a) The prototype could be operated with a PC and powered with standard 110 VAC wall sockets.
b) The product designer could determine a winding solution, and easily code it into a pre-made template.
To this end, it was determined that a USB powered microcontroller with readily available software would be the most appropriate solution. The DFRobot DFRduino USB microcontroller was chosen as it fit these requirements at a low cost.
The microcontroller is a clone based on the Arduino MEGA microcontroller, and thus runs on the Arduino software, which is available free online. There are also numerous online tutorials available for the software, which were very useful in determining the control operations.
In order to control the stepper motor which was used for the spindle, a motor controller was needed. Specifically, the goal was to find a controller which was specifically compatible with the microcontroller. The best option was the Adafruit Motor Shield Kit for Arduino, which is designed to be mounted directly atop the microcontroller. The motor shield came unassembled, but instructions for assembly and use were readily available, as well as the appropriate libraries needed to run the motor shield through the Arduino software.
The problem of controlling the 24 VDC actuator motors with a 5 V microcontroller was solved by using relays to replace the push button controls which came with the actuators. The Zettler AZ8222 relays used in the system directly replace the COM, normally open, and normally closed pins on the actuator switching board, while the relay coil is connected to an output pin on the microcontroller. Two relays are used on each switching board, one for “forward” motion, and one for “backward” motion.
