Choosing the correct power source

Support Motor controllers/drivers and motors
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Hello! I have been doing some research over the past couple weeks to try and design a motorized focuser for a telescope of mine. All I would need to do for the project is connect a stepper motor to a computer, and be able to control its rotation in small increments in either direction with the use of the Tic control software. This is my first attempt at a project like this, so apologies on my lack of knowledge.

From my research, I am pretty sure that the NEMA 8 stepper motor (linked below), and a Tic T500 should do the job. Pololu - Stepper Motor: Bipolar, 200 Steps/Rev, 20×30mm, 3.9V, 0.6 A/Phase

The one thing I haven’t been able to figure out is how to go about powering the setup. Mainly what power source to get, and what would be needed to attach that to the Tic. I would preferably like to connect it to a wall outlet if that’s even possible, but if not then I’m open to other solutions! Any and all help is greatly appreciated!

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Hello.

The two main things to consider when picking a power supply are the operating voltage ranges of your devices and the combined current draw. The Tic T500’s operating voltage is 4.5V to 35V. It is okay that this is higher than the stepper motor’s rated voltage because it uses active current limiting. Using a higher voltage allows the current to ramp up faster, which allows you to achieve higher step rates to move the motor faster. Something like this 12V, 1A wall power adapter is probably a good choice for that motor and the Tic T500. To make the connection to the Tic from that wall power adapter, you could use something like this DC Barrell Jack to 2-Pin Terminal Block Adapter and some jumper wires.

Brandon

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This is just what I was looking for! Thanks for the response!

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