Arduino controlled coop door help requested

[rfeyer]

sciplu - checked it out first time - what a find! TY - great stuff in there.

I am in as well as I am currently tinkering with MC boards (Webcontrol PCI and RaspberryPi) as well as door openers.
My only hurdle is finding the right motor and gear/ sprocket/ chain assembly. I do believe I have the right parts selected from eBay but delivery is from China, meaning about 2-4 weeks for delivery. Would be nice to find something closer. There is a nice motor on Sciplus, but it has a square connection, which ten blows my plans for sprocket and chain a bit.

Rainer

 

[DrRocco]

Which motor on sciplus are you looking at? Certainly there's a way to move from a square to a round shaft.

The screw drive on my door is really working well and is simple to make. You might want to consider something similar. Just a thought.

I meant to get more done with this project over the last few weeks. As is normally the case, things popped up and I didn't make the progress I had hoped. I wasn't able to spend any time getting my door automated. It's still on a push-button. I did however make huge strides in other areas...

I got the self synchronizing light timer function of the program written and functional. I ran a week long test run and found some things I wanted to change, so I'm trimming down the code by quite a bit and changing the "guts" of the program. I got my control box finished. It's just the guts from an ATX power supply, some screw terminals, and a relay board. I only need one relay for the light and two for the door but it's always nice to have room to expand. I'm mounting my Arduino Yun with self-adhesive velcro on the larger of the two heat sinks. I wanted to be able to easily bring it in the house for other projects if needed.

Here are a couple pics of the control box and one of the electric door installed in the coop. When I took the picture of the coop, I wasn't really trying to get a shot of the door, but you can see how simple it is.

 

[rfeyer]

MOTOR, BOSCH 12VDC GEAR MOTOR, ca 60 RPM (B)
Item Number: 42989P1
Quantity: 2 $25.00

SENSOR, OPTICAL, W/LEADS (B)
Item Number: 35134P1
Quantity: 4 $1.00 each​

These are the two items I purchased.
I was thinking, with the square shaft It actually may benefit - the square shat could WIND up a string/ fishing line which would then activate the door up and down. Then, a couple of DPDT switches and the relay which is ativated either by light senors cross referencing temp modules (5 for $6.00) and it should work.
Unfortunately it will take about 2-3 weeks to get the parts and have a little trial and error time.
Could you take a pic of your 'screw drive'. Is that like a worm drive? Similar?

Rainer

 

[DrRocco]

That motor should be strong enough for any setup you use. Those light sensors though, what a steal! I'm gonna order a handful of 'em. Good catch!

My screw drive is simple. I mentioned it earlier in the thread but I'm not sure I attached the video correctly. It's pretty much a cordless screwdriver and 1/4"-20 threaded rod. I drilled and tapped a hole for a set screw to hold the threaded rod in the screwdriver drive. I'll post the video again below.

 

[rfeyer]

That is a great idea!!!

Love your usage of expired computer parts (I have a ton of them and keep finding different ways to use them as well).

Have you already figured out a schematic/ wiring to allow the screw gun to reverse itself via relays? I see you use only one relay - I have not figured out how to do it with one. AAMOF, I needed the help of allelectronics.com forum to figure out the relay/ wiring for this, I could post the diagram here if you wish unless you have already figured that part out.).

Also, not to be picky, and I am sure you have figured this already, but the track cut into the wood for your door may be too narrow - once installed, poop/ dirt/ food anything gets in there and does not come out if too narrow. Just a thought.
Nice job,

Rainer

 

[DrRocco]

I actually used two relays for that. I already had them on hand. You can do it with one though. You just need a DPDT (Double Pole, Double Throw) relay. Hook it up like this:

As far as the door track is concerned, I haven't had any problems yet. The screw drive is powerful enough and the door is strong/thin enough to push through anything that might get in there except maybe a rock. It's been in there for a few months though and is still squeaky clean. I only have 9 hens though. Someone with more birds might have a tougher time with it. Also, I'm no Tesla, but I know a little about designing circuits. If you need help with anything in the future, just let me know. I'm always happy to help if I can.

 

[rfeyer]

The relay board I am using is about the same as the one in your picture - this one has 8 relays which can be controlled via LAN.

I would imagine these are DPST relays which have position Always on and Always off. Do you think that would work, using a DTDP switch on each end of the door?

Can I ask which relay you are using?

Rainer

 

[DrRocco]

You know, I just realized that you will need two relays. Because I'm using push buttons right now, I forgot to factor in the relay that would replace the buttons. I'm using a couple industrial SPDT relays I had leftover from when I used to do this stuff for a living. I don't remember if they're Omron or Allen Bradley but I think it's one of those two. When I run the door from my control box, I'm going to use the relays on that relay board. Relay 1 is the on/off switch, SPST. On the diagram above, it would open and close the connection between the battery and T1. The DPDT relay just reverses polarity.

 

[rfeyer]

This is what I got from the helpful guys at allaboutcircuits.com

 

[DrRocco]

That looks like it would work, but it's dependent on two, manually operated switches. That's fine if you're merely looking for an electric door.