October 23, 2014

Automating curtains with an Arduino

Thanks to the simplicity of controlling external devices, the Arduino platform lends itself very well to the task of home automation (for example the Superhouse). One easy example of this has been documented by Elijah Carbonaro who uses an Arduino to control a curtain, making it easy to open or close at the press of a button.

In his example Elijah uses a continuous-rotation servo which can act as a normal motor, and with a pulley fitted can draw the curtain rope in either direction. This could also be done with a stepper motor - and most likely a better solution as some curtains require some effort to move. Either way, a quick demonstration is shown in the following video:

You could also use a real-time clock or a sensor to trigger the opening or closing of the curtains depending on the prevalent conditions. The details of this project can be found on the Instructables website. And for more, we're on facebook, twitter and Google+, so follow us for news and product updates as well.

 There's so much you can do with an Arduino and motors - and the base of any project is a solid motor shield - such as our HBRIDGE: DC/stepper motor shield. Based around the powerful Allegro A4954 H-bridge driver IC you can control two DC motors with complete ease, or one bipolar stepper motor. With connections for external power management, a complete beginners' guide and documentation - motor control couldn't be any easier. For more information and to order, visit the HBRIDGE: page.

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