Hello
I’m trying to run a grid of 64 Steppermotors, which needs to be pretty precise. For this I’m using the Pololu 1182. I’ve been working on it for a while, but have run into some strange problems, which is affecting the performance.
First, whenever I wake the drivers the motors jump. I’m suspecting that this is to have them at a full step position. The step either seems to be random, or in the opposite direction of what it should be. This is messing up some calibrations and some checks i have in place to be able to determine the motors position. Is there any way to do a sort of soft start to prevent this? Or do I have recalibrate every time I run the motors?
Second, It seems they might have some trouble shifting direction. I’m not completely sure it’s not my code, but it seems that when i try to change direction quickly, they don’t react. I’m checking my code to see wether or not the problem is there, but I was wondering if it was anything you have had experience with, and that I should be aware of.
I’m running quartersteps, with 12V 1,2A motors, powered by a large battery. All the motors have been running smoothly, so I don’t expect the power to be a problem. Each motor has it’s own driver, so the second problem might be because of the code, since all of them run the same way.
Oh, and will it be a problem running at 1,2A? I’m thinking that with such a ‘small’ increase in current(Over the 1A where I don’t suspect much heat), I wouldn’t have to worry about temperature and such, when I’m only running the motors for maximum 1 minute at a time. I have turned up the current-limiter very high, since I’m thinking the motors can’t draw anymore than 1,2A, with a supply of 12V and an inner resistance of 10 Ohm, so I’m thinking that’s not a problem.
If you need any other information, feel free to ask.