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Control systems
Beeb robot arms fall into two distinct categories - those with built-in control processing and memory capability and those with simple motor drive circuitry that relies on an external micro to provide the correct signal timing for motors. Those with built-in processing can also usually be operated via a teach pendant: at its simplest this is just a box with switches or buttons that signals to the arm's processor which motor number should be operated and in which direction. In simpler arms an external micro is required to undertake all the processing work. In the more complex models an external micro can still be used to drive the arm by programming it to mimic the teach pendant's signals. A typical teach pendant is shown here, taken from the Atlas manual. Arms offer either serial port or parallel port signal connection, occasionally both, with the parallel port usually equating to the Beeb's User port.
Motive power varies from stepper motors through to powerful servo motors - and even down to the use of model servos in the smaller arm sizes (e.g. Beasty). In addtiton, more than one Beeb arm design was hydraulically operated. | |
