Dave L
USA
Asked
— Edited
Good day folks! Anyone have recommendations for an alternative to the BV-4113 Motor Controller? Looks like my Dogbot (dog baby sitter bot) requires more power than the BV-4113 can deliver. Oddly enough the Tank's motors in its original form only pulled 1Amp, but when connected to the BV-4113 they now pull 2 Amps, which causes the motor controller to shutdown to prevent overloading. If I connect the motors directly to the 7.2 Vdc battery, they run smoothly and as fast as before.
Thanks for you recommendations! AND DJ, thanks for creating a very cool product !
They are on eBay , 4a max 2amp continous is what I was seeing.
Well I added a heatsink and fan, seems to keep the chip cool, but the bot still has problem running when there's a load. If it's resting on a lift (off the tracks) the tanks run fine. As soon as I set it on the floor, the tank can run forward and back with no problems, but it stalls when trying to turn left or right. I am assuming that the controller cannot handle the load of the one stopped track when turning.
Yes amps will spike on a heavy tread vehicle as one tread makes tons of drag. Are you using variable speeds? There are a few solutions to reduce a stall spike. First is when turning power the other tread in reverse direction. This literally cuts amp load in half and reduces that dead weight drag of one track not moving. This will give you a solid left right forward back. It's only tricky when moving forward and turning which requires you to have the tread on opposite side your turning to moving faster than the inside tread. This will definitely draw more current than just the simple forward backwards and rotation left and right because speeds must vary for each tread and slower treads create drag. Most robot owners do not use variable speed forward moving turns for this reason. If you want to have arcing turns using variable speed you need a motor controller that will handle at least twice your right and left turning current draw.
Originally the tank motors only pulled 1 amp. I was hoping that by removing the turret and using less wieght, they would pull less current. Not so much! So it looks like I will be buying another controller. How are the Sabertooth's working these days with the EZB?
They work , so does hb25 from paralax. Both heavy duty controllers.. both are more money but that's the price of stuff working right? Lol
http://www.robotshop.com/sabertooth-2x5a-rc-driver.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=base&utm_campaign=jos
5amps continually. 10amps max for each motor. If the h bridge I bought from dj can't cut it this is what I will buy. Runs 6-12v
Here is a cheaper option , just as effective , May seem overkill but you wont have power issues with a 10a h bridge , here is a company I've bought stuff from and controller is half the cost , direct signals from ezb and easy to wire up labeled barrier strip on the oth http://www.ebay.com/itm/150754427920?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649 er end.
Nice Option. Thanks.