Motors for Makers: A Guide to Steppers, Servos, and Other Electrical Machines

The First Maker-Friendly Guide to Electric Motors!Makers can do amazing things with motors. Yes, they’re more complicated than some other circuit elements, but with this book, you can completely master them. Once you do, incredible new projects become possible. Unlike other books, Motors for Makers is 100% focused on what you can do. Not theory. Making.First, Matthew Scarpino explains how electric motors work and what you need to know about each major type: stepper, servo, induction, and linear motors. Next, he presents detailed instructions and working code for interfacing with and controlling servomotors with Arduino Mega, Raspberry Pi, and BeagleBone Black. All source code and design files are available for you to download from motorsformakers.com.From start to finish, you’ll learn through practical examples, crystal-clear explanations, and photos. If you’ve ever dreamed of what you could do with electric motors, stop dreaming...and start making!Understand why electric motors are so versatile and how they workChoose the right motor for any projectBuild the circuits needed to control each type of motorProgram motor control with Arduino Mega, Raspberry Pi, or BeagleBone BlackUse gearmotors to get the right amount of torqueUse linear motors to improve speed and precisionDesign a fully functional electronic speed control (ESC) circuitDesign your own quadcopterDiscover how electric motors work in modern electric vehicles--with a fascinating inside look at Tesla’s patents for motor design and control!

Matthew Scarpino is an engineer with more than 12 years of experience designing hardware and software. He has a master’s degree in electrical engineering and is an Advanced Certified Interconnect Designer (CID+). He is the author of Designing Circuit Boards with EAGLE: Make High-Quality PCBS at Low Cost.

- Introduction - Part I: Introduction - Chapter 1: Introduction to Electric Motors - Chapter 2: Preliminary Concepts - Part II: Exploring Electric Motors - Chapter 3: DC Motors - Chapter 4: Stepper Motors - Chapter 5: Servomotors - Chapter 6: AC Motors - Chapter 7: Gears and Gearmotors - Chapter 8: Linear Motors - Part III: Electrical Motors in Practice - Chapter 9: Motor Control with the Arduino Mega - Chapter 10: Motor Control with the Raspberry Pi - Chapter 11: Controlling Motors with the BeagleBone Black - Chapter 12: Designing an Arduino-Based Electronic Speed Control (ESC) - Chapter 13: Designing a Quadcopter - Chapter 14: Electric Vehicles - Part IV: Appendixes - Appendix A: Electric Generators - Appendix B: Glossary - Index