AX500 Dual Channel Digital Motor Controller Quick Start Manual v1.9b, June 1, 2007 visit www.roboteq.com to download the latest revision of this manual ©Copyright 2003-2007 Roboteq, Inc.
SECTION 1 Important Safety Warnings Read this Section First The AX500 is a power electronics device. Serious damage, including fire, may occur to the unit, motors, wiring and batteries as a result of its misuse. Please review the User’s Manual for added precautions prior to applying full battery or full load power. This product is intended for use with rechargeable batteries Unless special precautions are taken, damage to the controller and/or power supply may occur if operated with a power supply alone.
SECTION 2 AX500 Quick Start This section will give you the basic information needed to quickly install, setup and run your AX500 controller in a minimal configuration.
AX500 Quick Start The front side contains the 15-pin connector to the R/C radio, joystick or microcomputer, as well as connections to optional switches and sensors. Connector to Receiver/ Controls and sensors Status LED FIGURE 1. AX500 Controller Front View At the back of the controller (shown in the figure below) are located all the that must be connected to the batteries and the motors. Note: Both VMot terminals are connected to each other in the board and must be wired to the same voltage.
Connecting to the Batteries and Motors Connecting to the Batteries and Motors Connection to the batteries and motors is shown in the figure below and is done by connecting wires to the controller’s terminal strip. Motor2 + Power on/off switch + Fuse VMot M1+ M1VCon GND GND GND M2M2+ VMot Motor1 Controller 12V to 24V Motor Battery Notes: - The Battery Power connection are doubled in order to provide the maximum current to the controller.
AX500 Quick Start Important Warning The controller includes large capacitors. When connecting the Motor Power Cables, a spark will be generated at the connection point. This is a normal occurrence and should be expected. Connecting to the 15-pin Connector The controller’s I/O are located on it’s standard 15-pin D-Sub Connector. The functions of some pins varies depending on controller model and operating mode. Pin assignment is found in the table below.
Powering On the Controller Channel 3 Channel 2 3: 4: 6: 7: 8: Channel 1 Channel 1 Command Pulses Channel 2 Command Pulses Radio battery (-) Ground Radio battery (+) Channel 3 Command Pulses 8 9 Pin 1 Wire loop bringing power from controller to RC radio 15 FIGURE 4. R/C connector wiring for 3 channels and battery elimination (BEC) This wiring - with the wire loop uncut - assumes that the R/C radio will be powered by the AX500 controller.
AX500 Quick Start The status LED will start flashing a pattern to indicate the mode in which the controller is in: RC Mode RS232 Mode No Watchdog RS232 Mode with Watchdog Analog Mode FIGURE 5. Status LED Flashing pattern during normal operation Default Controller Configuration Version 1.9b of the AX500 software is configured with the factory defaults shown in the table below.
Obtaining the Controller’s Software Revision Number • to update the controller’s software FIGURE 6. Roborun Utility screen layout To connect the controller to your PC, use the provided cable. Connect the 15-pin connector to the controller. Connect the 9-pin connector to your PC’s available port (typically COM1) use a USB to serial adapter if needed. Apply power to the controller to turn it on. Load your CD or download the latest revision of Roborun software from www.Roboteq.
AX500 Quick Start Each software version is identified with a unique number. Obtaining this number can be done using the PC connection discussed previously. Now that you know your controller’s software version number, you will be able to see if a new version is available for download and installation from Roboteq’s web site and which features have been added or improved.
