Arduino Shake It
Warning ! ShakeIt plugin is only available in beta state.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UWmvRivmQg
For legacy ShakeIt users (standalone version) you have to upload the simhub sketch (see Arduino Setup)
- Always make sure to configure the exact board model.
- Don't try to use unsupported boards variants, each board is specific, if it's not listed in the setup tool it won't work.
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Always use a voltmeter to check output polarity voltage, none of those boards are labelled "+/-" as they can all go in reverse direction.
- If you use fans : polarity is often critical, make sure that + is connected to the correct output using a voltmeter
- If you have issues with the board like overheating unplug the motor/fan, and check that you the board works by measuring output voltage.
- When using fans with DC shields, make sure they are 2/3 pins fans, most of the 4 pins fans won't support DC control (in this case use PWM fan control without shield)
- Make sure that the motor/fan you are trying to use matches the board power specifications, if you use a too strong motor/fan most of the boards will simply do a thermal shutdown and it won't work.
- Fans inertia when accelerating or slowing down is a fan characteristic, it's not related to the board or software.
This is the recommended board
Adafruit motor shield V2 is rated for 1.7A (up to 3Amps peak)
Using an arduino UNO , 7v to 12v (4Amps recommended) power source can be plugged on the arduino power plug.
If using the arduino power plug the VIN jumper must be installed on the Motor Shield.
SimHub supports up to 3 stacked boards :
SimHub is using the following addresses :
- Shield 1 : 0x60, Default address, no jumpers
- Shield 2 : 0x61, Rightmost jumper closed
- Shield 3 : 0x62
If you are close to the power limit, and only use two outputs you can spread the two motors/fans on M1 and M3 instead of M1 and M2, this allows the spread the load on both board chips.
This boards controls the output voltage using an on board PWM generator, it will generate a small high pitched noise. You can reduce this noise by changing at your responsibility the board default PWM frequency at upload. A value of 200-300hz can fit most fans. When changing this value no matter if you are using fans or motors, always check that the board is not overheating.
For fans specifically, you can choose PWM fans which will be perfectly quiet using this method: https://github.com/SHWotever/SimHub/wiki/Arduino-Shake-It#pwm-fans
In some conditions the motor operation can generate enough parasites to freak out the arduino board. The symptoms when this happens could be one or more of the following :
- Disconnects and reconnects during operation
- Disappearing serial port until unplugging the usb lead plugging it back (which will reset the arduino usb chip)
- Motors operation freeze or stop during the game
- Make sure your power source is not the bottleneck : some power source does not really deliver what they are rated for and voltage will drop or go crazy when reaching it's limit.
- Avoid USB HUB (yes yes yes !)
- Try swapping usb cable/usb port
- Separate the power supply from the arduino by using the power connector available on the board (and remove the power jumper), see the manufacturer documentation : https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-motor-shield-v2-for-arduino?view=all#faq-13).
- Use small capacitors, see the manufacturer documentation : https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-motor-shield-v2-for-arduino?view=all#faq-17
Monster moto shield can be used for higher power requirements like boat blowers.
Note There are various boards quality available, and defective boards happens more often as it should. You can test your board using the sparkfun sample code https://cdn.sparkfun.com/datasheets/Dev/Arduino/Shields/MonsterMoto_Shield_Example.pde
For high power applications you might need to add a passive cooling (heatsink, or eventually active (heatsink + fan ) to the board chips
Just plug the shield to the arduino :
This boards controls the output voltage using the arduino PWM , it will generate a small high pitched noise. You can reduce this noise by changing the board default PWM frequency at upload. This can be done at your responsibility by tuning the pwmMode parameter in the sketch (edit C:\Program Files (x86)\SimHub\_Addons\Arduino\DisplayClientV2\SHMotoMonster.h file:
For fans specifically, you can choose PWM fans which will be perfectly quiet using this method: https://github.com/SHWotever/SimHub/wiki/Arduino-Shake-It#pwm-fans
SimHub supports up to 3 PWM fans (4 pins connector) Make sure to pick a fan capable of totally stopping Lot of PWM fans will have a minimum speed but won't totally stop, alternatively you can add a simple switch on the power line.
- Plug 12 V to a 12v power source
- GND to arduino and power source ground
- PWM pin to arduino
- Arduino Uno : pins 9 or 10
- Arduino Leonardo pins : 9, 10 or 11
- Arduino Mega pins : 11, 12 or 13
- Tach pin can be left unplugged
Calibration : Some fans will reach their maximum speed fastly, or not start at low output, you can calibrate the "bounds" at sketch upload by defining "min" and "max" values
This board support is deprecated : the DK Motor shield has limited power, if you can you should take the Adafruit Motor Shield V2
This board is only compatible with Arduino UNO and mega (Leonardo, micro or pro micro won't work)
Using the shield stacked on arduino UNO
You can eventually push the power source up to 12v for more power, at your own responsibility
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Enable the motor shields using the arduino setup tool https://github.com/zegreatclan/SimHub/wiki/Arduino--Setup
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Make sure arduino is enabled :
See ShakeIt-V3-Motors---Output-Configuration
Support only works on standalone pedals (not through the wheel base)
See ShakeIt-V3-Motors---Output-Configuration