Re: current limiting power supply for stepper?

Thanks to both Alan and Tony J for filling me in on this question.

I have just built the power supply, and power/heat dissipation is an
issue. But so far the cost of surplus heat sinks and a fan has been
less than the rest of the PS :-).

I will experiment with it and some steppers and eventually,
applications. At least it will be an easily adjustable power source
for checking surplus steppers and getting some idea of their torque.

--- In CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@yahoogroups.com, Alan Rothenbush <beer@s...> wrote:
> > Message: 9
> > Date: Wed, 26 Feb 2003 04:07:30 -0000
> > From: "grantfair2001 <grant.fair@s...>" <grant.fair@s...>
> > Subject: current limiting power supply for stepper?
> >
> > Is there any reason not to use a current limiting power supply with a
> > stepper, so that higher than rated voltages can be used? (Of course
> > the stepping sequence must use the same number of coils for each
step).
>
> There is absolutely no problem using constant current supply to drive a
> stepper in unipolar or full-step bipolar mode. The performance
> ( assuming the same power supply voltage and adequate current ) will
be at
> least as good as the "standard" chopper drivers we use now. In fact, it
> could easily be argued that a CC drive would outperform a chopper drive,
> under those circumstances.
>
> There are three real problems with CC drive, one easily manageable,
one not
> so, one just costing money.
[snip]
>
> Alan Rothenbush | The Spartans do not ask the number
of the
> Academic Computing Services | enemy, only where they are.
> Simon Fraser University |
> Burnaby, B.C., Canada | Agix of Sparta