Need help on thesis(Final assignment) subject: Inverted pendulum control

[JDeruyter]

Hello!

My name is Jelle Deruyter, i'm a last year electrotechnical engineer student from Belgium and I'm currently doing an erasmus programme in Hungary, Miskolc.
During this programme I have to do my final assignment on designing the power interface for an the inverted pendulum. (http://www.ict.com.tw/AI/Amira/amira/lframe_e.htm)
There used to be a actuator for this lab expirement but somehow they lost this (dont ask me how this is possible). I only have to design a power interface for this in order to be able to control this system by a microcontroller, pc or plc.

The problem is that my studies where more focussed on energy/high voltage subjects and so I only have the basics of electronics. But at the start of the semester I thought I was goeing to be able to do this thesis. So I started with a literature study of all the components, their voltage requirements, the input output signals etcetera.

But now I have to design the power interface for this. And I really have no idea on how to get started. I started reading things on the internet and ended up on this site. I read a lot of helpfull things here and I start to understand more and more about control/robotic engineering but I'm still a big noob.
I am not asking you guys (and girls) to design this power interface for me, I just hoped that some one could explain me how to get started with this. I learn fast, so once some one helpes me a little bit I think I can finish this by myself.

Maybe the following information can help to understand what I have to build. In this system there are;
- 2 incremental encoders used to measure the position of the chart and the angle of the pendulum. They need 5V DC Supply and have a 5V analoge output.
- 2 proximity switches that require a supply voltage of 15V, the output signal is an analog 11mA signal.
- 1 permanently excited DC motor that has a rated voltage of 42V, rated current of 5A and a rated power of 160W (i find this strange thought cause 42 * 5 = 210W..)
- The sensors are already connected to a 30-Pin connecter (The pinout can be seen in the attachment) Column c is not used here only inverted pendulum
- The Motor has a 4-Pin connector (Pinout can also be seen in the attachment)


On the site i found this page: http://www.societyofrobots.com/schematics_powerregulation.shtml and I think I will eventually have to build something like the scheme at the end of the page?


Thanks for taking time to read this! I really hope some one can help me out a little bit with this. 
If there is more info or photos needed to understand/help me out, please feel free to ask.
Sorry if this is not really robot related, but i think this subject gets close to robot automation?


Thanks in advance!
Jelle Deruyter

[mklrobo]

  Cool!   
I looked over your project, what you wanted, and then the link of the project.
From first glance, not to oversimplify your project, but is this it:
keep the inverted pendulum upright and an algorithm to maintain its position?
If this is so, then I have a shake and bake idea for you. Parallax sells a balancing
robot kit, that maintains a standing position on two wheels. May be worth your time to invest in looking this up. The program, parts, and algorithims are built in, and may offer you an option which saves time, money, and learning curve. Please provide feedback if I am going in a wrong direction. Keep me posted.....

[mklrobo]

  In addition,
Some of the parts you listed may be in the balancing robot kit(s). If you are
making a graph from your results, and it is not a polynomial, may I suggest looking at my post in the misc section, Solving a formula directly from a graph.
Keep me posted.....   

[JDeruyter]

Hello!

First and for all, thank you for the answer
Yes this is correct, eventually the meaning of the project is to make an algorithm that balances the pendulum upside.
But the problem is before I can start working on the algorithm part i need to power this first. The sensors and charts and motor are already in place, i just need to make the power interface in order to be able to control this system. The sensors and motor are already connected, so i just need to design some PCB or something to power everything. (see attachment). But i dont know how to start with designing something like this..

I am reading about the balancing robot now and it's really interesting, maybe I could order an arduino or something similar to power the motor and sensors?
The problem is that the motor has a pretty high voltage (42V) and I haven't found a controller like this (yet) that can output this.

So I dont have to solve the algorithm part yet, first i need to be able to power everything.
I hope I'm not confusing you to much, this is new for me and I don't really know what the important factors are to design this.

[mklrobo]

  Hello!
To address your 42 volt power problem, Jameco Electronics sells this;
9 to 42 volt, 1.4 amp power supply at 58.8 watts part # 2101315 - $17.95 }
48 volt at 42 amps power supply, part # 2153001, - $464.95 }
48 volt @ 1.43 amps, part # 2140710 - $29.95 }
I would recommend using the 42 volt for your high voltage motor alone, then
using other power supplies to power the other electronics of your project.
All grounds should be tied together, to avoid floating grounds. You can run the project
without doing that,  . If you use other power supplies for your lower power projects,
you may want to use a regulator in front of the electronic device. Some power supplies
offer poor regulation, which creates havoc in the system. Good Luck!!!!