Servo Specifications and Properties
With the exception of retract servos, all modern servos are
digital-proportional. What that means is that the servo moves in
proportion to stick movement. if you move the stick a little, the
servo moves a little. If you move the stick a lot, the servo moves a
lot.
Retract servos (servos for mechanical retractable landing gear) move from
one extreme to the other and can not stop in between.
When a person buys their first radio, they almost invariably use the
servos that come with the set and do not think about it too much.
As your time in the hobby increases, you end up with more planes which
usually means buying more flight packs. The other option is to
constantly swap the
radio between planes which gets old real fast.
This is when most people start noticing the wide variety of servos and
get very lost in deciding what to buy. Many companies put together
flight packs for various types models to save us the trouble of figuring it
out ourselves.
For example, a company might offer a flight pack for large scale models,
another for sailplanes and still another for park flyers.
Assuming you want to optimize your plane and get the most appropriate
servo for each control, you will eventually need to understand what all the
specs mean so that you can assemble your own flight packs for best
efficiency, optimal performance and economy.
Analog vs. Digital
When digital servos were first released there were claims made about "holding power," "resolution" and
"centering." Frankly, I thought it was a lot of marketing hype. While I see a lot of "experts" online
talking about this and that, in person I don't know too many people who are good enough to tell the difference in
one servo or another. I'm one of those pilots.
However, when I rebuilt My Stik 30 I built a "3D" tail that was so sensitive I had to dial down the end-points
to make the plane controllable. That is a really bad thing to do because it lowers the overall resolution.
I used a good servo for the elevator but it just couldn't center well enough with the setup I had and it only
takes a hair of up or down elevator to make the plane respond.
So I tried a digital mini servo meant for R/C car steering. I noticed the difference immediately.
The servo centers so well that I'm not constantly bumping the stick to get the plane to stop moving in the last
direction I moved the elevator. In other words, if I gave "up" elevator and then released the stick the
plane would continue to climb slightly. Same for down elevator.
There are only two drawbacks to digital servos that I can see: price and current drain. Digital servos
cost more than traditional analog servos but I suspect the price will come down.
The current drain is higher because (as I understand it) there are more pulses to the servo to make it hold its
position. I don't think that's a bad thing because I have a good field charger so I can top off my batteries
every few flights. That means I don't need to put in a larger battery for planes that use
digital servos.
Torque
Torque is expressed in ounce-inches (oz/in). What it means is how much load
the servo can handle 1" from center.
For example, if a servo has a
42 oz/in rating, then the servo should be able to lift a 42 ounce weight
that is attached to the servo arm 1" from the center of the output
shaft without stalling. Servo stalling (not the same as aerodynamic
stalling) occurs when the load over-powers the servo.
Note that torque is linear. Using the same example of a
servo rated at 42 oz/in, if the weight is moved 2" from the output shaft, then the servo can only lift
21 ounces. If the weight is moved to 1/2" from the output shaft,
then the servo can handle 84 oz.
Speed
All else being equal, faster servos are better. Often
manufacturers make pairs of servos that have all the same parts inside and
are in the same cases. One is a high-torque servo and the other is a
fast servo.
The only difference is that the servo gears are arranged
differently. To make a servo faster (using the same parts) the
gearing is such that the servo is weaker.
Motor
Some servos have standard motors and others have coreless motors.
Coreless motor servos start and stop faster due to less mass in the motor.
A body in motion tends to remain in motion and one at rest tends to remain
at rest, yada, yada.
Coreless motor servos are better and also cost more.
Voltage
Traditional servos all work with 4.8 volt battery packs. Many
servos also work with 6 volt packs. Higher voltage equates to faster
servo movement and more power. It also means shorter servo life.
Size
Servos come in a variety of sizes. However, size is not always an
indicator of strength. For larger models, size is not much of an issue
as far as the servo fitting inside the airplane.
Conversely, small models often are limited for space and require small
servos. There are many choices of small servos available today so
finding one that will fit the application and be strong enough is not a
problem.
Weight
Weight is the arch-nemesis of model airplanes. All else being
equal, a lighter servo is better.
Gear Train
Servos can have either nylon or metal gears or a combination of both.
Nylon gears are lighter, smoother, quieter and maintain a good gear mesh
for a long time. Their disadvantage is they break or strip more
easily than metal gears.
Modern 3D planes can strip gears easily due to the forces fed to them
from extreme control throws.
Metal gears have the advantage of being stronger and that is about it.
They get sloppy due to wear much sooner than nylon gears do. They
are also much heavier and noisier.
Don't get stressed about gears. We have used nylon gears for a
long time with very few problems. Gears normally strip only because
the servo was abused somehow. Abuse is usually one of three things:
- Flutter
- Extreme control throws (3D capable aircraft)
- Crashes
Bearings
Better servos have one or two ball-bearing races supporting the output
shaft. The bearings reduce slop in the system as well as
battery-draining drag.
Bearings make the servo heavier, but it's usually worth it.
Compatibility
Not all servos are compatible with all manufacturers equipment.
Be sure to check that a servo will work with your radio before buying it.
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