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2DOF motor selection (input wanted!)

Discussion in 'DIY Motion Simulator Projects' started by chdem100, Oct 6, 2023.

  1. chdem100

    chdem100 New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 4, 2023
    Messages:
    4
    Balance:
    24Coins
    Ratings:
    +1 / 0 / -0
    My Motion Simulator:
    2DOF, 3DOF, DC motor, Arduino
    Hello, I'm trying to get the parts together that I need for a small affordable level (but perhaps expandable) 2DOF sim. I've read through many of the FAQs over the last days, but as expected, some open questions remain. My aim in general is increased immersion in production/rally racing sims with a limited by decent amout of motion (something around 5-10° roll/pitch), not necessarily doing "party-mode", as in very large impressive movements (from experience with other gadgets, these get old quickly and rather distract from the game eventually). So my first question is, will some cheap and cheerful 120W 24V wormgear motors I was offered suffice for that? I could get a set of 4 locally, for less than I'd have to pay for a single 250W unit - hard to say no to that if it works. The idea is either: a)Use two of them for the seat, perhaps add a third one later for rotation (the stand design I have in mind would allow retrofitting)
    b) use 2x motors on each side.
    a) leaves the question mark at "is 120W strong enough?" - any input on that?
    b) leaves the question "is there a way the two motors won't eventually destroy each other when they inevitable run somewhat out of sync?" The best idea I could come up with myself to prevent total disaster in the case of "one motor loses power, the other one keeps working" is to have the actuation lever solidly attached to one "master" motor along with the position encoder, and have the second "slave" motor work on that same lever only via a friction clutch, allowing them to rotate in relation to each other if they need to. Generally, I suppose having a duo work in harmony would probably need a motor controller per device, with a decently repeatable calibration routine (I guess the motor+gearbox behavior might change over time, at higher temps etc.), right? Anyone else running dual wormgear motors?
    Thanks for any input and greetings from Tyrol, Chris
  2. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

    Joined:
    Jul 13, 2014
    Messages:
    21,142
    Occupation:
    Innovative tech specialist for NGOs
    Location:
    St Helens, Tasmania, Australia
    Balance:
    148,547Coins
    Ratings:
    +10,902 / 54 / -2
    My Motion Simulator:
    3DOF, DC motor, JRK
    You can't really determine the adequacy of motors independent of the desired design, as the two are intimately entwined.

    Fortunately we have tools like SimCalc, which can help get your head around the tradeoffs in design Vs physics, to determine what motor specs are likely needed to drive a given design at a desired performance point.
  3. chdem100

    chdem100 New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 4, 2023
    Messages:
    4
    Balance:
    24Coins
    Ratings:
    +1 / 0 / -0
    My Motion Simulator:
    2DOF, 3DOF, DC motor, Arduino
    Thank you for the input, never seen the Simcalc tool so far and it's very useful for me. I did enter the rough lever positions (+/- 0.05m up to design details) in there, and for a reasonable initial configuration (80mm lever, motor at 0.4/0.6/-0.2m XYZ, Rod mount at 0.25/0.3/0m, 45deg motor angle) I got 100% efficiency, around 400-420N of force, ~8 degree of pitch/roll rotation, and 54mm of travel (163mm/s) for the one motor configuration, assuming only 80% of rated speed and torque. That, I think, will suffice - 520N will certainly be feelable pushing on a ~100kg load (almost a 0.5g push!), and 8 degrees of angle is very noticeable...
    On the other hand, I could imagine adding the second pair of motors to the rear of the seat, while introducing a loose coupling for safety, using strong springs (such as for swings) in pull-configuration - that would definitely be safe and simple, but probably introduce a bit of bounce-around - however, 1000+N of force seems yummy.