Any Suggestions on how to design a circuit to put a motor on a timer?

Thread Starter

thetered

Joined Oct 12, 2016
1
Hi! First off I'm trying to design and build a circuit or device that will allow me to move an item from one end of my yard to the other, sit there for a few minutes then return to the other side. So if you can think of a different or better idea than I am proposing I am all ears.

But what I'm thinking is on one end a pulley and the other end the motor and a string looped around them and the item hanging from the string, the item is light, less then half a pound. The motor would turn on spin the the string pulling the item to one side, stop for a few minutes and then return it, but for that to work also the polarity of the motor would have to reverse. I'm including a crude drawling to show what I am proposing, but knowing what the goal is if you have a better or more simple idea, I am all ears. Thanks!

couch.jpg
http://imgur.com/JcHJ8jz
 

MaxHeadRoom

Joined Jul 18, 2013
28,619
You most likely need two limit switches and reversing relay, and a timer plus a stop/start P.B..
What voltage is the motor, is it weatherproof if kept out doors?
Max.
 

Alec_t

Joined Sep 17, 2013
14,280
With careful mechanical design you could avoid the need to reverse the motor by copying the ski-lift principle, with a pivoted support for the object on an endless loop.
 

James55

Joined May 29, 2016
39
Have you thought about using an H Bridge motor controller?

You can have fun and build your own, or you could just buy a pre-made module like the L298N and plug it into an Arduino.

That would be a cheap and relatively simple option.
 

drc_567

Joined Dec 29, 2008
1,156
A simple string construction presents several problems such as sag, weathering, being an obstacle, if it is not sufficiently high. What is the distance of your traverse? Maybe by using two lengths of angle iron, paired together, you could form a track of sorts to provide a channel for a carrier. Then use a motor at each terminal to supply the necessary tensile force on a fiber or wire. Is the 'stand still' time of the load a constant value, or would that need to be adjustable?
 

WBahn

Joined Mar 31, 2012
29,979
Yes. Clearly a simple and obvious solution for someone that wants to move something back and forth across their yard.

Notice that, even if they were to adopt this approach, it fails to satisfy their goal of having the object stop and stay at each end for a period of time. The cars on a detachable lift continuously move.
 

WBahn

Joined Mar 31, 2012
29,979
Hi! First off I'm trying to design and build a circuit or device that will allow me to move an item from one end of my yard to the other, sit there for a few minutes then return to the other side. So if you can think of a different or better idea than I am proposing I am all ears.

But what I'm thinking is on one end a pulley and the other end the motor and a string looped around them and the item hanging from the string, the item is light, less then half a pound. The motor would turn on spin the the string pulling the item to one side, stop for a few minutes and then return it, but for that to work also the polarity of the motor would have to reverse. I'm including a crude drawling to show what I am proposing, but knowing what the goal is if you have a better or more simple idea, I am all ears. Thanks!

View attachment 113523
http://imgur.com/JcHJ8jz
As with most things, there are a number of solutions. Using a bi-directional motor with limit switches and an H-bridge to drive something like a permanent magnet DC motor is probably the easiest and cheapest.

Depending on the layout there are other options. If it is relatively short you could use a counterweight at the far end and use the motor to pull the object in one direction and then let the weight pull it the other. You could do something similar using a spring, but that would be for even shorter runs. My guess is that the distance implied by "across the yard" make either approach non-practical.

If you didn't need it to stop at each end then designing it so that the object's attachment point can go around the pulley has a lot going for it. Even so, that might still be a good approach because no you don't have to reverse the motor, you just need to detect that the object has reached the middle of the pulley and pause the motor for a set about of time.
 
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