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where to get started on first (sort of) electronics project

wysiwyg

May 4, 2012
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Hello! first time poster here.
I have an idea that i would like to create, and could use some advice as to where to begin.
My knowledge of electronics is pretty basic, so any advice is appreciated!

Basically the idea is to have a video camera mounted to a platform, and with the use of motors, to control the direction and angle the camera is facing.

lets keep it simple and for now assume it just has one axis that controls the pitch (up and down) of the camera movement.
I threw this REALLY quick 3d sketch together, for illustrative purposes as to what I have in mind:
avfm1s.png


I would like to be able to control the motor speed and rotation direction with something like a joystick. I guess a potentiometer like this would do the job: Radioshack

so basically the things that I do not know how to do, and which i could use some help, are these:

1. I have not dealt with motors very much, and i'm not familiar with the correct way to mount them; whether/how to use gears or gearboxes; how much weight it can take; best place to buy them, etc.
2. how to control a motor's direction of rotation (I am aware that switching the negative /positive will cause it to spin the other way, but how do i wire it to control it on demand?)
3. can you control the speed of the motor with something like a potentiometer?

I had more questions, but I cant think of them at the moment. I guess I will keep posting here with any updates.

Thanks in advance; appreciate any help!
 

CocaCola

Apr 7, 2012
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I'm not against doing it yourself, but is there a reason you can't or don't want to use an over the counter pan and tilt camera stand?

It's not overly complicated to make said device with steppers or servos, but I doubt it's cost effective in the end, when you factor in the mechanical structure design and everything else, including the learning curve...
 

wysiwyg

May 4, 2012
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thanks for replying
you mean something like this?
http://www.amazon.com/Bescor-MP101-Video-Motorized-Head/dp/B0000AUR21/ref=pd_cp_p_1
true, that is exactly what i want.
however,
a) im a student with not that much money to spare,
especially:
b) I cant justify blowing 130 bucks in one shot. even if at the end all the components add up to be in that price range...it's not as bad! :)
and even if it's not cost effective:
c) It's a learning experience. I do want to learn more about electronics, and i thought this would be a good project to start with, because it is something i can use.

sound reasonable? let me know what you think...
 

CocaCola

Apr 7, 2012
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however,
a) im a student with not that much money to spare,
especially:
b) I cant justify blowing 130 bucks in one shot. even if at the end all the components add up to be in that price range...it's not as bad! :)
and even if it's not cost effective:
c) It's a learning experience. I do want to learn more about electronics, and i thought this would be a good project to start with, because it is something i can use.

sound reasonable? let me know what you think...

Well unless you find freebie parts and get real lucky I highly doubt you will be able to build one for less without any experience... There is also the learning curve, you will need to spend the time doing it...

First order of business you will have to decide if you are going to use servos or stepper motors... Second you will need to develop the hardware and software that will drive the servos or steppers... Third you will need to design and fabricate the structure... And then you will have to cross your fingers that you don't have to go back to square one and start over because something isn't quite right...

There isn't a simple this is the way to do it design process, if you want joystick control vs button control you need to take separate design approaches... If you want wired or wireless or IR you need to design for that purpose... Weight considerations? Noise considerations?

I would suggest for starters you explore and research driving a stepper motor or servo from a microcontroller... Once you have that mastered work towards your control mechanism... Once you have that mastered and have the controls and 'motors' all working as expected start exploring building the structure to hold it all...
 

wysiwyg

May 4, 2012
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hmm..not as simple as i thought..
i wasnt even thinking about using microcontrollers at all; i have never dealt with them and have no idea how they work.
i guess its not feasible to do this with a "simple" (dont know what you'd call it...traditional?) circuit?

like i said i only have very basic knowledge, so please bear with me!
thanks!
 

CocaCola

Apr 7, 2012
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i guess its not feasible to do this with a "simple" (dont know what you'd call it...traditional?) circuit?

You can drive a servo with a simple 555 timer circuit, and a pot...

The problem I see here is you want to run before you learn to crawl... You need to understand all the basic components and get them all working individually before you attempt to construct a finished project...
 

wysiwyg

May 4, 2012
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The problem I see here is you want to run before you learn to crawl
That is kind of the feeling i am getting myself...esepecially since I dont really know what a servo, stepper, or simple 555 timer circuit is!

very wise advice, thanks.
do you have any ideas where i should start? any online resources that will point me in the right direction?
thanks for deflating my over-ambitious head!
 

CocaCola

Apr 7, 2012
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do you have any ideas where i should start?

Google.com

The topics you will need to complete this project are covered in detail on MANY sites, it's just a matter of spending the time reading and experimenting... Once you get a grasp on it another world of possibilities will open up to you...
 

BobK

Jan 5, 2010
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I actually built a home made servo that skipped all the pulse width modulation to control position via a pot. It was quite easy. You connect a pot to the shaft of the motor then use an op-amp to compare it's output to another pot used to control the position. The op-amp controls a half bridge to drive the motor in either direction until the positions match. The gear motor was taken out of an old VCR. It worked surprisingly well after tweaking the gain of the op amp until it tracked well.

Bob
 

wysiwyg

May 4, 2012
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May 4, 2012
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thanks for the replies.
CocaCola: I did google around before posting here, but I couldnt find anything useful...is there any specific website you'd recommend? thanks again!

Bobk: wow...that sounds a little beyond me! no clue what you're talking about! :)
btw, is pot short for potentiometer?
 

BobK

Jan 5, 2010
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thanks for the replies.
Bobk: wow...that sounds a little beyond me! no clue what you're talking about! :)
btw, is pot short for potentiometer?
Yes, pot is short for potentiometer.

What I described could be built using 1 IC, a handful of resistors, the two pots and two transistors, so it is not really all that complicated. It would also need a dual + and - power supply, whch could be as simple as two batteries. Using a salvaged motor, all the electronics parts would be < $10.

Bob
 

wysiwyg

May 4, 2012
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i was kind of expecting that...lmgtfy...
ok, thanks; I'll come back when i know more!
 

CocaCola

Apr 7, 2012
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i was kind of expecting that...lmgtfy...
ok, thanks; I'll come back when i know more!

Every one of those search produces a dozen or dozens of relevant pages on the subject, I can't see how you could have previously Googled and not found anything useful?
 

wysiwyg

May 4, 2012
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you are right...i was looking more for a "get started with servos" project, that explains how to wire, mount and control them.
 
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