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Servo Engineer in Los Angeles
- Thread starter jondoe
- Start date
An industrial automation engineer will have the knowledge to do it. Also check with a robotics club.
Note - servo can mean a couple of different things. An RC servo (used for flying toy planes) is not a good solution for cameras. They are noisy and jerky. If the engineer suggest this solution, find another engineer.
If you only want to have proportional movement of the slider (the farther you turn a knob, the faster it goes), you just need a motor and motor controller. This is simple and cheap. (under $100 for motor and controller)
If you want motion control (repeatable moves on repeated takes), then you need a motor, controller, and feedback, plus a computer to generate the repeated move. This is more complicated and expensive.
Note - servo can mean a couple of different things. An RC servo (used for flying toy planes) is not a good solution for cameras. They are noisy and jerky. If the engineer suggest this solution, find another engineer.
If you only want to have proportional movement of the slider (the farther you turn a knob, the faster it goes), you just need a motor and motor controller. This is simple and cheap. (under $100 for motor and controller)
If you want motion control (repeatable moves on repeated takes), then you need a motor, controller, and feedback, plus a computer to generate the repeated move. This is more complicated and expensive.
If you only want to have proportional movement of the slider (the farther you turn a knob, the faster it goes), you just need a motor and motor controller. This is simple and cheap. (under $100 for motor and controller)
If you want motion control (repeatable moves on repeated takes), then you need a motor, controller, and feedback, plus a computer to generate the repeated move. This is more complicated and expensive.
Which do you recommend? Have you made\used one before? Im having a friend of mine build one
The main decision factor is how you will be using it.
Proportional control
Simple to operate - quick setup and operation
Inexpensive
A good choice if shots exclude green screen work
Motion control
Harder to operate - more time to setup and operate
More expensive
Required for green screen work
edit - I should also note that the proportional control will allow you to move the camera back and forth along the slide for no more cost than moving in one direction.
I have not made a slide, but I have made a pan/tilt head. It is very easy to do. You need very little knowledge to make the slide. I would recommend you buy these components:
Motor - Select one of these - Use 12V motors http://www.servocity.com/html/3-12v_gear_motors.html
Pulley for motor - Select one of these http://www.servocity.com/html/timing_pinion_pulleys.html
Pulley at far end of slide - Select one of these http://www.servocity.com/html/timing_hub_pulleys.html - also buy the 1" hub clamp here http://www.servocity.com/html/clamping_hubs.html
Belt - Buy a timing (toothed) belt from McMaster Carr - Unfortunately, their site will not allow me to provide a direct link to the belt page, but it is easy to find. http://www.mcmaster.com. You need a .2" pitch x 3/8" wide belt. You determine the length you want.
Motor Controller - Buy this one. It will allow you to do proportional or motion control. http://www.pololu.com/catalog/product/1392
For proportional control:
Connect power to the controller - See controller diagram for pins to use (page 5 of manual, available online). Use 12 volts.
Connect the motor to the controller - See controller diagram for pins to use (page 5 of manual)
Connect a 10k potentiometer to the input -
One end of the pot goes to the +5 regulated output (see page 5 of the manual)
One end of the pot goes to ground (see page 5 of the manual)
The center tap of the pot goes to RX (see page 5 of the manual)
Connect a PC to the controller via a USB cable. For proportional control, you only need the PC to set up the controller. Once set up, the PC is not needed. Read the instructions to setup the controller for analog input with out feedback (the potentiometer is the analog input).
Have fun.
Proportional control
Simple to operate - quick setup and operation
Inexpensive
A good choice if shots exclude green screen work
Motion control
Harder to operate - more time to setup and operate
More expensive
Required for green screen work
edit - I should also note that the proportional control will allow you to move the camera back and forth along the slide for no more cost than moving in one direction.
I have not made a slide, but I have made a pan/tilt head. It is very easy to do. You need very little knowledge to make the slide. I would recommend you buy these components:
Motor - Select one of these - Use 12V motors http://www.servocity.com/html/3-12v_gear_motors.html
Pulley for motor - Select one of these http://www.servocity.com/html/timing_pinion_pulleys.html
Pulley at far end of slide - Select one of these http://www.servocity.com/html/timing_hub_pulleys.html - also buy the 1" hub clamp here http://www.servocity.com/html/clamping_hubs.html
Belt - Buy a timing (toothed) belt from McMaster Carr - Unfortunately, their site will not allow me to provide a direct link to the belt page, but it is easy to find. http://www.mcmaster.com. You need a .2" pitch x 3/8" wide belt. You determine the length you want.
Motor Controller - Buy this one. It will allow you to do proportional or motion control. http://www.pololu.com/catalog/product/1392
For proportional control:
Connect power to the controller - See controller diagram for pins to use (page 5 of manual, available online). Use 12 volts.
Connect the motor to the controller - See controller diagram for pins to use (page 5 of manual)
Connect a 10k potentiometer to the input -
One end of the pot goes to the +5 regulated output (see page 5 of the manual)
One end of the pot goes to ground (see page 5 of the manual)
The center tap of the pot goes to RX (see page 5 of the manual)
Connect a PC to the controller via a USB cable. For proportional control, you only need the PC to set up the controller. Once set up, the PC is not needed. Read the instructions to setup the controller for analog input with out feedback (the potentiometer is the analog input).
Have fun.
Last edited:
Can you post pics of your slider? Which brand\type of slider would you recommend for this setup? Either the Juicedlink slider (http://www.juicedlink.com/diy-cookbook/8ft-slider) which uses bearings or should i use something like the Igus slider? Also, will this setup be strong enough if i were to set the slider vertically?
Also, thanks again for all of your help.
Also, thanks again for all of your help.
I don't have a slider. I build a pan/tilt head for my jib. So I have some limited experience with motor control. The above advice came from that project.
I have used only a slider with bearings. I did not like it. It rolls too easily. I would prefer something with more of a damped feel or better yet, an adjustable damper. To use a slider vertically requires that the slide mechanism is captivated and has tight tollerances to prevent horizontal movement. Looking at the Juicelink video, I see that the bearing clearances around the rods is adjustable. While this would make it nice an tight at the ends, it will not be tight in the middle; the longer the slide, the worse that affect will be. The rods will bend in the middle and you will feel some slop in the movement in a verticle position. It might be ok, but I wouldn't buy it.
The Igus looks much better. Fully captivated slide. It should have no slop in the vertical position. I would think the movement will have a much better feel with the plastic bearings. Even better, it has a clamp that can adjust the damping.
I have used only a slider with bearings. I did not like it. It rolls too easily. I would prefer something with more of a damped feel or better yet, an adjustable damper. To use a slider vertically requires that the slide mechanism is captivated and has tight tollerances to prevent horizontal movement. Looking at the Juicelink video, I see that the bearing clearances around the rods is adjustable. While this would make it nice an tight at the ends, it will not be tight in the middle; the longer the slide, the worse that affect will be. The rods will bend in the middle and you will feel some slop in the movement in a verticle position. It might be ok, but I wouldn't buy it.
The Igus looks much better. Fully captivated slide. It should have no slop in the vertical position. I would think the movement will have a much better feel with the plastic bearings. Even better, it has a clamp that can adjust the damping.