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Parallax Servo Controller -a stand-alone?? — Parallax Forums

Parallax Servo Controller -a stand-alone??

Peter RandPeter Rand Posts: 20
edited 2007-05-05 02:42 in General Discussion
Is this controller a stand-alone printed circuit - i.e. can it be programed then disconnected from the computer and attached, with batteries and servos, to a piece of art? Is the disconnected board powered by the batteries as well as the servos?

Comments

  • Mike GreenMike Green Posts: 23,101
    edited 2007-05-05 02:42
    The PSC is not a stand-alone device. It receives a sequence of serial commands from a PC (USB version) or a microcontroller (either version) that set the position of each servo connected to it. There are some other things it can do as well, but it only deals with the current (or next) servo position.

    It needs a power supply for the logic as well as the servos. You can run the whole thing off the servo supply, but you'll need a regulator and some filter capacitors since the PSC requires regulated +5V and servos typically run at 6-7.5V and create a lot of electrical noise in the power supply.

    If you only need to control one to four servos, you might be able to do everything with just a Stamp which has its own regulator and is much smaller than a PSC (and can store quite complex sequences and react to external sensors). Another option would be a Propeller Protoboard which is cheaper and much more powerful (if you need it).
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