Drive System

Drive System

Driving Motors (cubemars)CubeMars)

Each of the 6 driving motors need torequires power and data (CAN and UART) routed from inside the chassis of the rover. 

Power

Power is donedelivered over a black (–) and a red (+) wire. ItThese runswires run through the insideinterior of the aluminum extrusions and terminatesterminate in a female xt-XT-60 connector.connector Theat each of the wheels.

Each motor is connectedconnects to thethis system withvia a shortershort power cable whichwith:

has

• Male maleXT-30 xt-30on (whichone end — plugs into the motor)motor
• Male toXT-60 maleon xt-60the (whichother end — plugs into the rover).rover's female XT-60 connector

Data

Data is donecarried over Ethernet cables and connectors.connectors, Wewired are followingto the standardT568B T568B.standard.

Each wheel has one ethernet-Ethernet-in and one ethernet-out,Ethernet-out withconnector, the exception ofexcept the back wheelswheels, which have ehternet-an Ethernet-in and a terminator (a 120Ω resistor). Therein is a totalplace of Ethernet-out.

Motor numbering:

Position	Motor ID
Front wheels	M1
Middle wheels	M2
Back wheels	M3

Cable layout (per side, 3 ethernet cables ontotal):

each side: cable

Cable	Run
Cable 1	Chassis goes→ fromFront thewheel
Cable front2	Front wheel to→ theMiddle chassis,wheel
Cable cable 2 goes from the front3	Middle wheel to→ the middle wheel, and cable 3 goes from the middleBack wheel to the back wheel.

Ethernet Connector Pinouts

Each of the wheelswheel has two female ethernetEthernet connectors,connectors: one forin, one out. Pin assignments below follow T568B pairing (pins grouped by pair: 1–2, 3–6, 4–5, 7–8 in andstandard anotherEthernet, forbut out.here Theshown front wheels motors are M1, middle ones M2 andper the backrover's onescustom M3.signal The wiring for the female ethernet connectors is as follows:mapping).

M1 in– In

	Pin		+		-–
1	RX	M1 out 1-1–
2	M1 out 2+	TX
3	M1 out 3+	M1 out 3-3–
4	CAN HIGH 1	CAN LOW 1

M1 out– Out

	Pin		+		-–
1	—	M1 in 1-1–
2	M1 in 2+	—
3	M1 in 3+	M1 in 3-3–
4	CAN HIGH 2	CAN LOW 2

M2 in– In

	Pin		+		-–
1	M2 out 1+	M2 out 1-1–
2	RX	M2 out 2-2–
3	M2 out 3+	TX
4	CAN HIGH 2	CAN LOW 2

M2 out– Out

	Pin		+		-–
1	M2 in 1+	M2 in 1-1–
2	—	M2 in 2-2–
3	M2 in 3+
4	CAN HIGH 3	CAN LOW 3

M3 in

	+	-
1		TX
2
3	RX	—
4	CAN HIGH 3	CAN LOW 3

M3 – In

Pin	+	–
1	—	TX
2	—	—
3	RX	—
4	CAN HIGH 3	CAN LOW 3

Motor-Side Connection

The female ethernetEthernet connector cables are connectorconnect to the motors through gh-connectors.via GH connectors.

Warning: The ghGH-side sideconnector should never be disconnected from the motormotor. becauseThis connector sits inside the connector is in themotor driver and quiteis flimsy,physically flimsy — one ofdriver the drivers washas already been bricked from connectingbeing it and disconnecting itconnected/disconnected too muchmany times.

Steering motors

The steering motors are connected through 5-way wire (with one of the channels cut off) to the motor drivers.