Question Sim Motion China Conversion

Best regards,

We have received a Sim Motion machine from China, which is in very good condition. It seems to have been used sparingly, and we want to get it up and running. The machine is currently disassembled.



It comes with a PC equipped with an Asus card, a dongle whose function we have yet to determine, a GeForce graphics card, and a Vegafu SMC_X24 controller. Additionally, it has two AC Servo Driver Dorna EPS-M1-080808AA-3100.



Info Dongle
This machine greets at 192.168.15.101 MBOS IR: 192.168.15.201 Secure Cancel The dongle is correct, and the machine is authorized! The platform returns to zero Platform parameters: Lead: 10 Stroke: 500 mm The equipment has been running for: 1 day, 14 hours, and 16 minutes. Number of runs: 267 times.

When we turn on the PC, which runs Windows 10 and has Dirt 3 installed, the game starts, but none of the linear actuators move, except for a slight movement when the system is powered on.

I have read several comments suggesting that it's better to change the controller and use SimTools. Since I am new to this topic, I would appreciate any help from someone who has already done this setup. I would like to know how complex it is to get it back in operation, what skills are required, and what the first step should be.

I appreciate any comments in advance.


This machine greets at 192.168.15.101 MBOS IR: 192.168.15.201 Secure Cancel The dongle is correct, and the machine is authorized! The platform returns to zero Platform parameters: Lead: 10 Stroke: 500 mm The equipment has been running for: 1 day, 14 hours, and 16 minutes. Number of runs: 267 times.

Thank you very much for your reply. I did indeed write to Thanos, he has a website and a forum dedicated to this. Hopefully something can be done. In the worst case, what do you think should be done, what is useful to me and what should I discard?

If the controller uses proprietary software that is dongle-protected and all documentation (if any available at all) is in Chinese I'd discard the controller. But there is a fairly high chance that the servo motors and drivers can be re-used. Nearly all of them can be configured for step/direction command input. Those that don't usually use CAN bus. More complicated protocols like EtherCat are rarely used for sim rigs simply because they are too expensive and not really needed. I know nothing about Thanos but I think the Motion4Sim controller supports both, step/dir and CAN.

Thanos recommends me, would be to use the Plug and Play AASD-15A servo drives. Essentially, you could replace the motors on the actuators of the platform and the drives using these inexpensive AASD model. The White version of these AASD drives is also silent, no 10Khz noise like the Dorna Drive produces.

Servomotor / Driver kit combo to replace the Dorna Servos and Drives (comes with all servo wiring)
80ST-M02430 220V 750W AC Servo motor 2.39N.M. 3000RPM 0.75KW servomotor Single-Phase ac drive permanent magnet Matched Driver
"WH Version A" white servo drives, with wires (not plugs)

This way I can make an economical and Thanos-friendly change.

According to the recommendation, it would be necessary to disassemble the actuators and change the servomotors.

Replacing the motors would be the "last resort" option and should always work. But I bet the old motors could be re-used. The only problem is to find out the pin assignment on the connectors if there is no documentation for the drivers on the internet.

Unfortunately there is little or no information on the internet and more so controller driver to the Vegafu SMC-X24 controller. When the machine is turned on, the actuators go up and down, which is the only thing it does, even though it has its dongle and there is already a pre-loaded game. Do you have any recommendations?

If the actuators go up and down you have almost won. I'd open the shells of the connectors of the cables that go from the motion controller to the servo drives. Get a scope, ask a friend who has one if you don't. Put the probe on each pin one after another. There must be one or two pins where a square wave can be seen whenever the motors move. And there must be one or a pair of pins that change polarity when the motor changes direction. If you have found those pins or pin pairs you can connect a Thanos or M4S controller.

If you are lucky they use the same pinout as the AASD-15A drives. Chinese are often not very creative and tend to copy everything. If not you have to solder a special cable. But that saves you $1000+ for new drives.