Comperison

[Robin2]

the reason that i want to know the advantages of using PIC over 8051 is that during the interview, the lecturers will ask my why i have chosen this MC instead of others, but i dont have a particular reason for choosing a PIC MC.

By the way, can a servo motor be used for this application?? or are servo motors only used for small applications??

One answer to "why choose a PIC" is that they are very common devices and it is easy to get advice (like here) if you run into a problem. Also, there is a wide range of PIC devices with different specialities and almost everything you learn from your first PIC device will carry over to other PIC devices if you subsequently need to use a different device in another application.

 

[adrianvon]

Robin2, when you say DC motor are you referring to a stepper motor or another type of motor?? and are stepper motors with brushes of brush-less??

Thanks

 

[adrianvon]

... and do stepper motors use permanent magnets to operate??

 

[Robin2]

Robin2, when you say DC motor are you referring to a stepper motor or another type of motor?? and are stepper motors with brushes of brush-less??

Thanks

I was thinking of a regular cheap brushed DC motor. I have no experience of stepper motors but from what I read they are only relevant if accurate positioning is important and they are much more complex to control.

Brushless DC motors are widely used in model aircraft because they can have a high power to weight ratio and high torque. Some are very powerful but they all require a complex three phase signal to drive them. You could, of course, buy a model aircraft control unit to drive it which would greatly simplify your programming and electronics. However brushless DC motors are much more expensive than brushed motors and I would be surprised if the extra cost would be justified in your project. I would consider one if I was designing a machine (such as an air blower) that would run several hours a day for months at a time.

The motors I am talking about have permanent magnets. The better ones have powerful rare-earth magnets but even that may not be relevant for your project.

You should be able to get a variety of 12v motors in a car-breakers which would allow you to experiment.