Gx Earth 1010 Firmware Update

[Paula Shuffleburg]

Latestfirmware installed, correct libraries, etc, etc. SSID and password copied back to PC to ensure no typos. I have tried with WPA, WPA2 and WEP. I have also tried disabling the 5GHz channel in case that was causing interference,

Does the MKR Wifi 1010 have the option of an external antenna? If so, there may be a tiny 0R resistor that needs to be moved to the correct position to use the onboard antenna or the external antenna, you could check that.

Thank you for this tip. I actually don't want to connect a LiPO battery in my environment but what you said made me think it could have to do with power supply. So, instead of just powering the Arduino through USB, I have connected a 5V power supply to VIN and GND. After having done that I am able to connect to the wifi networks. So this might have to do with my USB port not providing enough power for the wifi module to work correctly. Maybe the troubleshooting section of Connecting MKR WiFi 1010 to a Wi-Fi Network Arduino Documentation Arduino Documentation could be updated accordingly?

I need help getting the TIC 500 Stepper Motor Controller working correctly with an Arduino MKR WiFi 1010. I believe that the issues are with my coding as uploaded to the Arduino via the Arduino online editor, Arduino Create.

Scenario:

Now that my wife is in a wheelchair, we needed a way for her to open the bedroom door remotely. I have already had this setup working with another controller and a stepper that was too small to open the door against HVAC pressure in the bedroom. So I bought a new larger stepper and controller from Pololu.

I have mounted the stepper motor (#1472 (SY57STH56-1006A)) along with the Tic T500 controller to a small piece of plywood that I mounted to the door. I have mounted a typical limit switch (for home Forward) to the plywood for the open sensor and a hall effect sensor (for home Reverse) mounted to the plywood senses a rare earth magnet imbedded in the door frame for the close sensor. I will attach a picture or two to help visualize the setup.

Symptoms:

Once all this is hooked up and programmed and I apply power to the system, the stepper makes a bump sound that seems like it had the power applied then no movement whatsoever after that sound. Also I can turn the motor freely with my fingers.

Observations:

While plugged into the Pololu Tic Control Center I can cause the motor to run forward and the limit switch stops it and the Control Center shows the Forward limit switch activated. I can also run the motor in reverse and activate the hall effect sensor and likewise the motor stops. If I release/deactivate either limit switch the motor resumes running in its original direction until the limit switch is activated again.

It is not entirely clear from your description what the problem might be, but I have a few suggestions for things to try. First, can you clarify if the red LED on the Tic is lighting up when you are trying to run the system (while not connected to USB)?

As far as your code, the goHomeForward() and goHomeReverse() commands are not blocking, so the way your sketch is currently written, it will start trying to home, then the current limit will get set to 0, even though the forward limit switch has not been reached. You might try using getPositionUncertain() in a while loop to wait until the homing procedure has finished. Please note that since you have the command timeout feature enabled, you can call delayWhileResettingCommandTimeout() within the while loop to prevent the command timeout error, like this:

It sounds like you are still in the testing phase, but the way your code is currently written, it will try to home again 1 second after it exits your switch statement. So, you might try using a separate variable for the forward and reverse homing, so you can set them to false after it is done and only do it again when it is triggered.

What is the recommended way to conserve battery power? With my previous setup with the smaller motor the 1200ah battery would last slightly less than 24 hours. Should I set current limits to zero or use deenergize after the door has been opened or closed?

None of the commands from our Tic Arduino library are blocking, so if you want to have your sketch wait for an action to finish, you would have to implement your own method (such as the while loop I described before). Alternatively, you could do a simple delay() that waits long enough to make sure the action has completed.

If you continue to have problems, you can post more information about what is happening compared to what you want to happen, along with an updated settings file and Arduino sketch, and I would be glad to look into it more.

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