PELCO D ?

Development Boards Arduino
1

Okay, this is what I’m trying to do.

I want to drive a motorized small vehicle using a Pelco D control scheme. I’m not sure what controller would work best – that’s why I’m asking for help. I am willing to pay some money and supply parts required.

I have a 12 volt DC motor that at MAX draws 17 amps. I am trying to control this motor using a Pelco D pan and tilt control joystick program. The program outputs in a proportional mode. What I’m trying to do is when the joystick is moved up the motor will go forward as though it’s a up tilt for a normal pan and tilt. When it’s moved downward the same happens in the opposite direction. This will drive the motor for power to the rear wheels. The left and right directions will move a linear actuator either in or out in the same manner to drive steering for the vehicle. So from what I just wrote it appears I need to be able to drive 2 motors independently. This will be in RS232.

Let me know your thoughts’ with both time and money.

Budd

2

Whats this for, a large scale RC car?

17 amps can pull quite a buggy!

I made a scooter with a 10 amp motor and 24v worth of LiFe cells salvaged from dead laptop batteries, and that thing almost rockets out from under me when taking off (control for throttle is not proportional, just a switch)

To me, protocol isnt as important as making a prototype work in the beginning, unless you have some future requirement that this control protocol has to conform to some other comms protocols.

So to that end, I guess im asking -do you currently have the equipment using PELCO protocols, and is that why you have chosen this?

If not, there are many alternate routes to skin this cat.

For one, what pops into my mind foremost when presented with this is, Arduino or STAMP micros driving servos with their PWM schema, and how natural those type motivations are for these controllers.

Scratch build a speed controller board locally mounted as close to whatever drive motor position as possible, and have it wire controlled by PWM from a single Arduino Mc mounted as near to the operator controls as possible…

This would open future opportunity for automation, complete or partial assistance to operation of vehicle…

(Honestly I have NO aversion to someday walking out to the driveway and getting into a conversation with the computer thats driving me to work, while I sit in the passenger side looking at a magazine and eating a bagel.)

I am not speculating on what this 17 amp electric buggy is going to be for because I dont know yet. But if its got wheels, and moves across the surface carrying whatever, its got relative DNA to nearly every other wheeled vehicle.

If its tiny, automate it!

If its huge, automate it!

Automation is good!

It will save humans from accidents and similar methods of self destruction if only for the mere fact that the electronic drivers will be more consistent in their day to day performance levels (whatever that may be) than the meat-and-bone organisms.

(in the future, robots will wear their hearts on their sleeve…so nothing in them can be hidden or unknown…)