Electrical

This page documents the power distribution and CAN bus wiring for the 6 DOF arm. The system is powered by a 51.2 V battery and controlled over CAN from a laptop via a CANable USB adapter.

Overview

Subsystem	Description
Power source	51.2 V battery
Safety	E-stop on the positive rail
High-voltage motors	4× AK80-9, 1× AK10-9 at 51.2 V
Low-voltage motors	2× GL40 II at 16 V (via buck converter)
Communication	Shared CAN bus (CAN_H / CAN_L), terminated with 120 Ω

Power Distribution

Battery and bus bars

Power flows from the 51.2 V battery through an E-stop switch on the positive side, then to a Bus Bar (+). The battery negative connects directly to Bus Bar (−).

Connection	Wire gauge
Battery (+) → E-stop	6 AWG
E-stop → Bus Bar (+)	6 AWG
Bus Bar (+) → loads	12 AWG
Battery (−) → Bus Bar (−)	6 AWG

Motor power

Five motors run directly from the 51.2 V bus bars via XT60 connectors:

Motor	Quantity	Voltage	Connector
AK80-9	4	51.2 V	XT60
AK10-9	1	51.2 V	XT60

Two GL40 II motors operate at a lower voltage. A buck converter steps the 51.2 V bus down to 16 V, which is delivered to both motors via XT30 connectors.

Motor	Quantity	Voltage	Connector
GL40 II	2	16 V	XT30

These motors correspond to the 6 DOF arm motor selection: AK10-9 at the shoulder, AK80-9 at the elbow joints, and GL40 at the wrist and gripper.

CAN Bus

All seven motors share a single CAN network for command and feedback.

Controller

A laptop connects over USB to a CANable adapter, which drives the bus.

Wiring

Line	Function
CAN_H	CAN high
CAN_L	CAN low

Each motor taps into CAN_H and CAN_L via XT30 connectors. The bus is terminated at the end with a 120 Ω resistor to prevent signal reflections.

Connector Summary

Connector	Use
XT60	51.2 V power to AK80-9 and AK10-9 motors
XT30	16 V power to GL40 II motors; CAN data on all motors

Wire Gauge Summary

Application	Gauge
Main power (battery to E-stop, E-stop to bus bar)	6 AWG
Distribution (bus bar to motors and buck converter)	12 AWG