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#31
RV Hardware / Re: RV4S PCB Pinouts
Last post by Mike - December 31, 2024, 11:55:52 AMI think there may be some partial wiring diagrams here somewhere.
Both boards have serial interfaces- not sure if they share the same serial bus. Don't think I've seen command docs but pretty sure the comms are very simple - a byte or two in each direction.
There is a utility in the standard install called armtest.exe that allows testing of the functions of these boards.
Both boards have serial interfaces- not sure if they share the same serial bus. Don't think I've seen command docs but pretty sure the comms are very simple - a byte or two in each direction.
There is a utility in the standard install called armtest.exe that allows testing of the functions of these boards.
#32
RV Hardware / RV4S PCB Pinouts
Last post by dogboy - December 30, 2024, 04:14:09 PMHello Everyone,
This may be a long shot but I am trying to find further information about the two PCBs in my RV4.
I have attached a picture of each, but would like specifically to know the pinouts of the the connectors, as in what each pin does and what the signal to expect etc. The larger board is the one fitted on the arm and the small PCB is the one fitted to detect the slots in the lower driver wheels.
Any information on these boards, such as functionality or RS232 data etc would be really helpful.
The larger PCB has a MAX232 chip on it so I assume that this board has some serial comms.
If that is the case, does any know what commands or data to send to it or what data to expect from it, format etc.
Thanks
Paul
This may be a long shot but I am trying to find further information about the two PCBs in my RV4.
I have attached a picture of each, but would like specifically to know the pinouts of the the connectors, as in what each pin does and what the signal to expect etc. The larger board is the one fitted on the arm and the small PCB is the one fitted to detect the slots in the lower driver wheels.
Any information on these boards, such as functionality or RS232 data etc would be really helpful.
The larger PCB has a MAX232 chip on it so I assume that this board has some serial comms.
If that is the case, does any know what commands or data to send to it or what data to expect from it, format etc.
Thanks
Paul
#33
RV Hardware / Re: RV4S Driver Belts (and Ope...
Last post by trev - December 27, 2024, 10:26:45 PMDon't waste your money until you have proven the machine will do what you hope. Am sure you will have it apart a few times as your project develops.
I spent money on stuff thinking it would be a good investment only to find a project takes a different path and you end up wasting money.
I spent money on stuff thinking it would be a good investment only to find a project takes a different path and you end up wasting money.
#34
RV Hardware / Re: RV4S Driver Belts (and Ope...
Last post by dogboy - December 27, 2024, 02:04:13 PMI just priced up two timing belts (T2.5 950 13mm) from Bearing Shop UK. Including VAT and postage (£2.40) it comes to a total of £84.02. I nearly fell of my chair. LOL.
Can't seem to find any other alternatives apart from some Dunlop branded belts, but these are described as budget belts and the only other make I found was Optibelts but they only had 12mm width (totallybelts.com).
Any advice on what are the best replacement belts to buy would be helpful. I can always order the belts from Bearing Shop but just thought I would ask again, before coughing up 84 quid.
Thanks
Paul
Can't seem to find any other alternatives apart from some Dunlop branded belts, but these are described as budget belts and the only other make I found was Optibelts but they only had 12mm width (totallybelts.com).
Any advice on what are the best replacement belts to buy would be helpful. I can always order the belts from Bearing Shop but just thought I would ask again, before coughing up 84 quid.
Thanks
Paul
#35
RV Hardware / Re: Feeder controller board re...
Last post by trev - December 24, 2024, 09:55:09 AMI have a few feeders that are already wired up and some spare boards. Might be useful having some already fitted for reference and to enable you to experiment before taking apart your feeders? And to have some more feeders.
I would likely sell these relatively cheap if you are interested.
Do you need any other spares whilst at it as I am having a final clear out and may put some stuff on eBay in the new year if I can't sell them to someone on here for a good price.
I would likely sell these relatively cheap if you are interested.
Do you need any other spares whilst at it as I am having a final clear out and may put some stuff on eBay in the new year if I can't sell them to someone on here for a good price.
#36
RV Hardware / Re: RV4S Driver Belts (and Ope...
Last post by trev - December 24, 2024, 09:50:34 AMI would be really interested to see your progress with this. Be interesting to see what repeatable placement accuracy you get.
#37
RV Hardware / RV4S Driver Belts (and OpenPNP...
Last post by dogboy - December 24, 2024, 08:18:12 AMHello all,
I want to replace the motor drive belts on my RV4S.
As many of you know these are marked up as T2.5-950
My question really is where do I buy good replacements from?
Searching the net brings up many suppliers from RS to eBay with various prices up to £30+ each and and different types of materials etc.
My existing belts measure exactly 12.6 mm wide, so I assume that's what I should replace them with.
What is the ultimate drive belt for these machines?
My belts don't look too bad, but I am 'upgrading' my RV4S to run with OpenPNP and a Duet3 6XD controller and really I would like to put new belts on as I have the robot assembly ripped apart at the moment and it would be good to know they are new without any issues.
If anyone is interested in this, I could start another post documenting my progress, which may or may not be successful!
Thanks
Paul
I want to replace the motor drive belts on my RV4S.
As many of you know these are marked up as T2.5-950
My question really is where do I buy good replacements from?
Searching the net brings up many suppliers from RS to eBay with various prices up to £30+ each and and different types of materials etc.
My existing belts measure exactly 12.6 mm wide, so I assume that's what I should replace them with.
What is the ultimate drive belt for these machines?
My belts don't look too bad, but I am 'upgrading' my RV4S to run with OpenPNP and a Duet3 6XD controller and really I would like to put new belts on as I have the robot assembly ripped apart at the moment and it would be good to know they are new without any issues.
If anyone is interested in this, I could start another post documenting my progress, which may or may not be successful!
Thanks
Paul
#38
RV Hardware / Re: Feeder controller board re...
Last post by Greasemonkey - December 19, 2024, 12:11:38 PMHi Trev,
Thats a good question.
I am thinking initialy I am after a few boards to try out and tinker with.
If this works out well then I would probably want to retrofit most of our feeders down the line.
I have a cache of chinese arduino megas collecting dust in my stores from old venture which would be ideal.
We still use our RV a lot for certain jobs and I am on a bit of a mission to fix or improve a number of the known issues we suffer with the feeders which prevent an operator walking away from the machine while it is running.
It would also be nice to add some features to the feeders which would make life easier.
Thats a good question.
I am thinking initialy I am after a few boards to try out and tinker with.
If this works out well then I would probably want to retrofit most of our feeders down the line.
I have a cache of chinese arduino megas collecting dust in my stores from old venture which would be ideal.
We still use our RV a lot for certain jobs and I am on a bit of a mission to fix or improve a number of the known issues we suffer with the feeders which prevent an operator walking away from the machine while it is running.
It would also be nice to add some features to the feeders which would make life easier.
#39
RV Hardware / Re: Feeder controller board re...
Last post by trev - December 19, 2024, 10:27:33 AMHi
I used the board on several feeders and it performs fantastically well. I think I placed 1000s of 0603 leds and jumping was greatly reduced. Some feeders have the pins at the front ( grey feeders ), some have them at the back ( blue feeders ). I found on the grey feeder some times the action of the pin would also contribute to the bouncing. So if you have blue feeders then I think it works better. It might be other things too but I think that's what I found.
The solution I used as I was investigating the problem and using the boards was to wire the transformer inside to power the control board but then I used an external supply to power the solenoids. This allowed me to monitor them and see what voltage worked best. Reducing the voltage to experiment with the pin impact. I think though in the end I settled on 24V and it was find for a lot. With the transformer, the voltage is all over the place and I think too high most of the time.
Also I found that when you start to slow the feed speed down, the solenoids are energised for longer and the transformer voltage is too high to turn the solenoid on for that long. 24V enables you to slow things down and not overheat the solenoids.
The software for the controller is Arduino based and had a menu to control everything. I ended up putting a panel mount usb connector on the back of the feeder and I would plug into that to configure it from a terminal programme.
It was always a work in progress but was at a stage where it was working. I do have some boards and would be happy to provide all the source code and schematics so you could modify/adapt it to your own needs.
How many boards would you be looking for?
I used the board on several feeders and it performs fantastically well. I think I placed 1000s of 0603 leds and jumping was greatly reduced. Some feeders have the pins at the front ( grey feeders ), some have them at the back ( blue feeders ). I found on the grey feeder some times the action of the pin would also contribute to the bouncing. So if you have blue feeders then I think it works better. It might be other things too but I think that's what I found.
The solution I used as I was investigating the problem and using the boards was to wire the transformer inside to power the control board but then I used an external supply to power the solenoids. This allowed me to monitor them and see what voltage worked best. Reducing the voltage to experiment with the pin impact. I think though in the end I settled on 24V and it was find for a lot. With the transformer, the voltage is all over the place and I think too high most of the time.
Also I found that when you start to slow the feed speed down, the solenoids are energised for longer and the transformer voltage is too high to turn the solenoid on for that long. 24V enables you to slow things down and not overheat the solenoids.
The software for the controller is Arduino based and had a menu to control everything. I ended up putting a panel mount usb connector on the back of the feeder and I would plug into that to configure it from a terminal programme.
It was always a work in progress but was at a stage where it was working. I do have some boards and would be happy to provide all the source code and schematics so you could modify/adapt it to your own needs.
How many boards would you be looking for?
#40
RV Hardware / Re: Feeder controller board re...
Last post by Greasemonkey - December 18, 2024, 12:06:01 PMHello Trev,
I was wondering what happened to your controller project.
I am interested in changing the drive boards in our old workhorse's feeders.
It would be good to have a drive board that does ramping or smooth as we do find certain components can jump around.
Did you have any plan to make these boards available to others or was it just a pet project?
I was wondering what happened to your controller project.
I am interested in changing the drive boards in our old workhorse's feeders.
It would be good to have a drive board that does ramping or smooth as we do find certain components can jump around.
Did you have any plan to make these boards available to others or was it just a pet project?