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Stepper Motor Question

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Hobe

New Member
Hi,

I did a project two years ago to make a beer can opener using this stepper motor:

LINK

It seems to be pretty simple, had four control lines, ran on 12V and was pretty low power. Im now looking to use a slightly more powerful stepper motor.

What kind of stepper motor can simply be put in as a replacement, without any additional wiring and with limited recoding?

Here is my schematic with the motor driver.

**broken link removed**

The reason i was asking more so than just the power consumption was the fact that some stepper motors seem to have more wires than the four that i have and other stepper motors are called bipolar.

I'm not sure how the stepper motor I used is classified, so i cant narrow down the kind of stepper motor i should be looking for as a replacement.
 
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Are beer cans getting harder to open?

PS: Your 4-wire stepper is classified as bipolar. I've always found that naming confusing, because the 6-wire motors are really the bipolar ones. The naming is backwards.
 
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Hah, Im hoping to shave a few ms off the time needed to open my beer.

So I now know it's a 12V bipolar stepper motor I'm after. Do all bi-polar stepper motors use the same code to run? I've got the code working (correct steps) to run the motor in my link, can I expect to drop in a more powerful motor and have it run without any modifications.
 
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They use the same code. The only difference that I know of is the step size. If a motor uses more steps per rotation, then you'll need to increase the step frequency to get the same rotational speed.
 
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Just one more thing, the motor im using is apparently 2-phase. What does that mean, and is it important that I buy a replacement that is also two phase?
 
Where did you get that from? I'm not familiar with that term, but it might refer to the fact that the drive signals are generated as two different signals 90 degrees apart, as any bipolar stepper would require. There is also a step method that uses 45 degree overlaping signals, called half-steppnig. I'm not 100% certain that all bipolar motors are half-step capable, but I'm sure they are all capable of using the 90 degree method.
 
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Looking at the datasheet, 2-phase seems to just mean the motor is bipolar. So, 2-phase bipolar is redundant.
 
Ah I see. Without trying to push my luck here, is there any chance you could look at this spec and confirm it is possible to use this motor as a replacement:

MOTOR,STEP,BIPOLAR,12VDC,0.48A,25 OHM,26MH
Kysan Electronics Data Book
 
There isn't any way for me to compare specs, becuse I only have a picture of the first motor. But if the driver you're using will drive the voltage and current required, then I don't see a problem.
 
Here is the full schematic:
**broken link removed**

I printed them both off, but they both seem to have very similar specs. The rated current is exactly the same for both, and the holding torque is actually apprently more on the rapid one posted above. Would this be any upgrade?
 
Just to revisit this, I believe I have found another stepper driver which might be some use:

SparkFun Electronics - Stepper Motor with Cable

The holding torque is double the other stepper, even though it draws less current. It does have significantly lower step angles, which isnt a problem for my project.

Id like to buy this, if someone could tell me if it should be suitable before I purchase it would be appreciated.
 
Your schematic shows a unipolar ULN2003A driver with a six wire stepper motor hooked to it. The motor isn't connected to any power.

Your photo shows a 4-wire motor which could very well be bipolar.

We can tell you if a new bipolar stepper motor will work with your existing circuit when you find the circuit that you actually have built.
 
Hah, Im hoping to shave a few ms off the time needed to open my beer.

So I now know it's a 12V bipolar stepper motor I'm after. Do all bi-polar stepper motors use the same code to run? I've got the code working (correct steps) to run the motor in my link, can I expect to drop in a more powerful motor and have it run without any modifications.

You can also use six wires unipolar stepper motor as bipolar, just simply use 4 of the the wires and don't connect the center tap wires. The max current ULN2003 driver rating is only 500mA, so if you want to drive more powerfull motor you will just need to change driver.

Stepper Motor Controller
 
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