Newsgroups: comp.robotics
Path: brunix!cat.cis.Brown.EDU!agate!usenet.ins.cwru.edu!magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!csn!slate!dhawkins
From: dhawkins@slate.mines.colorado.edu (Dale K. Hawkins)
Subject: Servo motor conversion
Message-ID: <1994Jul19.024725.16662@slate.mines.colorado.edu>
Date: Tue, 19 Jul 1994 02:47:25 GMT
Organization: Colorado School of Mines
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I was wondering if anyone knows if it is possible to obtain servos
with pots which are able to turn a full 360 degrees.  Or even it I
could obtain pots alone with the ability.  My line of thinking was
that one could use the pots themselves as "shaft encoders".  In
this way, all that one would need to do is read the current
resistance of the pot and be able to tell very accurately the
position of the wheel.  (Of course, there would still be a need to
count how many times the same resistance was reached, to count the
total number of wheel rotations.)

Second question.  I am trying to build a really small robot.  I was
considering getting some of those small DC race cars (the ones with
the magnetic bottoms which attach to a plastic track with metal
contact tracks).  My question is this, at what voltage do these
run, and how many rms?  Plus does anyone know current prices for
these?  Other motor suggestions/options are also welcomed (i.e. the
piezoelectric sp? motor in the Mobile Robots Book (good read).  Are
these motors availible for a reasonable price?  Are they availible
for an unreasonable price?  If so, where?)

Thank you,
Dale K. Hawkins
dhawkins@mines.colorado.edu
