Actuator Hardware Enjoyer
I enjoy building spinning things. Current favorite projects are the custom BLDC motor, custom driver, and quasi-direct-drive drivetrain for robotic actuation.
Custom FOC controller for servo control of Brushless DC motors. Learning journey after studying many other COTS drivers and combining things I like, and removing things I don't like.
Building a three-phase BLDC and handwound with 26AWG copper using my analytical PM motor model. FDM printed housing, silicon steel stator, steel-epoxy welded magnets. Part 2/3 of my motormaxxing repo.
3D printed planetary actuator drivetrain with low gear reduction, designed for precise servo control and backdrivability.
Concept design of musculoskeletal hand bones powered by air for compliant, lifelike actuation using McKibben actuators.
Old Delco CS144 alternator turned into a test fixture for testing my custom motors Part 3/3 of my motormaxxing repo.
PyQt graphical UI implementing analytical equations for motor construction parameters to output KV, Kt and current density. Part 1/3 of my motormaxxing repo.
Designed in KiCad and fabricated with JLCPCB for driving my custom motors and drivetrains. Check out the full documentations page below for instructions, design process, schematics, and actual details. Features USB flashing, as well as a USB to CAN pipeline, and a heat dissipation algorithm without a brake resistor.
A 3D printed (PETG for now), neodymium magnet-steel welded, hand-wound motor with 26AWG annealed copper around a 8110-size silicon steel laminated stator core.
Version 1 of a backdrivable, high-torque drivetrain for a robotic joint built around an 8308 motor. FEA analysis on ring gear. V2 uses needle bearings instead of ball bearings.
PyQt5 UI implementing analytical equations for rotor geometry, material, dimensions, air gap distance, winding parameters, permanent magnet properties, correction factors (due to temperature, slot leakage) to produce estimated KV and current density for thermal management.
Deconstructing a broken alternator from my 1995 Chevrolet in high school, replacing the carbon brushes and rectifier, and implementing a load circuit to become a testing rig for characterizing my custom motors. Technically a BLDC-to-WRSM/brushed generator coupling. V2 dyno may perform better as it is BLDC-to-BLDC.
This is my air-powered McKibben soft robotic hand designed to mimic hand bones, up to 12 hand muscles, and tendon systems found in the actual hand. It features a self-topping compressor-accumulator tank controlled via N-Ch MOSFET + 12V Bosch automotive relay + 12V pressure transducer for hysteresis control via a cheap ESP32 board, using C++/PlatformIO. At the time, I was dealing with some deep hand injuries from handbalancing training, so it was a good visualizer for my self-rehab.