Well I think i have a duct tape solution to the problem, I ran the encoder signals through a couple decade counter ic's set up to divide by 2. This gave a wider pulse, Which could then be digitially filtered in the FPGA. Seems to work pretty good.
Here's a pic of the 'final' circuit:
**broken link removed**
It's a horrible layout and I'm half tempted to redo it, but it appears to work, so why fix it if it ain't broke...
Here's a pic of mosfet failure without current limiting:
**broken link removed**
We were testing the pendulum and the motor quit working all of a sudden, and i looked back at the breadboard to see it blowing smoke.
I since added some current limiting as seen in the first pic, (4 large resistors +ic's).
Some movies of the pendulum in action:
**broken link removed** (3.9mb)
**broken link removed** (1.4 mb)
We still have some control work to do, but I'm quite happy we made it this far.