Heavy Duty Pan and Tilt
September 2016
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Contents |
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| Mounted on my big Talon |
Introduction
When I decided to put together a pan set-up for my big Talon to carry a 2 axis brushless gimbal, I went looking for components that I could buy to build a stout 360+ degree pan mechanism that didn't need gears, belts or extra linkage parts and I found the components I needed in a company called Actobotics. This project then is an extension of that earlier work on my big Talon and some of the work I put into the Mini Talon.
After buying and building several Pan and Tilt set-ups I got tired of how cheaply the purchased ones were and how flimsy most were. The biggest problem has always been the pan axis is simply never robust enough. When I did find something that was strong enough (for me) it was always too heavy and too expensive or presented too much wind area.
With the Actobotics Pieces, their Futaba servo coupler and bearing plate, I was able to build a raised bearing that made the servo connection very strong. This structure keeps all the stresses off the servo shaft and its bearings and elliminates unwanted motion or wobble.
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| Base unit showing Coupler and Bearing plate |
I've added to this a turret and tilt mechanism which I have modified many times.
Tilt Configurations
Because I always seem to need something different for every plane I've ended up with several versions of this idea. Most of my planes only require the ability to look down and around so there are three different camera mount plates.
- Standard Modius/Runcam mount
- Dual Side-by-Side Camera Mount
- Misc Camera mount
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| Three Standard Camera Mounts |
Added to this I have made two different height turrets, one for the three mounts above and one for a tilt which looks both up (20 deg) and down (-42 deg). This one also has a over-under camera mount for a Mobius/Runcam and an HS1177 camera. The dual camera set-up should work well with head tracking but the pan speed may be a little slow.
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| Tall and Short Turrets |
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| Range of Motion 0 to 70 Degrees Range of Motion -20(up) to 42(down) Degrees |
| Single and Dual Camera set-ups |
Deck Mount Configurations
I designed three different ways to mount to a flat deck.
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| Three mount configurations |
Parts and Specifications
Parts
Bottom Unit Printed Parts
- GWS Servo Plate
- GWS Servo Deck Plate
- Bearing Plate
- Bearing Deck Plate
Top Unit Printed Parts
- Tall Turret
- Short Turret
- Std Mobius Mount
- Std Dual Camera Mount
- Std Misc Camera Mount
- Over-Under Camera Mount
Servos
- Pan - GWS S125-1T (25 tooth)
- NOTE: The GWS S125-1t servo can be found with both a 23 tooth and 25 tooth spline. The 23 tooth spline was discontinued by GWS in 2014 but there is still lots of inventory out there. The 25 tooth which is identical to Futaba, must be found for this project.
- Tilt - 9g/120 Degree servo
- NOTE: This project was designed using a Corona DS929MG servo. While this servo works very well it is heavy at 14.1g. Most "9g" size servos should fit with small adjustments.
Hardware
- 1x Actobotics #525142 25t Futaba Servo Extension (Coupler)
- 1x 0.375"ID x 0.625"OD x 0.156"L Ball Bearing w/dual shield
- 1x 3" x 0.047" Steel Wire
Fasteners
- 2x M3 x 20mm Nylon PHS
- 4x M3 x 8mm SHCS
- 6x M3 Flat Washer
- 4x M2.5 x 8mm SHCS
- 4x M2.5 Flat Washer
- 4x M2 x 6mm SHCS
- 4x M2 Flat Washer
- 4x M3 x 15mm Aluminum Stand-offs
Weights and Measures
- Total weight with all hardware and a true 9g tilt servo - 93 grams
- Total weight without servos - 32 grams
- Pan rotaion - 385 degrees
- Tilt range, single camera - 0-70 degrees (down)
- Tilt range, dual camera - -19 (up) to 45 degrees (down)
Parts Preparation
On any 3D print project, part preparation is key to a successful completion. The following images show what work needs to be done for this success.
Servo Plate/Lower Deck Mount
The servo mount needs 4 holes tapped to M3 and 4 holes tapped to M2.5:
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Bearing Plate/Upper Deck Mount
The assumption is your printer (or service) will hold the tolerance designed on an inside diameter. If your printer adds too much material you will need to make adjustments to accommodate the bearing OD which should push in with a little resistance:
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Turret Base
The Turret needs 2 holes tapped to M3 and 2 holes tapped to M2:
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Like the bearing plate, the assumption is your printer (or service) will hold the tolerance designed on an inside diameter. If your printer adds too much material you will need to make adjustments to accommodate the coupler OD (0.375") which should push in with a little resistance:
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Servo Coupler
The Servo Coupler needs 2 holes drilled and tapped to M3:
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Assembly
On the Camera Mount pivot use the two Nylon M3 screws cut down so that they tighten against each other without jamming the pivot points.
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| Upper unit assembly |
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| Lower unit assembly |
See Also
Project 3D Print Files
The following are the 3D print ZIP files used in this specific build. For more versions and information, please see my Thingiverse postings here:
Mark_q Thingiverse Designs
Some of the Vendors I used for this project
Comments? Questions?
