DSLR Camera Slider

[pcmofo]

Another thought... Couldn't the bolts or spacers on the carriage be extended to be slightly taller if needed so that the belt and motor could be implemented exactly like the Kessler model? e.g. with the motor axle facing downward and the belt entirely between the carriage and slide?

[pcmofo]

Here is a very bad drawing to illustrate the custom right angle L brackets that would need to be made to mount a motor and a pulley on the ends of the maker slide. These brackets could be extended to also hold limit switches and act as end stops.

Anyone have a specific motor/pulley combo they would recommend?

[r691175002]

You don't need L-brackets, you can bolt onto the face of the extrusion. That way the parts can be made with a laser cutter.

If you want a super cheap motor set-up I'd stick with hobby servo modified for continuous rotation. Would cost around 20$ and be very easy to run off batteries. The limitation would be no closed loop control.

You could throw an encoder on it for closed loop control fairly easily or upgrade to a real servo if you need something better.

[macona]

Put the motor on the carriage. Use a rubber wheel to make contact with the rail.

For the controller use this guy, open source camera dolly controller:

http://dynamicperception.com/index.php? ... &cPath=3_9

[pcmofo]

You don't need L-brackets, you can bolt onto the face of the extrusion. That way the parts can be made with a laser cutter.

If you want a super cheap motor set-up I'd stick with hobby servo modified for continuous rotation. Would cost around 20$ and be very easy to run off batteries. The limitation would be no closed loop control.

You could throw an encoder on it for closed loop control fairly easily or upgrade to a real servo if you need something better.

I see what your saying, but with very little clearence between the carriage and slide as it is wouldnt an acrylic mounting plate bolted to the slide take up valuable space? Also, fabricating a bracket or mounting plate is not an issue as I have access to someone with a mill.

I am looking for a simple and reliable design. This will most likely be a closed system which will not be disassembled etc. The only parts that will change is how it is mounted, either to a tripod or table top with legs. Also, the tripod head mounted to it should be easily swappable if needed.

[pcmofo]

Put the motor on the carriage. Use a rubber wheel to make contact with the rail.

For the controller use this guy, open source camera dolly controller:

http://dynamicperception.com/index.php? ... &cPath=3_9

That is a nice looking setup but the cost is crazy, especially considering what a complete solution costs or the one I already linked to costs.

I believe a rubber wheel, while a simple solution, would not provide the smooth and consistant sliding motion I am looking for.

[pcmofo]

Here is another slider project thats very similar to what I would like to do.
http://www.diyphotography.net/beautiful ... th-ardunio

I do not like the slider used as it uses delron sliders on the rail not metal bearings.

[bdring]

I was playing around with some simple ideas for the camera slider. I wanted something simple, scalable and easily broken down when not in use.

I came up with this idea. This puts virtually all the workings on the carriage. The only thing external is some way to attach the ends of the belt to the ends of the extrusion. That could be as simple as a t-nut, screw and some washers.

The only new part is a simple plate that bolts to the bottom of a standard MakerSlide carriage. It uses my smooth idler pulleys to lay the belt against the side of the MakerSlide rail. This keeps it out of the way from getting snagged.

The new piece is shown as clear blue acylic, but I might make it out of HDPE because that is a softer material that can damped vibrations and noise.

I have it shown with a really big NEMA17 stepper because I had a 3D model of it. I would probably use one half the size or smaller.

[pcmofo]

That is a very interesting design, one that looks practical and will get the job done.

Does the belt run in a circle around the extrusion or is it simply a strait piece clamped on either end?

Their are a few things that concern me with this design however.

1) Motor noise, yes if your using a slider their will always be some noise but this creates more as it is next to the camera.

2) Wiring. The wire controlling the motor and any electronics will be moving with the carriage instead of fixed. This means paying more attention to where your wires are and how much slack you have.

3) Camera range of motion. With a motor so close to the camera it may effect the mounting or positioning of the camera on a tripod head or the adjusting of the tripod head. Its hard to tell now but it could be an issue later.

Again, I dont know that any of these things will be real problems but they could be. Let me know if you have any solutions to this or if they are non issues.

[richmond]

Depending on the application, the orientation of the motor could be inverted to provide clearance for a camera (i.e. long enough legs on each end of MakerSlide or the entire unit on a tripod allowing there to be nothing in the way with the motor down).

That may also improve the noise situation as well, you could use a flexible plastic baffle even to attenuate the noise transference through the air, vibration isolation in the mounts would still be a significant concern however.