The SlushEngine Stepper Motor Controller is an add-on board for the Raspberry Pi which allows you to control a number of stepper motors. It has just launched on KickStarter and is already heading towards it’s modest $7,500 target.
Justin Policarpio brought the project to my attention and explained how it was developed while working on Robots for McMaster University. The Pi is used to interpret Python and pass appropriate data to the motor controllers.
Here is the technical specification of the device :
- Controls up to 4 bi-polar stepper motors
- Max 7A / motor
- 9-35 V DC operating range
- 1-128 microstepping capabilities
- Integrated motion engine in stepper driver
- 4 limit switch inputs
- 4 general purpose industrial inputs
- 4 general purpose industrial outputs (3A / 24V)
- 8 additional logic level I/O
- Thermistor temperature sensing
- UEXT expansion connector
- Raspberry Pi fused power source
The entire project will be open source and the final repository will contain :
- KiCad board design and schematic files
- SlushEngine Python and C++ drivers
- Examples including G code interpreter, basic movement, delta robot controller, and IoT connected examples
Head over to KickStarter to take a look in more detail and see the pledge levels available.
