Linistepper new board

[salvado]

Hi There

This is my small contribution to the world on homemade CNC.
Let me present to you my version of linistepper board.
It has new type of connectors and onboard 5 Volt regulator
Comments and sujestions are welcome .

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[Fifty_ohm]

Very nice board layout. Did you use Eagle Layout for it or some other package?

[salvado]

Hi

No. Actually i`m not big fan of Eagle. I Prefer Proteus.

[James Newton]

Great board! I've added a link from the Linistepper user page.

For people who don't want to build thier own boards, and program thier own PIC, there is a full kit available at:

http://www.piclist.com/techref/io/st...step/index.htm

[salvado]

Hi There

After posting the drawings of the board i notice that there were small errors.
So if you`re planning to build one of these please use this revision.
My Apologies.
Thanks

[aferrier]

Hi Salvado,

I've just finished building your version of the LiniStep and having some issues getting it going properly. Are you able to publish your matching schematic?

I've build the posix version of this board and it works fine, but I like yours better because i can mount all three units against a single massive heatsink.

Thanks,
Alistair

[salvado]

Hi Salvado,

I've just finished building your version of the LiniStep and having some issues getting it going properly. Are you able to publish your matching schematic?

I've build the posix version of this board and it works fine, but I like yours better because i can mount all three units against a single massive heatsink.

Thanks,
Alistair

Hi there

Here it is.Hope it is usefull.When i Had more time i intend to put some pictures of my board.

[aferrier]

Thanks Salvado! Really neat and tidy diagrams!

I see that the posix design uses a pair of 470 ohm resistors that you are missing, just like the original design... would you know what they're used for?

My posix board gives full tourqe to the motor, but I'm only getting correct, but weak pulses sent to the motor with your board.

EDIT: After reading the LiniStep FAQ... it was required to add these resistors as an afterthought. Looks like these have also been added to the original circuit.

[salvado]

Hi there

New revision of my linistepper board
Added the two "missing" resistors

[tomo6]

It's it working ? Anybody tested it ?

[aferrier]

I've built this design and also the Posix board... but I can't get Salvado's design working. Tested all components, replaced the PCB!, reprogrammed PIC and used 16F84A and 16F628 with no change and triple-checked stepper wiring connections and replaced all transistors. I still get noise or what seems interference/feedback when driving the motor. Here's a video example of one of my boards that work perfectly and one that doesn't. I really would prefer to get Salvado's working... better transistor placement and onboard 7805 is a real bonus.

Salvado Design Board with 470 resistor mod.. Motor has glitchy steps:



Posix Design Board... same schematic as above... motor is smooth:



I know there has to be a difference between the two board designs, but I'm completely at my wits-end to see what it may be. Any ideas on what to look for?

[salvado]

Hi there

I noticed that the value for the resistor connected to the MCLR of the PIC as the wrong value. It should be 1K or just a jumper.Right now i`m in processs of building a new PIC programmer (as mine as broken) so i`m not abble to assist in debugging.As soon as i have my pics programmed i will try to figure out what is going on.

[Juank]

Hola, a todos:
Gracias "salvado" por tu excelente contribución en este momento estoy empezando a fabricar la placa, después les cuento como me fué.
Estoy pensando en aplicar el Linistepper a mi máquina CNC "Centro de mecanizado con 4 ejes cnc"
(Disculpen mi réplica en español.)
Saludos, Juank

[salvado]

Hola, a todos:
Gracias "salvado" por tu excelente contribución en este momento estoy empezando a fabricar la placa, después les cuento como me fué.
Estoy pensando en aplicar el Linistepper a mi máquina CNC "Centro de mecanizado con 4 ejes cnc"
(Disculpen mi réplica en español.)
Saludos, Juank

Hello

Please be aware that "Aferrier" had some problems with the board.I still hadn`t the chance to test mine.Right now i`m battling to build a new PIC programmer.(Not to much time though and to much work!!!).Any feedback regarding this is welcome.

Thanks

[bekman]

Salvado, Tudo bem.

Vou montar minha CNC e estou a procura de drives e o layout de sua PCB foi o que me agadou mais, porém li que ainda existem problemas no projeto, gostaria de saber quais são as dificuldades pois tenho muito interesse em montar uma dessas para mim.

Vi que voce fez modificações no projeto do Posix, qual foi o motivo? Essas modificações não podem estar gerando esses erros nos passos?

Estava pensando em utilizar o projeto do Posix, porém em cima do seu ótimo layout PCB, claro que com algumas modificações por conta de compatibilidade.

Gostaria de ajudar com o seu projeto, se não se importar!

[netboss]

Great board! I've added a link from the Linistepper user page.

For people who don't want to build thier own boards, and program thier own PIC, there is a full kit available at:

http://www.piclist.com/techref/io/st...step/index.htm

James has corrected any problems with his cart. I just placed an order successfully.

[James Newton]

Gary, I recieved both your emails (at 21:23 and 21:44 last night) and replied to both of them (at 23:44 and 23:50) within 3 hours. Who else replys to customer emails after 9pm, or before 9AM when you posted this entry here?

As I said in the scond of those replys, the bug was introduced by PayPal.com changing the way they manage calculated shipping. They "imported" an old record I had set up, but which was set to not be used, and for some strange reason, set it to be used in place of the shipping calculation from my shopping cart. In this specific case, I was calculating $9 and some odd cents and telling PayPal that this is what I wanted to charge. After previewing the payment (showing the correct shipping) on the PayPal login screen, and then logging in, PayPal ( NOT ME ) changed the shipping price to $20 some odd dollars.

At that point, I replied saying that if the correct amount was simply sent as a single payment, I would fill the order and send the requested items at the correct shipping price.

After doing some checking around, I found the shipping preferences area and eventually realized that the "default" shipping calculation entry had been mistakenly re-enabled. I disabled it and verified (by having my wife place an order with me) that PayPal is not, now, changing the shipping price. I then emailed back again saying thanks for letting me know what was happening and that it was now fixed.

I really do appreciate your letting me know about the problem, and so giving me the ability to fix it. I don't understand why you didn't recieve the emails I sent last night. I wish I could say that nothing ever goes wrong with my customers orders, but I will say that given a chance, I always make it right.

[mohsen380011]

hi
i am looking for one driver that drive stepper motor with current about 2 amper per any winding

[netboss]

I'll let James answer definitively for the Linistepper, but his documentation indicates that anything over 1.5 amps/winding requires more than just buying a kit, assembling it and hooking up the motor when you are going to exceed the magic 1.5 amp number.

That being said, I have done a bit of experimenting with the Linistepper running motors up to 3 amps and it seems to do fine so long as you use a BIG heatsink. However I have only done bench tests with these motors and have never put the Linistepper on a production machine with larger motors.

If you want the best value for 2 amp motors running unipolar, HobbyCNC is the most popular, and probably the best, board around. You can buy them in various configurations, from a kit that provides only the board and it's components to a fully assembled, plug and play kit. I've used a number of those boards and I find them to be very reliable and provide good power to the motor.

HOWEVER, I recently started playing with motors configured in the bipolar mode and I will never again run unipolar. Until recently, bipolar controllers were quite expensive when compared to unipolar. In my opinion, that has changed with the kelinginc.net line of controllers. They are somewhat more expensive than the unipolar variety, but the change in motor performance is worth the price. Plus, since you can get better performance from the motor, you can buy lower powered motors to offset some of the price difference.

The cheapest controller that kelinginc.net offers is a 5 amp version, a bit of overkill for your 2 amp needs. But I would suggest that you at least look at their line of products.

mpja.com also sells a similar bipolar motor controller at a bit lower price. But I will not buy it from them for two reasons. 1: It comes without the heatsink which is a mandatory item; and 2: They don't specialize in stepper motor and CNC products. I do however purchase many other items from them and they are a good company with which to do business.

kelinginc.net is nothing but CNC and you can talk to the man himself for support if needed.

DISCLAIMER: I have no association with any of the above companies other than being a satisfied customer.

Regards,
Gary

hi
i am looking for one driver that drive stepper motor with current about 2 amper per any winding

[baggs]

Sir,
As the poster before me mentioned you are better off going with a BIPOLAR steeper driver & BIPOLAR motor configuration. But no matter which style you use HEAT is always going to be you enemy. Building a unipolar driver has some cool advantages over a bipolar one but it will NEVER be as good. Using transistors vs MOSFET'S also has it's advantages, but a well designed MOSFET BIPOLAR driver will be by far the best investment you will ever make.

Now as far as product, there are only a few factories in china who mnf these units, with many companies putting thier name on them, so you will see a few companies selling the same item at prices that are not even close, why well it's simple. The cheaper priced units come with a manual and very little if any tech support. Thats where your extra money is going, to cover the tech support you may or may not need. So before you buy consider this, can you buy the unit & hook it up & do everything needed to get up & running? If so but the cheaper unit. But if you even think you might need a question or two answered PAY THE EXTRA MONEY & buy from a company that supports what it sells & knows what it is the device is actually for.

Now if you know it all & want to save the extra buks & buy from mpja.com then go out & buy an old slot 2 P3 Xeon CPU cooler Heatsink but use the one that is black and not from a compaq, hp, or dell cpu. The majority of these P3 xeon heatsinks are priced to SELL & some even come with dual fans attached to them. Those are what I mount to the same DRIVER unit that mpja has as it comes from the same factory as the one I bought from Circuit Specialist's in Mesa AZ a few miles from me. Anyway a little thermal goop and a few drilled holes later & my driver was mounted to a dual fan cooled Slot II P3 XEON CPU Heatsink. And for the most part the chassis fan in my enclosure never turns on to help move the built up heat. So a heatsink for these units can be had @ a computer scrap yard or on ebay cheap but the green one from HP/Compaq are smaller & the one from Dell has a huge chunk of metal on it causing it not to fit the driver. So stick with one made for an Intel server or generic ones & you wont go wrong.

So bottom line is heatsink the transistors or mosfets, move air across them to keep everything safe & do a lot of reading before making your mind up as to which configuration your going to need. Also keep in mind that the newer and better units have a circuit that reduces the current when the motor is not on the move, reducing the heat that is generated. So that feature coupled with the feature that pwm's the drive signals, & then the microstepping feature you can be sure that the driver will do what you want & need.

So decide what you need or want out of your stepper motor, then make sure you get the correct motor for your needs, then once thats figured out take some time to READ UP on the PRO'S & CON'S of the Transistor driver & the MOSFET driver. Then read up on whats better for you unipolar or bipolar. Then after you have read it all your ready to buy the correct driver. Then & only then can you say if this new board is what you need & will it do what you want. Until then all your doing is guessing. Not guessing if the board works but that if it will work for your application.
Good luck. baggs