When I first put together the Arduino Uno and L293D motor shield I downloaded the Test 4 file to the Arduino to see if the motor(28BYJ-48) would turn. It did it's half turn left and half turn right as expected. This was using the USB plug to the laptop only. When I disconnected the USB cable and plugged in 9v to the external plug of the Arduino board the led on the motor shield came on but the motor did not turn. I found it strange that the motor shield obviously had power but the motor was not turning. I tried 7.5v and 6v but no action from the motor. The power jumper on the motor shield is on, which I understand allows the Arduino to power the motor shield from an extenal power source. Plugging the USB back in resulted in the motor doing its half turn again.
The full sketch with the Windows interface works just fine, but I don't know if I am getting any power from the 9v I have plugged into the Arduino board, since the USB cable has to be plugged in all the time for the WIndows control to work. Can I assume that the motor shield is using the 9v source to power the motor, not the USB voltage? Is there any way to test this?
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Yes the power jumper on the motor shield is enabled, as in the photo you sent. Is there anything that has to be done to the Arduino board itself? I find it strange that the motor shield has power, as shown by the led light being on, but won't turn the motor on. Should I try disabling the power jumper and applying the external DC to the motor shield plug?
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When using the jumper in place, you need to power from external 12V to the motor sheild.
The jumper takes the external 12V input and uses that to power the L298 driver chip.
So Jumper = ON
12V IN = ON
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You power the board from the 12V input jack on the motorshield
You must have the jumper in place.
The jumper takes the 12V from the input jack and applies it to the stepper motor.
You have all the 5 stepper wires connected?
How? Which wire to which
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The motor wires are correct, the motor runs fine if the Arduino is powered through the USB plug. I am curious to know why the Arduino will not power the motor for the Test 4 sketch if the external power plug on the Arduino board is used instead of the USB plug.
I assumed the Arduino would make use of the 12v if I plugged the power supply into the power plug on the Arduino board itself. You say the motor shield has to be powered with the 12v. I will try that. I will make sure that the power jumper is on the pins of the motor shield board.
This is my first experience using a motor shield with an Arduino board so there are some confusing points for me in running a stepper motor.
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I doubt this is a problem with the firmware. The firmware does not care where the power comes from.
BUT
The board does.
I do not know what board you are using. But there are many PDF's out there and I would strongly recommend getting one for your board if you have not already done so.
I post here a PDF (produced by a manufacturer).
Relevant sections are
Can I use power from the Arduino?
Sharing power with the Arduino works for many smaller motors. With the jumper installed,
your motors will get power from the VIN pin. This is the same as what is connected to the
DC power jack on the Arduino, so make sure that your motor voltage rating is compatible
with the 7-12v supply you are using for the Arduino. (Note - when powering the Arduino via
USB, the VIN pin will be at 5v. There is limited power available from USB and this is generally
not a good way to run motors)
Powering motors from the Arduino supply is simple, Just install the power select jumper
next to the external power terminals. But for larger motors, or if you experience erratic
operation, you should consider using a separate power supply
If the board is not powering the motors even when the power jumper is in the correct place and being powered by an external 9v power then the must be an issue with the motor shield.
To power the shield using external power, you MUST use a voltage of around 9V. if trying to power by 5V external power and also having usb cable connected this will not work - VIn - The voltage coming from the external supply has to be at least 5V + 1 .5V in order to work - that means at least 7V being applied to the external DC connection.
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When I first put together the Arduino Uno and L293D motor shield I downloaded the Test 4 file to the Arduino to see if the motor(28BYJ-48) would turn. It did it's half turn left and half turn right as expected. This was using the USB plug to the laptop only. When I disconnected the USB cable and plugged in 9v to the external plug of the Arduino board the led on the motor shield came on but the motor did not turn. I found it strange that the motor shield obviously had power but the motor was not turning. I tried 7.5v and 6v but no action from the motor. The power jumper on the motor shield is on, which I understand allows the Arduino to power the motor shield from an extenal power source. Plugging the USB back in resulted in the motor doing its half turn again.
The full sketch with the Windows interface works just fine, but I don't know if I am getting any power from the 9v I have plugged into the Arduino board, since the USB cable has to be plugged in all the time for the WIndows control to work. Can I assume that the motor shield is using the 9v source to power the motor, not the USB voltage? Is there any way to test this?
Did you enable the power jumper? This is used when you power from external DC - it lets the VIN power the motor
Yes the power jumper on the motor shield is enabled, as in the photo you sent. Is there anything that has to be done to the Arduino board itself? I find it strange that the motor shield has power, as shown by the led light being on, but won't turn the motor on. Should I try disabling the power jumper and applying the external DC to the motor shield plug?
When using the jumper in place, you need to power from external 12V to the motor sheild.
The jumper takes the external 12V input and uses that to power the L298 driver chip.
So Jumper = ON
12V IN = ON
You power the board from the 12V input jack on the motorshield
You must have the jumper in place.
The jumper takes the 12V from the input jack and applies it to the stepper motor.
You have all the 5 stepper wires connected?
How? Which wire to which
The motor wires are correct, the motor runs fine if the Arduino is powered through the USB plug. I am curious to know why the Arduino will not power the motor for the Test 4 sketch if the external power plug on the Arduino board is used instead of the USB plug.
I assumed the Arduino would make use of the 12v if I plugged the power supply into the power plug on the Arduino board itself. You say the motor shield has to be powered with the 12v. I will try that. I will make sure that the power jumper is on the pins of the motor shield board.
This is my first experience using a motor shield with an Arduino board so there are some confusing points for me in running a stepper motor.
I doubt this is a problem with the firmware. The firmware does not care where the power comes from.
BUT
The board does.
I do not know what board you are using. But there are many PDF's out there and I would strongly recommend getting one for your board if you have not already done so.
I post here a PDF (produced by a manufacturer).
Relevant sections are
Can I use power from the Arduino?
Sharing power with the Arduino works for many smaller motors. With the jumper installed,
your motors will get power from the VIN pin. This is the same as what is connected to the
DC power jack on the Arduino, so make sure that your motor voltage rating is compatible
with the 7-12v supply you are using for the Arduino. (Note - when powering the Arduino via
USB, the VIN pin will be at 5v. There is limited power available from USB and this is generally
not a good way to run motors)
Powering motors from the Arduino supply is simple, Just install the power select jumper
next to the external power terminals. But for larger motors, or if you experience erratic
operation, you should consider using a separate power supply
If the board is not powering the motors even when the power jumper is in the correct place and being powered by an external 9v power then the must be an issue with the motor shield.
To power the shield using external power, you MUST use a voltage of around 9V. if trying to power by 5V external power and also having usb cable connected this will not work - VIn - The voltage coming from the external supply has to be at least 5V + 1 .5V in order to work - that means at least 7V being applied to the external DC connection.