Thread: Wiper motor tombstone popper

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Hi all,
I'm just about finished with this tombstone popper, just need to mask the aluminum bar a bit. The skull will have UV paint highlights and a scream to go with it when it rises. It uses a wiper motor with a motor controller board to raise and lower the linkage.

http://s73.photobucket.com/albums/i2...t=MOV06785.flv

Well done "O". What type of board are you using to control your movement. I see that the motor does not make a complete rotation and it runs in reverse as well as forward. Just curious if this was controlling the wiper motor as though it were a stepper.

intriguing...now show us how it works!

Niiice..A pneumatic effect with a motor!

Originally Posted by indianaholmes

Well done "O". What type of board are you using to control your movement. I see that the motor does not make a complete rotation and it runs in reverse as well as forward. Just curious if this was controlling the wiper motor as though it were a stepper.

Actually, the motor does make a full rotation. It's stopped at 180° by a snap switch that cuts the power to the motor. A timer overrides the switch for ~1 second, allowing the motor to turn another 180°. After the second 180° turn, the switch cuts the power again and the circuit waits for the next trigger from the PIR. I designed this circuit a couple of years back, and you can get the board from Simple Circuit Boards for about $10, not including the parts. It's the same system I use to open and close the lid on my coffin prop. The original design used an opto-sensor to index the motor, but I re-designed it to use the snap switch which is more reliable and easier to set up. Here's a video of the linkage in action from the side where you can see the motor rotating:

MOV06788.flv video by Otaku1031 - Photobucket

great work. Thanks for the post, is there any chance you could give us a close up pic or vid of the components and a parts list. Myself like alot of others are visully oriented.

That's impressive. I also would like a close up pick or video of those switch limiters. I can't tell how they are being pushed. How many components are on the circuit board?

Here's a couple of pics of the linkage and motor. The wide aluminum bar on the motor shaft is what hits the snap switch to cut the power when the motor makes it's 180° turn. The ice cube relay to the right of the motor is switching the 5VDC 5A motor power.

Wow....very impressive!