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Genie Excelerator Garage Door Opener

My Genie Excelerator Garage Door Opener has two operating speeds, slow closing, and too-damn-fast opening...

Some kind of stepper motor driving a screw.

Anyone know how to modify to slow down the opening speed?

Thanks!

...Jim Thompson

-- | James E.Thompson, P.E. | mens | | Analog Innovations, Inc. | et | | Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems | manus | | Phoenix, Arizona Voice:(480)460-2350 | | | E-mail Address at Website Fax:(480)460-2142 | Brass Rat | |

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| 1962 | I love to cook with wine. Sometimes I even put it in the food.

Reply to
Jim Thompson
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Maybe, try to change the crystal to the u- controller if it has one. But it may screw up the remote timing. You might also be out of luck if it has an internal oscilator or resonator. JAN Crystals in Fla can cut a crystal for a reasonable cost.

Cheers

Reply to
Martin Riddle

Jim, Are you certain that the motor is a stepper? Usually, it is a two speed reversible induction motor. This all goes with the obstruction safety sensing. Keep those grand-kids safe. Oppie _________________

Reply to
Oppie

Oppie, I'm not sure at all. I'd be happy with an opening speed as slow as the closing speed.

Motor has two lead wires, an opto interrupter wheel, a "motor drive board" and a "controller" board (from illustration in the install manual).

Surely, there *must* be a simple hack to slow it down?

...Jim Thompson

--
|  James E.Thompson, P.E.                           |    mens     |
|  Analog Innovations, Inc.                         |     et      |
|  Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems  |    manus    |
|  Phoenix, Arizona            Voice:(480)460-2350  |             |
|  E-mail Address at Website     Fax:(480)460-2142  |  Brass Rat  |
|       http://www.analog-innovations.com           |    1962     |
             
I love to cook with wine.      Sometimes I even put it in the food.
Reply to
Jim Thompson

with only two wires and variable speed, it could be either a DC motor or an induction motor. Does the motor have any brush connections to confirm if it is a DC unit? either way, the opto interrupter wheel is giving speed and/or stall feedback to the speed controller which is most likely a triac phase control. Things were easier to hack when all the controls were analog or even discrete logic. The main control now is most likely in a single chip micro which makes trying to understand it a bit more difficult. PIC master Sphero could probably code you something . Still, you have to consider how any modifications bear on the safety controls. Oppie

Reply to
Oppie

Well, if the motor has only two wires, and is reversible, that rules out induction, which would require at least three wires to be reversible, as would a stepper.

If it really has only two wires, it most probably is a small dc PM unit!

an

it

and/or

Sphero

Reply to
BFoelsch

It's a DC motor:

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Looks like it does an initialization cycle at 5-1/2"/sec ( vs 14"/sec normally) on power loss- maybe blip the power off after each down cycle will do it-or find the internal controller RESET. The very name of the product should have been some kind of hint- or did a stork leave it on your back steps:-)

Reply to
Fred Bloggs

It was a foolish purchase error :-(

But, as usual with you Fred, an *excellent* observation... it *does* operate slowly after a power loss, so I'll go looking for a reset mechanism. Thanks!

...Jim Thompson

--
|  James E.Thompson, P.E.                           |    mens     |
|  Analog Innovations, Inc.                         |     et      |
|  Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems  |    manus    |
|  Phoenix, Arizona            Voice:(480)460-2350  |             |
|  E-mail Address at Website     Fax:(480)460-2142  |  Brass Rat  |
|       http://www.analog-innovations.com           |    1962     |
             
I love to cook with wine.      Sometimes I even put it in the food.
Reply to
Jim Thompson

what was I thinking? I've been taking sinus meds and am presently a bit loopy. Pollen and mold spores have hit a new high in the New York area. For those of us with allergies, we long for the dry heat of Arizona. There are linear drives that run a motor in a single direction and control speed and direction with a slide lever. see

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Neat trick to use a solid rod and use a set of angled bearings pressed tightly against it to do a variable translation. Oppie

Reply to
Oppie

Come on down, 100+°F all this week ;-)

(Unusual for the season, and will break the record for every day next week.)

...Jim Thompson

--
|  James E.Thompson, P.E.                           |    mens     |
|  Analog Innovations, Inc.                         |     et      |
|  Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems  |    manus    |
|  Phoenix, Arizona            Voice:(480)460-2350  |             |
|  E-mail Address at Website     Fax:(480)460-2142  |  Brass Rat  |
|       http://www.analog-innovations.com           |    1962     |
             
I love to cook with wine.      Sometimes I even put it in the food.
Reply to
Jim Thompson

Now that Fred has determined why the thing goes faster when opening than closing, can you tell us why "high speed" opening is a bad thing?

Reply to
ehsjr

It's bending things :-(

...Jim Thompson

--
|  James E.Thompson, P.E.                           |    mens     |
|  Analog Innovations, Inc.                         |     et      |
|  Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems  |    manus    |
|  Phoenix, Arizona            Voice:(480)460-2350  |             |
|  E-mail Address at Website     Fax:(480)460-2142  |  Brass Rat  |
|       http://www.analog-innovations.com           |    1962     |
             
I love to cook with wine.      Sometimes I even put it in the food.
Reply to
Jim Thompson

Surprise! Surprise! Genie actually responded with a drawing showing which resistor on the board sets the speed option. (No schematics, just the board location.)

...Jim Thompson

--
|  James E.Thompson, P.E.                           |    mens     |
|  Analog Innovations, Inc.                         |     et      |
|  Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems  |    manus    |
|  Phoenix, Arizona            Voice:(480)460-2350  |             |
|  E-mail Address at Website     Fax:(480)460-2142  |  Brass Rat  |
|       http://www.analog-innovations.com           |    1962     |
             
I love to cook with wine.      Sometimes I even put it in the food.
Reply to
Jim Thompson

How did you impress upon them that you actually are an electronics guru in order to get the information? Usually releasing any technical info is totally contrary to any business SOP. Perhaps you threatened to put the genie back in the bottle... or was it the other way around? OPPIE

Reply to
Oppie

I just said "I'm an EE" and "It's systematically trying to destroy itself and the door" :-)

...Jim Thompson

--
|  James E.Thompson, P.E.                           |    mens     |
|  Analog Innovations, Inc.                         |     et      |
|  Analog/Mixed-Signal ASIC's and Discrete Systems  |    manus    |
|  Phoenix, Arizona            Voice:(480)460-2350  |             |
|  E-mail Address at Website     Fax:(480)460-2142  |  Brass Rat  |
|       http://www.analog-innovations.com           |    1962     |
             
I love to cook with wine.      Sometimes I even put it in the food.
Reply to
Jim Thompson

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