Intro To Electronics and Motors
Intro to Electronics and Motors
Learn about electronics, motors, and all sorts of electro-mechanical systems in this six week class, with a project every week to teach you the basics of motors and how to control them. Bring your sculptures, electric go-karts, or rotisserie chicken cooker to life with some training in how to motorize your life.
Heartbeat Box: learn the basics of electronics as we solder together a heartbeat box, teaching you how to use batteries, resistors, LEDs, a small dc motor, a switch, and a speaker.
Week Three: AC Control
Learn the difference between AC and DC power as we assemble an AC motor control box, getting you ready for halloween when you can make motion sensor activated chain saw (which is totally not recommended).
Week Four: DC Motor Control
Learn how to power motors up, slow them down, switch directions, etc. We’ll sort through a variety of different motors and mechanisms and try to make them work (plus try to figure out what they were meant for).
Week Five: Relays and Solenoids (electromagnets)
Solenoids are electromagnets that pull things forward and back with a lot of power, or a little bit, all depending on size and how much current you give it. Relays are switches with a solenoid inside of them, allowing you to use a small little electric signal to control a much bigger electrical system. We’re going to work with a solenoid and a relay, to use a little light sensor to make a very big bell ring.
Week Six: Pneumatics
You’ve heard of hydraulics; big hydraulic pistons moving things like forklifts, low-riders, dumptrucks….pneumatics are the same, just using air instead of liquid to move those pistons. Pneumatics are cheaper, simpler, and much less of a mess when you spring a leak. And perfect for most of our non-dumptruck projects. So we’ll try and make a gorilla walk.
Class Details: Six session class. Instruction fee is $180, materials and shop fee is $140 (total $320). Class limit of 8. Note about wait lists.
Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites for this class. All students must be 18 or older.
Refund/Rescheduling Policy: We hope you can make the class, but things happen. If you need to cancel, we can refund your money 7 days ahead of the start of the class (minus a $25 registration fee). You can reschedule the class 7 days before the start of the class as well. There are no refunds or rescheduling within 7 days. By not budgeting for missed classes, we can keep the prices as low as possible for everyone.
For six week classes, the first two classes cover the most critical material. If you miss one of those, we’ll need you to make it up with a private lesson before continuing on with the class (at a discounted rate of $45/hr). After the first two, you can make up one class for free during open shop hours when it’s slower (so not Weds or Saturdays). After that, regular open shop rates apply. There are no refunds after the first class of a multi-session class.