User Manual

-6-
About Your Snap Circuits
®
Parts
MOTOR MODULES
Disco Motor (DM)
The programmable fan (M8) is a motor with an
LED circuit. A motor converts electricity into
mechanical motion, in the form of a spinning
shaft. In the light motor electricity is transported
through the motor shaft to power an LED circuit,
with LEDs mounted on the fan blade. The motor
spins in both directions, but the light circuit only
works in one direction.
How does electricity turn the shaft in the motor?
Electricity is closely related to magnetism, and
an electric current flowing in a wire has a
magnetic field similar to that of a very, very tiny
magnet. Inside the motor are three coils of wire
with many loops. If a large electric current flows
through the loops, the magnetic effects become
concentrated enough to move the coils. The
motor has a magnet inside, so as the electricity
moves the coils to align them with the permanent
magnet, the shaft spins.
The LEDs in the fan blade are flashed in a pattern
based on the programmed phrase, and
synchronized with the motor speed. The flashes are
precisely timed and are very brief, but your eyes
can’t react fast enough and the flashed pattern
gives the illusion of words floating in space. You can
change the messages displayed;
see project 15. UP, MODE,
and DOWN are controlled
by connecting those
snaps to (-) using
switches or
the selector
(S8).
The disco motor (DM) is a motor with a gearbox
attached to the shaft, and an LED module
mounted on it. The gearbox makes its shaft spin
slower but with more force than the shaft that is
directly attached to the motor, so it can spin the
disco covers. The LED module has red, green,
and blue LEDs, connected in parallel.
LED MC(U29):
(+) - Power from batteries
(—) - Power return to batteries
S-IN - Takes input from the selector (S8)
S-OUT - An output, often connected to an LED
1 - An output, often connected to an LED
2 - An output, usually connected to the speaker
3 - Takes input from the selector (S8)
4 - An output, often connected to an LED
D1 - Used to shut off the right LED display
D2 - Used to shut off the left LED display
LEDMC (U29)
The Snap Circuits
®
Arcade page on our website
(www.snapcircuits.net/sca200) has additional
information about the LED MC, including a
schematic diagram, the program it is running,
links to software that will allow you to modify the
program or write your own programs for it, and
how to purchase a programming cable for it
(which is only needed if you want to reprogram
it). The microcontroller used is the PICAXE
®
08M2, which has a special programming interface
that makes it easy to use. You can also find
information about the PICAXE
®
08M2 from its
manufacturer at www.picaxe.co.uk.
LED DISPLAY & MICROCONTROLLER
The LED MC module (U29) has a dual 7-segment
LED display, a microcontroller, and supporting
parts. The microcontroller is a mini computer
which can be programmed to perform different
tasks, including monitoring things and making
things happen. It is pre-programmed for use with
the games projects. See project 17 for how to
select games on it.
LED MC outputs cannot control the motors in the
disco motor (DM) or programmable fan (M8)
directly, so an interface transistor must be used.
LED MC outputs can control your speaker (SP2)
and LEDs (D1, D2, D10, and the LEDs in the
disco motor) directly.
Programmable Fan (M8)