Possible to write a script for Maestro to cut power to servo?

Support Servo controllers and servos
#1

Hello,
I’m using a maestro servo card with a servo motor that is controlled by a computer.
The servo makes a lot of noise when “idle” because it’s trying to self align.

Would it be possible to write a script that cuts the power off (position 0) when there is no change in the position after a certain time?

Thank you

#2

I moved your post to the “Servo controllers and servos” section of the forum since it seemed more appropriate.

The Meastro does not have any built-in support for directly controlling the power rail that the servo is connected to, but you could try disabling that channel in the “Status” tab of the Maestro Control Center by unchecking the “Enabled” box. Some servos will continue holding their position after they stop receiving signals, but others will stop, so it’s worth a try. If that works for your servo, you should be able to write a script that sends a servo command to that channel with a target of 0 if it has not moved after some desired amount of time. If you try writing that script and run into problems, you can post what you have so far and I’d be glad to take a look.

Brandon

#3

Thank you.
I’ll try that and I can try to write the script but I haven’t found a sample of a scrip that uses a
Mix of signal values from a pc and custom values from a script.
Any ideas where to start?

Thank you!

#4

Thank you. I tried disabling the checkbox in status and it still makes the noise. Does that mean even with the script with position 0 it will still make noise?

I have another servo for testing that does stop making noise when disabled but it’s to small for my needs.

#5

Unfortunately, if your servo does not stop holding it’s position when you disable the channel, you will not be able to stop it by sending a position of 0. If you are considering switching to a different servo, you could try looking for an analog one (since they should stop holding when the signal has stopped).

Alternatively, you could add something like a MOSFET that you can trigger with a separate Maestro channel to toggle the power to your servo power rail (or just the single servo).

Brandon

#6

Thank you, switching to an analog servo worked. On error it stops so works great for what i need.

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