How to Control Conveyor Belt with Arduino and H-Bridge Using a Potentiometer

In this guide, you will learn how to control the direction and speed of a conveyor belt using an Arduino, H-Bridge, and a potentiometer. Whether you're building a simple DIY automation project or a more complex robotic system, this tutorial will show you how to utilize the essential components: Arduino, home made H-Bridge, and potentiometer, to control your conveyor belt motor effectively. Along the way, we'll also explore related topics like how to control DC motor direction with Arduino, how to use H-Bridge with Arduino, and how to control DC motor speed with Arduino.

What You'll Need:

• Arduino Uno (or any other compatible Arduino)

• H-Bridge motor driver

• DC Motor

• Conveyor Belt Mechanism

• Potentiometer (10kΩ works well)

• Jumper Wires

• External Power Supply for the motor

• Breadboard

Understanding the Components

Before diving into the project, it’s essential to understand the key components used for controlling a DC motor.

1. Arduino: The Arduino microcontroller will act as the brain of the operation, controlling the motor's speed and direction based on the potentiometer's input.

2. Transistor H-Bridge Motor Driver: A diy home made transistor based H-Bridge is used to control the direction of a DC motor. The transistor used can be either BJT or MOSFET. Here we will use BJT based H-bridge built at home. If you want to use MOSFET based h-bridge then see the guide DIY H-bridge with MOSFET. It allows you to drive a motor forward and backward by reversing the polarity of the voltage supplied to the motor. If you want build your own H-Bridge controllable with Arduino, this motor driver is an excellent choice as it can control both the direction and speed of the DC motor.

3. Potentiometer: A potentiometer allows you to adjust the motor speed manually. The resistance changes as you turn the knob, providing an analog input to the Arduino, which is used to control the speed of the motor.

Step-by-Step Guide to Control a Conveyor Belt with Arduino

Step 1: Wiring the Circuit

1. Connect the Motor to the H-Bridge:

   • Connect the DC motor’s terminals to the output pins of the H-Bridge.

   • The motor’s positive terminal goes to one output, and the negative terminal goes to the other output.

2. Arduino to H-Bridge Connections:

   • Enable Pin (EN): Connect the EN pin of the L298N to 5V.

   • Input Pins: Connect the input pins (IN1 and IN2) of the h-bridge to two PWM-capable pins on Arduino (for example, pins 9 and 10).

   • Ground (GND): Connect the GND pin of the H-bridge motor drive to the GND pin of Arduino.

3. Powering the Motor:

   • The motor will likely need more power than the Arduino can provide, so connect an external power supply to the VCC pin of the h-bridge motor driver.

   • Ensure the motor's voltage matches the power supply’s output.

4. Potentiometer:

   • Connect one end of the potentiometer to 5V, the other end to GND, and the wiper (middle pin) to an analog input on the Arduino, such as A1.

Step 2: Arduino Code to Control Conveyor Belt Motor

Now, let's explore how to control the motor’s direction and speed using Arduino and a potentiometer. This code snippet below will allow you to control the speed of the conveyor belt motor and adjust the direction.

int forward = 9; // use pin 9 for PWM forward
int reverse = 10; // use pin 10 for PWM reverse
int LED = 11; // use LED on pin 13 to indicate neutral
int potPin = A1;

int potentiometer_value = 0; // read the potentiometer to determine direction and speed
int deadband = 20; // determines deadband from center - a higher number equals a larger??neutral zone.
void setup(){
	Serial.begin(9600); // start serial monitor at 9600 bps
	// set PWM pins to be outputs
	pinMode(forward, OUTPUT);
	pinMode(reverse, OUTPUT);
	// set LED pin to be an output
	pinMode(LED, OUTPUT);
}
void loop(){
// read potentiometer (0-1023) and divide by 2 = (0-511).
// Now break that up into 255 either direction (0-255 = PWM value range).??
potentiometer_value = analogRead(potPin) / 2;
	if (potentiometer_value > 256 + deadband) {
		digitalWrite(reverse, LOW);
		analogWrite(forward, potentiometer_value - 256);
		digitalWrite(LED, LOW);
		Serial.print(potentiometer_value - 256);
		Serial.print(" ");
		Serial.print(potentiometer_value);
		Serial.print(" ");
		Serial.println(" Forward ");
	}
	else if (potentiometer_value < 255 - deadband) {
		digitalWrite(forward, LOW);
		analogWrite(reverse, 255 - potentiometer_value);
		digitalWrite(LED, LOW);
		Serial.print(255 - potentiometer_value);
		Serial.print(" ");
		Serial.print(potentiometer_value);
		Serial.print(" ");
		Serial.println(" Reverse ");
	}
	else {
		digitalWrite(forward, LOW);
		digitalWrite(reverse, LOW);
		digitalWrite(LED, HIGH);
		Serial.print(potentiometer_value);
		Serial.print(" ");
		Serial.println(" STOP ");
	}
}

Explanation of Code:

• Motor Direction Control: The potentiometer's value is read by the analogRead() function, which returns a value between 0 and 1023. We map this value to a range of 0-255, suitable for controlling the speed via analogWrite().

• Speed Control: As you turn the potentiometer, the motorSpeed value changes, which adjusts the PWM signal sent to the motor driver, controlling the motor's speed.

• Forward/Reverse: If the potentiometer value is greater than 512, the motor moves forward, and if it's lower, the motor moves in reverse.

Step 3: Testing the Conveyor Belt

Once everything is connected and the code is uploaded to the Arduino, you can test the motor’s speed and direction control. By turning the potentiometer, you will notice the conveyor belt move in both directions (forward and reverse) and adjust its speed accordingly.

The following video shows how the 10kohmn POT is used to control the speed and direction of a motor simultaneously using Arduino and an H-bridge.

Key Concepts and Related Topics:

How to Control DC Motor Direction with Arduino

• By using an H-Bridge motor driver, we can easily control the direction of the DC motor. The two input pins on the H-Bridge allow you to switch the polarity of the voltage to the motor, which reverses its direction.

How to Use H-Bridge with Arduino

• The H-Bridge is a crucial component for driving motors in both directions. In this tutorial, we used the diy H-bridge motor driver, which is a popular choice for controlling DC motors with Arduino. It’s easy to wire and allows you to control both direction and speed.

How to Control DC Motor Speed with Arduino

• By adjusting the PWM signal sent to the motor driver, we control the motor speed. Using the analogWrite() function in Arduino, we provide a PWM signal with varying duty cycles to control the motor's speed based on potentiometer input.

How to Control a Motor with Arduino

• This tutorial demonstrates controlling a motor using Arduino by connecting it to an H-Bridge, which is the standard method for driving motors with an Arduino. This technique is commonly used in automation and robotics.

Control DC Motor Speed Using Potentiometer, L298N, and Arduino

• In this guide, the potentiometer provides an analog input to the Arduino, which processes it to control the motor speed via PWM, using the h-bridge motor driver.

Conclusion

By using an Arduino, an H-Bridge motor driver, and a potentiometer, you can efficiently control the direction and speed of a conveyor belt. This setup can be extended to various automation and robotics projects, where precise control over motor speed and direction is essential.

If you're interested in more tutorials related to motor control and automation, check out these articles:

• How to control DC motor direction with Arduino

• How to use H-Bridge with Arduino

• How to control DC motor speed with Arduino

• Arduino 4 motor control code

• How to control a motor with Arduino

These resources will provide you with deeper insights into motor control, PCB design, and much more.