To missis @sarahMCML
I am now building your cct. in my simulator. I will update soon.

 

The entire cct is powered from 6V (or 6.3V)
I put my DMM to 200mA range. I never had to measure such low voltages, probably in my life. This is a rare occasion.
click on image to enlarge - and see how the knob is set.
View attachment 282501
And here are the results: It actually put a 0 in front of the number, because such small values.
I write down exactly what the DMM was showing me:
View attachment 282502
The motor tested is the same as until now, Nema17.
The wiper of the POT is still jumping from 100 to 100mA but it is doing it in a larger step than before.
The mA are jumping around because the cct is set to a very low fv of about 1Hz, and also very low speed where the power is the highest through the circuit. Its a visible fluctuating mA reading. I kind of catch the extremes, but in reality was more in between these values.
Here is where I put the probes of the DMM:
View attachment 282503

These values are total madness! Are you sure that the pot isn't damaged? What is the voltage at the upper terminal, the one that should be connected to +5V. And what is the wiper voltage when it is turned fully to that end?
Please run at at about 300Hz so that it steps smoothly while doing so, and don't worry about the power of the motor, this is just for this test.

 

To @sarahMCML
It is a very annoying and BAD habit that you have, you an the other UK friend, mister Marconi from the other website. And I think you are one and the same guy, for a long time.
This is what you do: You look on internet, you find a cct that fits my request, you make it and is working in your case, then you start EXPLAINING IT, without giving me the circuit !!! Very offensive to me, and I took it personally as an intentionally BAD joke from your part.
I got over it now. But in the future, DON'T do this again. Not to me. I never lough on you or offended you in any way. Why should you? Just because? Well, " if is just because", then I can be the same to you, and see how I feel. This is not the first time you do it like this. Starting to tell stories how to make it, and not showing any kind of cct. Only AFTER I asked you to show it, then you barely show it. I will close my eyes a second time now. The first time I closed my eyes and didnt told you, thinking was a honest mistake. But doing it again, it is a clear sign of making fun of me. And I know your reason why as well.
I will give you 1 more chance. If you still continue to your habit, we will not be friends. Even if you will change your forum name again.
I hope you have enough empathy and understand what I just told you here. It's the only time Im telling you.
In conclusion, if you have a circuit, share it first with me, and then discuss as you please. But never inverse.
So we are clear now. Ok?

 

To @sarahMCML
It is a very annoying and BAD habit that you have, you an the other UK friend, mister Marconi from the other website. And I think you are one and the same guy, for a long time.
This is what you do: You look on internet, you find a cct that fits my request, you make it and is working in your case, then you start EXPLAINING IT, without giving me the circuit !!! Very offensive to me, and I took it personally as an intentionally BAD joke from your part.
I got over it now. But in the future, DON'T do this again. Not to me. I never lough on you or offended you in any way. Why should you? Just because? Well, " if is just because", then I can be the same to you, and see how I feel. This is not the first time you do it like this. Starting to tell stories how to make it, and not showing any kind of cct. Only AFTER I asked you to show it, then you barely show it. I will close my eyes a second time now. The first time I closed my eyes and didnt told you, thinking was a honest mistake. But doing it again, it is a clear sign of making fun of me. And I know your reason why as well.
I will give you 1 more chance. If you still continue to your habit, we will not be friends. Even if you will change your forum name again.
I hope you have enough empathy and understand what I just told you here. It's the only time Im telling you.
In conclusion, if you have a circuit, share it first with me, and then discuss as you please. But never inverse.
So we are clear now. Ok?

I'm very sorry to have upset you in some way. Firstly, this is the only username that I have, and have NEVER changed it on this or any other electronics website!
As for finding a circuit on another website, telling you about it, building it myself, but not giving it to you, when have I done that? Many times you have said that you have been busy working on your own circuit, and would make a different circuit later. I expected you to come back "later" to ask about my suggestion.
Which circuit was it that I "explained but didn't give you"?
I think I have been as helpful as I can be in the circumstances, given that we live in different time zones. I've gone through the circuits that we have both built quite thoroughly, explaining how each part works, trying to get yours to operate as mine does.
I'm sorry that the last build doesn't work as well as mine, but without seeing it for myself their is little I can do from afar.

By the way, in my last post I asked for some voltage measurements, which you never sent. They could have been quite revealing!

In post #301 you said you were simulating my circuit. Which one was that?

 

Very well then. Lets say I believe you on your word.
In the post #265 you posted your first version of Unipolar&Bipolar cct using a 74LS194 which is a 4-bit Bi-directional Shift Register. This post is on page 14 of this forum thread. After some other posts, you give me that website as "an alternative" to your cct. Right? I built your cct and it didnt worked at all. I was in the first place, very upset on myself, not being diligently enough and not searching sooner than you. But after I did google searched for a cct to drive Bipolar motors, guess what? Every page on the internet has preety much the same results, using this 74LS194 chip. I originally thought, "look at this guy, how knowledgeable he is", I really appreciate you for this cct. In the beginning. But after I discovered this cct is a very wide spread one on the web, aaah.
What I want from you is to be VERY direct with me. In the sense that you should put down your followed cct, specify where you got it from and then we are talking. I am very sure you got my point until now. Be more careful with these things, around me at least. With others, its your bizniz. Im telling you plain like this, exactly what is upseting me. I hope you will take it as a way of dealing with people like me and not in other way. Ok?
Thank you for reading.

 

Now, back to the real bizniz.
As I mentioned, I find 2 ccts on similar websites. One cct was for Unipolar motors and the other one was for Bipolar. But both were using the same chip: 74LS194.
I built in my simulator the first bipolar cct from that website. And it worked. I actually worked on it like ~5h because some very strange bugs in the simulator I use and I had to overcome them. I also with this bugs occasion, I had to simplify the hell out of the cct, to actually make it work in the simulator. And guess what? It worked.
Then I looked on both these ccts and I managed to make a switch between bipolar and unipolar motor driver.
I believe Sarah build something similar that didnt worked at all both in my simulator and in reality.
But mine worked both in simulator and in reality.
Here it is:

 

Very well then. Lets say I believe you on your word.
In the post #265 you posted your first version of Unipolar&Bipolar cct using a 74LS194 which is a 4-bit Bi-directional Shift Register. This post is on page 14 of this forum thread. After some other posts, you give me that website as "an alternative" to your cct. Right? I built your cct and it didnt worked at all. I was in the first place, very upset on myself, not being diligently enough and not searching sooner than you. But after I did google searched for a cct to drive Bipolar motors, guess what? Every page on the internet has preety much the same results, using this 74LS194 chip. I originally thought, "look at this guy, how knowledgeable he is", I really appreciate you for this cct. In the beginning. But after I discovered this cct is a very wide spread one on the web, aaah.
What I want from you is to be VERY direct with me. In the sense that you should put down your followed cct, specify where you got it from and then we are talking. I am very sure you got my point until now. Be more careful with these things, around me at least. With others, its your bizniz. Im telling you plain like this, exactly what is upseting me. I hope you will take it as a way of dealing with people like me and not in other way. Ok?
Thank you for reading.

The circuit in post #265 I designed myself from first principals, before searching the web for any others, which I did days later when I realised that you might not have the LS125 chip for the front end of the circuit. My circuit works fine, I had it driving the discrete L6506 and L298N motor driver setup in bipolar mode.
The fact that others have used the 74LS194 I.C. to do the same job is due to it be a Bi-Directional 4-Bit Shift Register, an ideal device for this application. The LS125 section is entirely my part!

Back to your testing of it, when you say it didn't work, did you couple it directly into the L298N, or something else?

EDIT: Forget the last part, I've just seen your later post. your LS194 circuit is much simpler than mine and does work well, it seems. I would suggest that you purchase a proper comparator I.C. though to replace the LM358 because I'm certain it's still causing problems. Did you check that your chopper clock has a very narrow negative going pulse?

 

As mentioned, I made this cct in reality as well. And is working just fine for ALL the motors, including the 5wire one.
But .... I dont really see a BIG difference between the 2 modes (unipolar and bipolar). Is a tiny difference but almost imperceptible. Or maybe Im imagining it is a difference? I dont really know. But these are the observations I have so far.
- I started this subject about bipolar driving because my smallest NEMA8 motor was very weak using unipolar mode. But now... ???maybe??? is a difference? I cant say for certain I can feel it spin different when I switch between the 2 modes.
I believe there may be some peculiarities specific to this cct. Ive noticed something already in my simulation. And I believe is the case in reality as well. I will play with it more in time, and I will certainly see if something is wrong. Sooner the better.
Im happy I reached this stage with this entire cct. Which is becoming bigger and bigger. But also interesting.
- NEXT stage of this cct is to make the steppers ---rotate to a certain angle degree and stop ---, remain there until the next angle command.
This is what I am after very seriously at the moment.
Any good (and working) suggestions ?
- I know-I know. I should try it with arduino. But lets stay a bit longer into this LOGIC IC world. I believe new and interesting IC's may come in play. I am also aware there are almost NONE cct's online with this specific angle logic. This will be harder for some people. But I am asking to actually put our brains to work and figure out one such cct ! If possible. If not... well, arduino is the answer. My plan is to try first with arduino or even a very simple c# program, also using my proteus simulator, and after making it work there, I can "translate" that code into logic IC's. This is the big plan so far. Help me further if you can.
Thank you !

 

To missis @sarahMCML
- I know you are very good with logic ICs and you really have all my admiration for this talent of yours. This is one of the reasons that I am continuing this forum thread on this Logic IC direction. Can you switch gears and come with a 'logic' solution for this ---rotate to a certain angle degree and stop --- problem? A cct is imperative as a first step and we will built on top of it and upgrade it. Also discuss it.
- Im inviting everyone, especially my very good american friends whose faces I didnt see for a good time now. I remember very clearly your original suggestions as well and I know where you guys stand. "Buy the already made driver" you said. But that board or box driver is only good for 1 motor. And is quite expensive. And the logic here is that I have quite a few motors to drive. I also have components for them. I am also waiting for the P-channel mosfets to arrive. I already received some very powerful PNP and NPN transitors, 40W per each. I can already drive very securely (from a heating POV) with what I have already. The problem is the functionality of the cct. This is in discussion here.
Thank you.

 

For cripes sake, just buy stepper driver. You have already wasted enough time to pay for 100 of them at $1 an hour.

 

For cripes sake, just buy stepper driver. You have already wasted enough time to pay for 100 of them at $1 an hour.

hahahaha - exactly what I just said earlier.
Not every capitalistic country really lives in a capitalistic world ! Remember this from me. I dont have a salary or any kind of income for about 10years ! This make it a decade. And I am not kidding. I have some but they are going thinner and thinner. I only get some money help from family. But is really crumbs. The state is not really concerned with citizens like me at all. I am a VERY good digital and traditional artist, but I got like 100$ in my entire life from art. Splendid field of business ! Also I know a good amount of electronics, but again, like art, zero income as well. You get the idea now?

 

I dont have a salary or any kind of income for about 10years !

Here are many jobs for you:
https://www.bestjobs.eu/ro/locuri-de-munca-in-iasi/graphic+designer

 

Here are many jobs for you:
https://www.bestjobs.eu/ro/locuri-de-munca-in-iasi/graphic+designer

hahaha, you dont know the reality of things, especially here. Those so called "jobs" are a legal way to show publicly that a certain firm or institution is accepting work. They get some sort of remuneration from the government, is my believe. Im not completely certain. But they are doing it for a good reason. But in reality, none are working. Nothing can be obtain online. Not here. Its only a facade. Like you, people are pointing to them, but when you really have to get results, nothing works. How convenient. I stopped trying long time ago. Try to believe how Im saying. Im not born from yesterday.

 

…
You get the idea now?

Yes, everything has become quite clear.

 

The first question I have in my mind, is:
- How do I make a Reset --0-- position ?
With a push button, from any random angle, to return always to this 0 pos?
And from there, I will add a couple more angles. Not that many and simple angles. Because this being done with logic IC, I imagine I will be quite limited. And is ok, this is an exercise.

 

Be more careful with these things, around me at least. With others, its your bizniz. Im telling you plain like this, exactly what is upseting me. I hope you will take it as a way of dealing with people like me and not in other way. Ok?
Thank you for reading.

What will you do, stop letting people go out of their way to help you? Seriously, this is not OK. Time for some introspection. You act as if it is @sarahMCML who is benefitting by you being unable to understand the help you are being offered.

Really, @sarahMCML has been practically heroic in efforts to help you no matter how obtuse your responses have been. I want to say, for the record, it is my personal opinion that @sarahMCML not only doesn’t deserve your bizarrely entitled abuse, but she does deserve praise and thanks from everyone in the AAC community for being such a fine example of what this is all about.

I wouldn’t blame her the tiniest bit for bowing out of this absurd situation.

 

Really? mister Ya'cov ? You are just pop in and start kicking left and right? Haha. Dude.
- You do realize that some people are on the same line of thought and others are absolutely opposite? Right? If my " bizarrely entitled abuse " has offended you so much, then keep in mind that all that I did was to be explicit of how I feel about a very little but important detail when posting on the forums. You are strongly confusing me with someone who is picking a fight and you try to pour gasoline on to see the flames. Please, just drop it. Its not about that and Sarah understood it already. Im sure of it. Its nothing something out of the ordinary as you so warmly embrace it. And also no one is abusing anyone either. I am simply asking questions. If you dont like them, dont respond. Is as simple as that.
And I must thank you with this occasion, because I do think is a good thing to erase this entire thread I started here. Is not at all what I was planning in the start of it. It got too long anyway, correct? I think you will agree.

 

Really? mister Ya'cov ? You are just pop in and start kicking left and right? Haha. Dude.
- You do realize that some people are on the same line of thought and others are absolutely opposite? Right? If my " bizarrely entitled abuse " has offended you so much, then keep in mind that all that I did was to be explicit of how I feel about a very little but important detail when posting on the forums. You are strongly confusing me with someone who is picking a fight and you try to pour gasoline on to see the flames. Please, just drop it. Its not about that and Sarah understood it already. Im sure of it. Its nothing something out of the ordinary as you so warmly embrace it.

What you did was to accuse someone who has gone well out of their way to help you of following you around the Internet to abuse you. You demanded she help some particular way because… well, honestly I don’t know why you feel there is some basis for demanding someone helping you without charge, extensively, and patiently—who you then accuse of stalking you to purposely troll you—help you always and only in the way you specify.

Perhaps you don’t have any insight into what you are doing looks like. Perhaps you don’t have the idea that if you feel the need to correct someone who is being so generous with you, you can do it with a private message instead of an embarrassing rant. I don’t know. But if you want me to pretend you didn’t say what you have written in black and white, you are out of luck.

You are not someone who has some high moral ground that allows you to instruct a person helping you for your benefit how she should act. I have nothing more to say about it, but I won’t hesitate to respond to a reprise. You aren’t going to just hand wave this nonsense away. An apology to @sarahMCML would go a long way in helping correct it, though.

 

What you did was to accuse someone who has gone well out of their way to help you of following you around the Internet to abuse you. You demanded she help some particular way because… well, honestly I don’t know why you feel there is some basis for demanding someone helping you without charge, extensively, and patiently—who you then accuse of stalking you to purposely troll you—help you always and only in the way you specify.

Perhaps you don’t have any insight into what you are doing looks like. Perhaps you don’t have the idea that if you feel the need to correct someone who is being so generous with you, you can do it with a private message instead of an embarrassing rant. I don’t know. But if you want me to pretend you didn’t say what you have written in black and white, you are out of luck.

You are not someone who has some high moral ground that allows you to instruct a person helping you for your benefit how she should act. I have nothing more to say about it, but I won’t hesitate to respond to a reprise. You aren’t going to just hand wave this nonsense away. An apology to @sarahMCML would go a long way in helping correct it, though.

Hello,
Thank you so much for coming to my defense. I would however be most pleased if we could all put this behind us and carry on as normal, civilised human beings

EDIT: Sorry about this, I hadn't finished writing this post, but must have hit the wrong key. There was much more that I carried on saying both to you Ya'akov, and to q12x, but it's all gone now! I lost it when I went back to find an earlier post number!

 

To q12x, and any others still reading this thread.

I am quite happy to continue to participate in this discussion, and let the misunderstandings between q12x and myself be forgotten, as long as we can agree to the following:

1) If you have any questions, you ask them directly, and I'll do my best to answer them, as soon and as fully as I can.
2) That goes the same for me. If I need an answer to a query, you'll respond to it.
It follows that, as we live in different time zones, and have other responsibilities, instant replies may not be possible either way.

Sarah.