Open Turret

An open sourced highly accurate pan-tilt system for anything that needs to be panned and tilted!

The hardware is still quite experimental, but I hope to refine it and release instructions soon.

To-Do:

• Hardware
  • Add holes for pushing out bearings
  • Make wiring rotation continuous (implement slipring)
  • Add tripod mount
  • Fix rigidity of pan axis
• Document Hardware
• Explore using the Pi Zero or Wireless integrate electronics below tilt axis
• Get joystick to control motors
• Make easy stepper coding interface
• Add zoom camera assembly
• Test whether I need to focus the laser

Code To-Do:

• Add skipped step / stall error feedback
• Further optimise speed for equal steps
• Return to home button
  • I2C Communicatoin
  • Arduino code
• D-pad steps
• D-pad Speed modes
• Send zero signal from pi before exiting code on exit button (reset method) => exithandler atexit
• Fix thread error when firing laser

Specifications:

• Better than 0.1º accuracy in both pan and tilt axis
• 360º continuous pan and 135º tilt in either direction
• Support weight of a laser diode
• Have a standard mounting interface
• Be as quiet and cheap as possible
• Entirely made of off-shelf or 3D printed parts
• Safety Measures
  • IR Detection
  • Radar movement detection
  • Short Pulse duration
  • Guiding laser
  • Alert before firing
  • Kill switch
• Decent speed (~36º/s)
• Targeting System
  • Manual (joystick)
  • IR Laser guided
  • Sound Guided
  • Image guided
• On-board Status Display

Milestones

• Implement joystick control of two axes and laser
• Successfully move both axes with 0.1º precision
• Implement full system functionality including safety measures
• Implement an automated detection and firing software

Software Implementation Ideas

• Fully manual control with joystick
• Automatic IR Laser guided aiming
• Autonomous targeting and firing by means of image recognition
• Autonomous targeting and firing by means of acoustic triangulation

Parts

• 2x NEMA17 Stepper Motors 0.9º 4.2 kg/cm
• 2x TMC2209 Stepper Drivers
• Joystick
• 1W Peak Laser Diode
• Bearings
• Axle Rods
• Various 3D Printed Parts
• Timing Belts
• Nuts n' Bolts

Credit

Thank you to the following resources for making this project possible.

• Gamepad library by Piborg - https://github.com/piborg/Gamepad