllers,, so i may well have killed not only 3 2 x 32's but also the Kangaroos and God knows What else ..

    i am so freaking pissed with myself its not real at the moment .. just gonna send the guys at DE a Ticket to ask for advice but im guessing its a Return to DE for repairs at my cost ARRRRRGGGHHHHHH .

    No smoke or Dodgy smells from the controllers but just the fact the Status all 3 sets of controller LEDs are not on on any of them , Does not look good ( Expletive to be typed here) ,

    i suppose i can still go back to using the 2 X 25's and the 2 x 60 Controller i still have but am on a downer at moment so locked up man cave as i cant face the stupid beyond words mistake i just bloody made,,

    Sorry for the Setback guys, as the monitor fitting was going to be the start of proper motion duration and system operation trails ..

    i know No Pain No Gain But i must be a sadist to keep doing this to myself and bank balance.. the project is doable its the doofuss that putting it together that's the issue :-( may be off air for a while guys till its sorted ,,

    NOTE TO SELF even test setups need Reverse Polarity Protection :-( :-( :-(
    • Agree Agree x 1
  7. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    Unfortunately just a distracted moment is all it takes, all any of us can do is point to how far you sim has come and say hang in there, the frustration will pass.
  8. BlazinH

    BlazinH Well-Known Member

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    Been there, done that myself (not with my sabertooths though)! After you’re been tinkering with something for a while its not hard to have a brain fart![​IMG] Yeah, it’s a real, “I wish I could kick myself in the ass moment”!

    But I think I may have some good news for you. The sabertooths are expensive compared to some others but with such a high mark up they do give one hell of a warranty. I’ve had to return three sabertooths so far for various reasons and all I had to pay for was return shipping costs. They offer free replacements during the first year but they have replaced mine for free even after a year. The sabertooths are supposed to shut themselves down automatically when there’s a problem thus the free replacement.

    However, they strongly warn in the manual not to hook up sabertooths with reverse polarity because it has no protection for that. Therefore, they may not give you free replacements in your case. But worst-case scenario is they will repair or replace them for 50% of what they cost new. This 50% repair/replace is good forever too, not just during the first year.

    So, it still may be a hit to your wallet, but maybe that’s a little consolation.
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  9. wannabeaflyer2

    wannabeaflyer2 Well-Known Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
    2DOF, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    While the Sim is down awaiting controllers Fix , i was prompted by a post from a new member to update my Design plans for the 6 DOF platform, and i will amend the level of detail over the next few days to include Exploded views of the complete system and fill out the dimensions for the individual items , Bear in mind this was project was cooked up ( Noit Cocked up ) , as a suck it and see exercise ( Turns out it did not suck that much after all LOL :) and when finished it may very well be nice to see ) ..

    The main thing is i seem to have a working mechanical design which you guys can modify to suit at will. the basic design is based on 3 Identical Motor/Actuator modules which are anchored together 120 Degrees apart and so forming the Base section , the controllers and Optical feedback method i have already mentioned and the only other update will be the Gas springs concept that Silent chill has championed ..

    Each Element is can be customized to suit space and motors used . ( well that was the idea anyways ) ..

    So This is Part one of the Plans , the rest will follow as soon as i get System time at work to update the drawings i created ..

    Attached Files:

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  10. wannabeaflyer2

    wannabeaflyer2 Well-Known Member

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    Hi Guys Back again Part 2 of drawings , this time the Actuator model and the associated parts ( basically 50mm X 100mm X 1500 mm Planned Timber for m local DIY shop and 18mm MDF are the main structural elements. Some of the smaller parts /Plates were made on my CNC machine but i'm guessing people can easily adapt their design to use material at hand.
    These are just draft copies and once finished they will all be presented in a Zip file which will include parts list and control schematics and maybe some Links ..

    Attached Files:

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  11. SeatTime

    SeatTime Well-Known Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
    AC motor, Motion platform
    That is a very nicely documented project:thumbs. Wish I could find the time/patience for that - I'm lucky to do anything better than a rough paper drawing or quick render in SketchUp :rolleyes: .
    • Agree Agree x 1
  12. wannabeaflyer2

    wannabeaflyer2 Well-Known Member

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    Hi Seattime i follow your lead guys :) the stuff you members do here is as always awesome. gonna need a bigger House LOL so much to imitate and all good stuff. fingers crossed Xmas will be good to me ( Replacement Controllers and Power diode LOL on wish list) We all chip in some are maker some are dreamers and then there's the Wannabees we try to fit in there somewhere :cheers
  13. poman

    poman Active Member

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    Yes in deed, it is a great project!!! so great i will be making it close to yours as for the mecanical part, i already dloaded both drawings and intend to use them, if you dont mind of course :) , and would very much like to have the dimensions for the top part where you attach the cockpit if you can find the time, i think too that this part must be in welded square tube, i will have a local shop built this as i dont want to have something that breaks my neck under my frame lol.
    Tks very much in advance!!!!
    • Like Like x 1
  14. wannabeaflyer2

    wannabeaflyer2 Well-Known Member

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    Hi Poman im off work till new year after tomorrow now, but will try to pull it of my Cad system at work , its there just forgot to Print it out , by all mean change , swap , fix , and improve the design , i hope it will be a starting point for other and it should be scaleable , i added the gas springs to the design so another update coming soon . i Highly recommend the Dimension engineering controllers and am gradually getting more confidence in the Kangaroo Card Now that the Optical encoders have allowed some very good progress, i have one last hurdle with the Homing Function ( but will be me missing a key bit of info )

    The Guys at Dimension engineering have released an update to the "Describe" software and sent me a Pre-release version, it was 3.5 its now 3.6 so hoping this update will help ...

    Never one for using one word when ten will do LOL (some sort of overcompensation for being Deaf :) But you guys get the drift ..

    Merry Xmas to all the Pioneers and Newbies on this Brilliant Forum . cheers Guys have a good time over the next few days
    • Like Like x 3
  15. wannabeaflyer2

    wannabeaflyer2 Well-Known Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
    2DOF, Arduino, Motion platform, 6DOF
    Back again just a quickie before the man panic at xmas time sets in .
    i just printed off an updated copy of my sim plans , last two pages added for information ... the last sheet is the Info @poman asked for , done very quickly but key info is there , it can be bolted together for testing and then welding can be done once happy with the settings , designed to be made using 25mm 2.5mm wall thickness Steel Square tubing and 50 x 50 x 3 mm Angle iron ( L profile ) the options are only limited by material and tools i have available but once you bolt a piece of 18mm Plywood or MDF sheet , im sure it will be strong enough without the weight penalty, Cheers Guys Now hitting the shops

    Attached Files:

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  16. poman

    poman Active Member

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    Hi,
    Quote: "Now hitting the shops" lol... thats pretty much man like to go shopping on last day !!wew
    Tks so much @wannabeaflyer ...go see my thread, "time to upgrade from 2dof to 6"
    i updated the progress :)
  17. bruce stephen

    bruce stephen Hammer doesnt fix it, must be electrical

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    im only missing the cnc, but its all stuffed into a 10'x10' spare room.
    • Like Like x 1
  18. wannabeaflyer2

    wannabeaflyer2 Well-Known Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    @bruce stephen us boys and our toys :). Women have a different perspective when it comes to spare room allocation , hence the Freezing cold Workshop built at the bottom of the garden LOL , and It still gets filled with " This may be useful one day collectables" which they term Junk .. Men are from mars Women from Venus rings true , im still here guys and will have updates soon, started Sending money again so just waiting for deliveries to come through ... Slow boat from China deal :).
    • Like Like x 1
  19. bruce stephen

    bruce stephen Hammer doesnt fix it, must be electrical

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    lol @wannabeaflyer2 you are so right about the ladies "perspective" about space and our toys. my wife is so unimpressed with the "junk" I create. when I make something new she asks "where you puttin that?". My workshop is my daughters room but she moved out. it took six months before i could claim it because she wanted it for a guest bedroom......we haven't had people stay over since my kid was young.
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  20. poman

    poman Active Member

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    Hi sir,
    we havent heard from you for a while!!! how have you been?
    i am almost finish with my rig, and now i was wondering if you would share your axis assignments since we have the same layout? that would be nice for a starting point for me :)
    Have a nice day!!
    tks in advance!!