Large motors and backlash

Jay Kickliter

So I got my (almost) balancing robot running, but the BaneBots gearmotors I am using have way too much backlash and cant developing enough torque to recover from much of a tilt.

I was looking at eBay and noticed that wheelchair motors go for relatively cheap. Does anyone know if these kinds of motors have much backlash?

Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)

Backlash can be dealt with programmatically. The idea is to keep track of when the motor changes direction. When it does, give it a quick burst at full speed in the new direction before resuming the control sequence. The length of this burst can be determined experimentally. It requires almost no torque to take up the backlash, so recovery should be rapid enough not to compromise control excessively.

-Phil

Jay Kickliter

So, after several days of coding, I finally got around to adding your suggestion. It definitely helps, but the 'bot still doesn't balance. Looks like I need more powerful motors anyway.