Forum >How to control a 16V DC motor of an ex-inkject printer the simpliest way?
How to control a 16V DC motor of an ex-inkject printer the simpliest way?

Hi there,
First of all, pardon me, I'm totally unexperienced with the Robots, Arduino and digital controllers.
I have a special experimental DIY project.
I need to control a 16V DC motor. Actually it's a carriage motor of a dfrobot Inkjet print head with the carriage movement. I need to use it to perform a long linear movement, sometimes only once in one direction, sometimes repeatedly alternating - just like printer head did.
As I can understand - correct me, if I'm wrong - it should not be complicated. The motor has two poles only and changing the polarity reverse the movement (I tried it manually and works like that).
SO, what I need a kind or programmable or controllable relay or switch to turn on the power for several milliseconds then turn off, and/or change polarity and turn on/turn off again.
I can solder, I have all tools for general electronics repair and build, and I have a Macbook, those are my resources to complete the task.
Anybody can suggest any solution? (K.I.S.S. preferred)
Thank you.
First of all, pardon me, I'm totally unexperienced with the Robots, Arduino and digital controllers.
I have a special experimental DIY project.
I need to control a 16V DC motor. Actually it's a carriage motor of a dfrobot Inkjet print head with the carriage movement. I need to use it to perform a long linear movement, sometimes only once in one direction, sometimes repeatedly alternating - just like printer head did.
As I can understand - correct me, if I'm wrong - it should not be complicated. The motor has two poles only and changing the polarity reverse the movement (I tried it manually and works like that).
SO, what I need a kind or programmable or controllable relay or switch to turn on the power for several milliseconds then turn off, and/or change polarity and turn on/turn off again.
I can solder, I have all tools for general electronics repair and build, and I have a Macbook, those are my resources to complete the task.

Anybody can suggest any solution? (K.I.S.S. preferred)

Thank you.
2012-07-09 18:49:27 Hi ActiveGuitar,
the motor only has 2 wires? if so, it should be pretty simple. How are your programming skills?
A relay would probably not be a good solution, as there is no way to reverse the polarity. The best solution would be a motor controller. It can reverse polarity, and control the speed. But you would need some programming knowledge to get it working exactly as you want it. We do provide a sample code, but it might not fit your exact needs, and you would need to modify it.
Does the movement need to be very accurate? If so, timing would probably not be the best solution, since you will not have the motor end up in the exact location every time.
You would need the aid of additional sensors. Depending on the setup and space, you might want to use an IR sensor, or a bumper switch, or at the very least a motor encoder.
Recommended hardware:
IR Switch
MicroSwitch (Bumper)
motorcontrollers:
2A Dual Motor Controller
2A Motor Controller Shield
You will also need a microcontroller: I would recommend Arduino since all of these parts are compatible, and it is easy to program.
Arduino list
Hector
the motor only has 2 wires? if so, it should be pretty simple. How are your programming skills?
A relay would probably not be a good solution, as there is no way to reverse the polarity. The best solution would be a motor controller. It can reverse polarity, and control the speed. But you would need some programming knowledge to get it working exactly as you want it. We do provide a sample code, but it might not fit your exact needs, and you would need to modify it.
Does the movement need to be very accurate? If so, timing would probably not be the best solution, since you will not have the motor end up in the exact location every time.
You would need the aid of additional sensors. Depending on the setup and space, you might want to use an IR sensor, or a bumper switch, or at the very least a motor encoder.
Recommended hardware:
IR Switch
MicroSwitch (Bumper)
motorcontrollers:
2A Dual Motor Controller
2A Motor Controller Shield
You will also need a microcontroller: I would recommend Arduino since all of these parts are compatible, and it is easy to program.
Arduino list
