While making my mini table saw I bought a 12 V motor speed controller module from eBay. Fair enough, I thought … that was an easier and straight forward solution. But then I decided to make my own.
I did some hunting around on the interweb and found a pretty good starting point in Circuits Today, but then, I needed to make some modification and tweaking of the circuit. I wanted to add in a toggle switch, a DC power socket and a 2 pin screw terminal into the design to make it easier to make and use.
There were some other minor alterations that I made to the design as I went, for convenience and to meet my specific needs.
I also want to point out that this circuit is not simply a motor speed controller, but a PWM controller. On the one hand, that means that it can do a lot more than just vary the speed of a DC motor. This circuit will output a 12 volt current with a varying duty cycle. It can be used as 12 V DC:
- Motor Speed Controller;
- LED Dimmer;
- Heat controller for a Polystyrene Hot Wire cutter;
- voltage controller for an electrolytic etcher; and
- etc.
The applications for this circuit are limited only by its 12 V DC nature. How you apply that is up to your imagination and experimentation. For instance, I’m thinking of using this circuit to make a vibrating platform for agitating my PCB production acid bath …
Parts you will need
All parts were purchased from eBay.
- 1 x 0.01 uF ceramic capacitor
- 1 x 0.1 uF ceramic capacitor
- 2 x 1N4001 rectifier diodes
- 1 x 1N4004 rectifier diodes
- 1 x IRF530 100 V 14 A TO-200AB MOSFET
- 1 x TO-220 heat sink
- 1 x 2 pin screw terminal
Read more: 12V NE555 PWM Controller Under $3
