Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

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oldrayj
 
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Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by oldrayj »

I am having difficulty getting my version 2 stepper shield to work. When I run the stepper test, nothing happens. I have tried both ports with no luck. I have confirmed that I have the correct libraries and I have the latest Ardunio IDE.

I am powering the shield with a 12 volt wall wart and I get the green led when I turn the power on. Having had a lot of experience in connecting steppers for my 3D printer and CNC machine, I am confident that I have the motor is hooked up correctly.

My motors are NEMA 17s with a .9 degree step angle. They are rated at 2.4 Amps. Perhaps they are too big?

Help will be appreciated. Thanks.

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

They are rated at 2.4 Amps. Perhaps they are too big?
They are too big for the shield. The shield is rated for 1.2A.

The shield does have a 3A 'peak' rating, but peak ratings are not applicable to stepper motors. Unlike DC motors, stepper motor current draw is highest when the motor is not moving.

oldrayj
 
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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by oldrayj »

Thank you for your prompt reply. Since stepper motors draw current even when stationary, is there a probability that I damaged the shield while trying to operate my over-sized motors? Is there a way to test the shield without hooking up a smaller motor? The only test equipment I have is a simple multimeter.

Help will be appreciated. Thanks again.

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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

With the motor disconnected, you can try running the "DCMotorTest" example sketch to test the health of the H-Bridges. If you connect a multimeter to the M1 motor terminals, you should see the voltage ramp up and down between approximately -12v and +12v. You can modify the sketch to test M2-M4 also.

oldrayj
 
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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by oldrayj »

Tested each port as described. No voltage. Also hooked up a small 12 volt fan with no luck. I must have fried the H-Bridges. However, it’s strange that the “tick” and “tock” print commands do not work. The only thing that shows up in the serial monitor is "Adafruit Motorshield v2 - DC Motor test!”. Is there a possible software glitch?

Help will again be appreciated.

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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

The only thing that shows up in the serial monitor is "Adafruit Motorshield v2 - DC Motor test!”. Is there a possible software glitch?
That message is printed before the shield is initialized. It is possible it is hanging up on initialization. This could happen if there was a problem with the i2c communication.

Which Arduino are you using with this? If you post front & back photos of the shield we can check for any assembly issues.

oldrayj
 
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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by oldrayj »

I am using a UNO R3. I robbed a working project of another UNO. I tried it with the same results.

The requested photos are attached.
Adafruit  1.png
Adafruit 1.png (703.68 KiB) Viewed 438 times
Adafruit  2.png
Adafruit 2.png (771.18 KiB) Viewed 438 times
It looks messy around pins 4 and 5, but there is no short.

Thanks again for your help.

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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Can you get one from an angle a little above and to the side? I am particularly interested in the headers for SCL, SDA and Analog pins 4 and 5.

oldrayj
 
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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by oldrayj »

Photos provided. Let me know if I didn’t get the right angle. Thanks.
StepperShield2 1.png
StepperShield2 1.png (657.56 KiB) Viewed 421 times
StepperShield2 2.png
StepperShield2 2.png (597.65 KiB) Viewed 421 times
StepperShield2 3.png
StepperShield2 3.png (690.11 KiB) Viewed 421 times

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

The solder looks OK. Just one more thing to check: Are you using the V2 library?
https://github.com/adafruit/Adafruit_Mo ... V2_Library

The AF_Motor library for the previous version of the shield will not work with the V2 shield.

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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by oldrayj »

Yes. I have the correct library.

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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Even an overload condition would only affect the H-bridges. The i2c communication should still be functional. If you contact [email protected] with a link to this thread we can send you a replacement.

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Re: Stepper shield v2 doesn't work

Post by oldrayj »

Thank you. I will look forward to getting my project up and running.

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