running stepper motor with printer data pcb board

[helow]

hi

i have got a stepper motor(i think it is 12V) from a laser printer. I am thinking to run it through large floppy drive (about 5"), but i think it could not run it with full power. thats why i want to use printer's data pcb board to run it. but i need some guide about pins of data and power connector. plz may you help me.

Thanks in advance


Asad

[Tweakie.CNC]

Hi Asad,

Do you know if your stepper motor is Bipolar or Unipolar ? (how many connection wires does it have).

Tweakie.

[helow]

hi

i have one taken from laser printer, has six wires, two are common called ground and other are for four coils. laser printer has two electronic pcb boards. power supply and data boards. i want to use data board to drive stepper motor. but i want to know about about power and data connector pins.

[Tweakie.CNC]

Sorry to say this but I am really not sure you have any future with this project.

The sequence of switching for the coils is different between Bipolar and Unipolar motors and I am still not sure what type you have there (I am assuming Bipolar because there are 6 wires - but if two wires are common then ?).

Perhaps if you describe what you are trying to achieve with this project I may be able to suggest an alternative approach.

Tweakie.

[Tweakie.CNC]

Hi Asad,

I made an error in the earlier post where I should have said :-

(I am assuming it can be operated in Bipolar mode because there are 6 wires - but if two wires are common then ?).

Sorry for any confusion. 

Tweakie.

[manmeran]

if stepper motor is 4 wire > bipolar
if 5,6,8 wire > Unipolar

Amir

[stirling]

if stepper motor is 4 wire > bipolar
if 5,6,8 wire > Unipolar

Not quite true Amir. Yes a 4 wire motor is called a bipolar motor because it can ONLY be wired bipolar. 5 wire motors ARE unipolar. BUT 6 wire motors can be wired either half winding bipolar, serial bipolar or unipolar. 8 wire motors can be wired half winding bipolar, serial bipolar, parallel bipolar and unipolar.

helow - I assume your intention is ultimately to control the motors from Mach. One problem is that unless you can iscolate and interface directly to the driver circuitry with step and direction you're stuck. The data that comes from the parallel port for a printer is NOT step and direction like Mach, it's pcl (printer control language). The printer buffers the commands and then internally interprets/converts that via a microprocessor to ultimately control the motors etc. So what I'm saying is connecting the existing centronics connector on your board to the PC parallel port controlled by Mach is never going to work.

Ian

[helow]

hi

thanks very much for your guidance. you are right i think, i have read about printer's data pinout, and there is not any pic like step and direction as in floppy drive. And i have not yet purchase printer formated pcb card and now i will not purchase it. I also have try to run 6 wire motor with small floppy drive and it only run buildin motor.  I think it generate low powered pulses. is there any way to powering up current coming to wires of motors.

[helow]

here is pic of my motor

[airnocker]

If two of the wires are labeled "Ground", these are probably center taps for each coil.  Using an Ohm meter, identify each coil's pair of wires (excluding the ground wires).  Make note of the coil resistance of each coil.  Once each coils wire pair is identified and measured, one ground is probably associated with one coil, the other ground the other coil.  Confirm this by measuring between a ground and either side of the associated coil.  If each ground wire is a center tap for each coil the resistance will be half of the coil's resitance.  You can tape up the center tap ground wires ( don't use them) and run the stepper as a two pole, bi-polar.

I'd also make sure the both ground wires are not connected to the motor casing.