Thanks to everyone, some really fantastic solutions and commentary here that I'll keep coming back to.

While it's probably a whole other kettle of fish, what is the level of difficulty/work involved in going from a prototype Arduino circuit like this to a fully manufacturable PCB?

 

what is the level of difficulty/work involved in going from a prototype Arduino circuit like this to a fully manufacturable PCB?

I have actually used an Arduino as a component mounted on a custom PCB a number of times. Often I can buy them cheaper than the parts they contain.
The Pro Mini with an external USB to serial adapter used when programming it. (There are a few versions of this board as the two in these pictures show)



Or the Nano with inbuilt USB.


But you can develop your application on an Arduino then transfer the code to a custom board with the same processor.

An example of this that springs to mind is the early 3D printers that were based on an Arduino with a plug in board. Next, they went to a custom PCB but still programmed with the Arduino system.

 

Hi folks

So full disclosure, I'm a mech engineer who now wishes I'd spent more time delving into electrical as I'm trying to design a circuit but not knowing where to start

I've got an application where I need to drive three 12V DC motors and a 12V fan. The three motors are to be controlled independently with a switch and a pot for each from 0-6RPM, and the fan will just be always fully on.

There's loads of resources for controlling a single or two motors with a 555 timer but not much on any more than that that doesn't involve arduino or the like.

Just wondering what a circuit that does this looks like, or at least where I should be looking.

Many thanks!

 

Timothy Michaels,
Do you have a question to ask?

 

Hi,
If you decide to go with Arduino, there is lots of information.
You don't have to understand it all.
Borrow a design that looks if it will work for you, then modify it.
Maybe something that works one motor, then triple it.
I'm talking from experience, it works for me.
Added bonus, you get to understand how these things work.
Then you can add refinements, there's no shortage of input and output pins.
Good luck, keep us informed of your progress.

 

4 year old thread and poster #23 just repeated the original question !! ??

 

4 year old thread and poster #23 just repeated the original question !! ??

Sounds like either a bot or a troll.

 

What impresses me the most is that the TS has already told us that he is not able to see how to expand a PWM control for one motor to mow control 3 motors. Did copy and paste not occur to to the guy??
And folks tossing out rather complex schematics for the poor guy to build???
I am thinking that considering the stated lack of technical qualification some of the advice should be a bit more detailed. The poor TS was undoubtedly snowed.

 

Possible upgrade to forum: Add a 1 to 10 self-assigned expertise level to the information available about a user. It's always a guessing game how to handle a question, particularly with non-English speakers.

A checkbox system related to specific skills (SMD soldering, LTSpice user, etc.) might be better since it's easy to be good at one thing but clueless at another.

 

Hi folks
So full disclosure, I'm a mech engineer who now wishes I'd spent more time delving into electrical as I'm trying to design a circuit but not knowing where to start

After a couple of months in, the OP has not been back!!
4 yrs later, we may never know the result !!

 

Hi,
Note to self and moderators, I will LOOK at the dates in future.

 

Hi,
Note to self and moderators, I will LOOK at the dates in future.

How about a simple and cheap change of a more obvious font and larger text for the line that shows the post data?? Instead of pale blue, bright green or some other higher visibility color. AND larger characters.