paper: DIY 'encoder stage' for VersaPlanetary

[Nate Laverdure]

Originally Posted by AllenGregoryIV

We just posted our version of this modification to our blog.

GREAT improvements! Thanks for the excellent documentation.

As far as epoxy vs RTV silicone:
We were going to use RTV at first, but after a short debate we chose a potting epoxy that my professional colleagues use. The internal magnet(s?) within the Allegro package are quite strong, and when the steel gear is nearby there is a significant attractive force between them. It's probably a dynamic force as the gear rotates. Had we suspended the sensor in a flexible potting compound like RTV, we were worried about the effects of the induced vibration.

[Monochron]

Originally Posted by Nate Laverdure

Had we suspended the sensor in a flexible potting compound like RTV, we were worried about the effects of the induced vibration.

Sorry I haven't had a chance to read the blog, but that would be a great point to mention in the blog. Many teams probably aren't familiar with the differences in those compounds and if that is an issue, it would be good for them to see it coming and avoid it.

[Monochron]

Originally Posted by Nate Laverdure

Had we suspended the sensor in a flexible potting compound like RTV, we were worried about the effects of the induced vibration.

Sorry I haven't had a chance to read the blog, but that would be a great point to mention in the blog. Many teams probably aren't familiar with the differences in those compounds and if that is an issue, it would be good for them to see it coming and avoid it.

[AllenGregoryIV]

Originally Posted by Nate Laverdure

GREAT improvements! Thanks for the excellent documentation.

As far as epoxy vs RTV silicone:
We were going to use RTV at first, but after a short debate we chose a potting epoxy that my professional colleagues use. The internal magnet(s?) within the Allegro package are quite strong, and when the steel gear is nearby there is a significant attractive force between them. It's probably a dynamic force as the gear rotates. Had we suspended the sensor in a flexible potting compound like RTV, we were worried about the effects of the induced vibration.

That makes sense, we'll test and see how it goes. We ran it for a while with out any ill effects.

Something like this may be a viable solution if that problem does arise.

[Ryan Dognaux]

This is great. I'm adding it to our projects to try in the off-season. We use VersaPlanetary gearboxes everywhere that we can for their small form factor, ease of use and ability to modify gear ratios as-needed. Integrating sensor feedback into that package would be absolutely huge for a team like ours.