briefly my project will end up being a mini 18 wheeler controlled by on board computer which is connected to the roboteq AX2250 controller, which i made controllable from psp. my project plan really started a while back when i came access this page some how http://www.roboteq.com/roboviadesign.html i was intrigued by the simplicity of it and how it all went together, for about 2 years its been a project in the back of my head i always wanted to do. my original plan was to just follow what they did on that page exactly. so earlier in April i purchased the roboteq AX2550 from their site. so from then till now i been pondering about my project that i wanted to do this summer. i thought about it a lot and planned, turns out if i wanted to do everything along the lines of their plans the motors alone would of cost more 150 dollars a pair. so im kinda in a way scrapping their design. im just going to use their design as a guideline and layout for mine. Hardware: Roboteq AX2550 - main system and brushed DC motor controller (bought) Computer (simple 1.5gHz 20gb HD and 512mb RAM - going to be connected to the AX2550 with serial line, and feed the controller data that the computer will receive wirelessly via AD-HOC laptop/joystick/psp (bought) M2-ATX DC-DC PSU converter - the computer will need a new PSU made to get power from the on board batteries, the M2-ATX has some other neat safety protocols built into it so thats a added bonus that i like about it. (bought) Frame - i started of thinking about getting an old power wheels jeep and making that work for my project but then i decided to build a frame. frame will be about the size of a power wheels jeep, but in the form of a real simple box truck that i might do a little bondo work on. i have a friend that welds and he is willingly happy to help me after i told him the whole project. Motors - the control a nice amount of motors, im trying to locate some power wheel chair motors at the moment, as they will provide torque and speed. im still iffy about these because i want to build this bot to be like tank steering (which the controller has man modes) but if i get one setup of power chair motors then that will be 2 batteries for the left and 2 for the right, thats 4 4 plus one for the PC, so 5 batteries. (working on finding/getting) Batteries - these would have to be SLA Rechargeable batteries, i know im getting a 24/12v battery for the computer for sure but im not sure about for the motors. Problems - Help Me: as you can see my 2 biggest problems i face is the finding motors and best fit batteries for them. as i was writing this, i sparked on an idea, maybe i can get a used golf cart, and strip the the controller crap out of it and and wire it all to my setup, this way i already got the motor picked out and i have the frame built, but im iffy on that and maybe to much money will be put into the cart and i can compensate for the load from the batteries. well i would really love it if someone can help me out and tell me what they think about the motors and frame. mainly the hardest part so far is getting my hands on some motors. when i get that i can start seeing about frame, so if someone can help me on the motors please that would be a great help. i appreciate all and any comments and help i can get. i have to leave now so i will finish writing this up and post some pics of the parts i have later tonight when i get back. cheers
well i took some quick pics with my phone of some of the hardware i got so far, i plan to document the whole project with many pic. the main AX2550 controller, the there is 10 wires coming out the right side of it, the 2 sets of black and red are for the batteries input to the system, then the 2 sets of green and white are the same lines but output. that leaves the thin yellow and black wires, those are auxiliary power input , and the power switch, it has more but im not going to get into detail about the controller now. this is the computer laid out, it has the normal PSU cuz the DC-DC is i n the mail, also there is a video card and a CD-ROM drive those will be removed when i get it all running. just both systems laid out connected together with the serial cable
thanks i hope it all works out to Update to the hardware list i forgot to add that i was planning to add a small sound system with a simple 8 or 10 inch sub, again probably screwing my self with batteries lol well today when i got home after a boring day at work and exam i saw on my desk a package so i got all hyper and opened it up, and there i had it the M2-ATX and the 4pin extension cable for P4 motherboards. here is the M2-ATX wired up (im thinking later when i have the frame built to cut the 20pin cable and extend it so i can place everything with comfort. here is a pic with the PSU wired to the pc, i went out and i took the battery off the riding lawn mower and i tested the setup, works fine im still having hard time with motors, im waiting on some wheelchair repair stores to call be back they have scrap motors but they are going to see if they will give them to me, if not i have to find another motor source. i had the idea of a moped motor run through my head but that would mean i would need 4 and thats a lot of batteries, money and weight for 4. so i scraped that idea.
well then now i got motors w00t, i called a wheel chair repair store about a week ago and on Saturday i went to go pick up the trashed chair. so i kept hoping that the motors work when i got it home i striped everything down and got my lawn mower battery and both motors worked, i will get pics of them later tonight maybe. im still iffy about the frame im going to be welding it out of L shaped blue iron (same metal as sewer grates are made of). so far the only plan i got on the frame is to make it 17 inches by 30 inches. it will have a small dump truck type bucket in the back or it will be like a 18 wheeler and i will make a small simple flat bed trailer we'll see.
can you draw up a model on sketch-up or just on paper and scan it on just so that we can see the plan.
lol no killdozer i hope to start and finish the frame this weekend, im still planning it all out in my head im not going to run off of a complicated drawing, just kinda plan as i go i did however find a website with pics of trucks so i got some ideas going, i liked this one http://www.truckweb.ca/images/David_BadHauler/part3/western_star_dump.JPG i will probably do a frame like this but with out the back, just make the back a low profile flat bed (like the trucks lowes and home depot have for rent but with a lower bed) then im thinking of doing a functional dump truck back.
You should always draw a plan, a mod without a plan is a mod that fails (I can't remember the actual quote from the modding section here........). Just draw up some sketches by hand and make sure you know the dimensions of everythng to check it will all fit together and the length of cables you need there are quite a few things that could go wrong
sorry for no updates, i been busy with work and building semi-teQ, but i will give a quick update. i have been working on semi-teQ for 2 weeks straight now. i ended up drawing a quick frame but,i can't scan it its to dirty and messed up now lol. the frame is built out of 1.5 x 1/8 L shaped blue steel, i cut them all then the next day me and a friend welded the frame up. i tried real hard to make the frame a straight as possible but the cab turned out to be crooked. but just a bit, if the bot tries to veer to the left or right then i can just loosen the screws to it and shift them a bit till it goes straight. the motors were mounted in the back and i will have 2 bearing blocks with axle for the front (need to buy 2 wheels and bearing blocks) so far the mother board goes between the 2 motors in the back. the motherboard kinda has its own suspension, you will see what i mean when i upload pics tomorrow. i have the dc motor controller mounted, and the 4 switches that will be used, 1) main system switch 2) m2-atx switch 3) AX2550 and 4) surprise i have also started the majorly needed bondo work today and yesterday. i still got about 3 days of bondoing left to do, end the end the frames gonna look real nice. the frame is real real strong i donno how much it will hold but i know it holds 200+ pounds. be and a friend got on it and tested it with a 12v lawn mower battery, it went slow but not to slow but then again that was 12v for both motors and they are rated at 24v so it will go much faster then wut it did in my test. i also have soldered up a parallel port WLAN ip display that will be mounted above the main controls. earlier today i bought 3 batteries, one for the pc and the other 2 in series for the motors, Things To Do: - - - get the front wheel system started - - - wait for batteries to arrive so i can get all the wiring done - - - get stand offs and mount the motherboard - - - finish body work and paint (im open to graphics and colors ideas, i really don't have a clue what im doing for graphics and paint (any ideas are perfect) - - - make the inside of the bot all neat and zip-tie wires and tuck them) - - - start planning the audio system and lighting - - - think about designing a dumpable bucket in the back lol again i will get photos and a video up for tomorrow, this whole post should make a million more sense
today i mounted the motherboard and dc-dc m2-atx, i also started laying out and planning the wiring project wide in this picture you can see the bottom back of the bot, this is the main place that will contain all the buttons and stuff. on the left u can see a red covered switch and to the left of that the bot charging port (yet to buy one). in the middle the motherboard tray sticks out and folds down at about 45 degrees, on this i have mounted on the left a lighted switch for dc motor consoler, and on the right a lighted switch for dc-dc converter. on the right of all that is empty for now but a volume and light switch will go there (dubbed the accessories panel. above the 2 switches on the 45 degree panel there will be a lcd that displays the WLAN IP of the bot, i yet to mount that but it will big big enough to fill the rest of the panel in. if your wondering the whole back will have a coat of bondo on it, but i need to finish the switches before i do that part this pic shows how and were i mounted the 2 main motor supply batteries. with the AX2550 mounted on behind them. i yet to decide on windows and what way im going to frame them but that will be done soon left and right view shows the sides towards the back of the bot were the motors are i started to bondo them but didn't finish so it still needs sanding and another smooth final layer for both left and right side, the front part i just have aluminum backing for the side panels later next week im getting more bondo to start the front. stupid cat didn't want to move lol this picture shows the motherboard. i mounted it on standoffs today (pain in the ass aligning them) and end results a nice. the motherboard is siting on a tray that is mounted on a frame that is welded to only one side of the bot (the back). this allows for the motherboard to have its own suspension to to speak (it works out quite well) the pcb mounted sideways is the dc-dc m2-atx mounted on a pair of standoffs, which also worked quite well here is a 360 video of it all (sorry about the moving a lot) http://youtube.com/watch?v=FsulcfkJAdE sorry for all these long posts lol new batteries should be here on Thursday (free shipping on 80 pounds of battery w00t!!!) the batteries in the pics are the old ones (they dont hold charge) but their just there for the idea
hey seesoe. small world I work in Gainesville Fl. I have recently finished a ROBOTEQ project (RC paintball tank) I have been thinking about making it internet controlled based in roboteqs internet rover. I also used the AX2550 it is a very good controller and easy to work with. one thing you should do (which you may already be doing) is hook up a backup battery for the controller. page 34 in the manual. you could use the computer battery for this. when I first started building mine I didn't do this at first and when the batteries would run low the controller would reset under load. other than that I haven't had a single problem with it. here is a couple of vids http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BS9pGOxQ10Q http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhJpYHz38PA I have lots of pics if I figure out how to upload them I'll post a few Jasen
haha small world after all, your tanks is awesome! i hope my project turns out good. and yes the AX2550 is very nice its easy to use as you said, but i guess this is what you get when you pay its price. right on about the backup battery for the controller this is already planned in my wiring, the dc dc and the controller are on the same battery.
my 2 batteries came today (2 days early W00t!) i was real exited to get them hooked up, it only took me about 4min to get both batteries fully wired to the system harnesses. i haven't ordered a controller backup/ pc dc-dc psu source battery yet so the motherboard is just there ready to wire up. so i got my laptop and hooked it up to semi-teQ andi was set i also got my psp to control the motors (on the jacks only cuz there is no front wheels). a word about the psp being used as the joystick for the bot. the psp's joystick wasn't designed to be real accurate, so when you use it on the bot it doesn't center its self back to 0 0 and the bot will continue to veer left right back forward. also its got small span so you have to move it by the millimeter in order for it not to jump to max speed once u move the stick. this bad boy goes 10 time faster then i was expecting it to go. i went for a few test rides on it. cuz i had to get on it in order to control it via laptop which is wired to the controller. boy was it scary lol. it jerks you back at the start then u take off. now you may wonder how im using it if i only have 2 wheels right? well i got a skate board in the front so im able to do straight runs lol. (btw this thing is heavy its over 110 pounds) i still have a long road ahead of me with this project, i started to get the idea of a electric go-cart, but maybe for next years project i will do it with this hardware. i will probably finish most of the wiring by this weekend i will take and upload some pics tomorrow night.
yes a lot of updates. i replaced the 2 pole motors with a 4 pole motor setup. this of course set me back a lot i had to remake a lot of the brackets, but all in all im happy with my progress. when i first had the 2 pole motors semi-teQ was just about done. i put some test wheels and was able to use the bot with wifi, but i wasn't happy with what i had a lot of problems needed done, and the steering was all redone with a 90% more effective system. as of now i have the computer the motors the batteries and the front of the bot sealed up and primed. i need to do some wiring and some other finishing detail. i will upload pictures later tonight (this time i really will lol)
sorry for the lie about uploading the pictures i got way to busy and for got all about this thread, but never the less i have been working on the project everyday. you think i would be finished but i like to work slow and make sure i know whats going on. so far im at a few read block but im sure if i amp the project expectations down a bit i can get what im looking for. i ran into some trouble with the new 4 pole motors, i would loved to use them but things didn't go well. to start with wheelchair motors have axle brakes in the back of the motors, i gutted all of that out, when i mean all out, i cut the whole back compartment off the motor, when doing this i got tired of cutting through some 3/4th thick aluminum by hand so about halfway through i hit it with a hammer. for the first motor it worked fine, but for the second motor i ended up messing up the motor a bit, and it started to pull apart. so i took it apart and fixed it all back up. when i did all the messing with the motor i broke 2 brushes, but this wasn't anything to hold the project back. so i spent about 2 weeks looking for brushes and i fond some last week and they came in 2 days ago, but by time these came in i had already changed out the 4 pole motors with the first 2 pole motors i got. the 4 pole motors weren't in good condition i need to work on them for a while to get them going good, and the holes to mount them to the frame where stripped and i couldn't mount them. here are the new motors with custom brackets i made these 2 pics show the brackets mounted to the motors, but when its goes onto the robot the frame is sandwiched between the motor and brackets as shown in a few pics some of the bolts i had were short so on both motors out gearbox i put different bolts i sealed the body with some white spray paint so the blue steal wont rust on me. i think tomorrow im going to go get a gallon of bondo and work on the body; now that i got the motors in place i can mount the motherboard holder and things just build off of that. (click on images for higher res)
