Lens Motor Control

Supported Lens Motors

Tilta Nucleus-M Motors

Cheap, entry-level option
Can trigger camera start/stop

No position feedback
No status feedback
Tuned for hand operation

Requirements

12-24V DC Power supply 5-10A
IO Builder Tilta Nucleus-M EtherCAT Control Box or DIY UDP/TTL Serial Gateway

CMotion CForce Motors

High torque option available (CForce Plus)
Medium-frequency position feedback
Status feedback

Expensive
Additional adapter is required (ARRI LCUBE)
Tuned for hand operation

Requirements

24V DC Power supply 5-10A
ARRI LCUBE CUB-1
IO Builder CForce EtherCAT Control Box or DIY UDP/RS232 Gateway
LCUBE IO Builder Cable

IO Builder Universal Lens Motor Driver

High torque options available
High-frequency control and feedback
Extensive status and calibration feedback
Fully customizable tuning and parameters

Expensive
Factory motor cables cannot be used, requires custom-made cabling for different motors

Requirements

24V DC Power Supply 5-10A
ARRI CLM3 / ARRI CLM4 / Hedén Motors
Other motors might be compatible, that have
Incremental Encoder Interface (5V, GND, A, B) and
Motor Winding Inputs (+, -)

EtherCAT Option

EtherCAT Option (with Additional EtherCAT Slaves)

If you plan to expand the network by adding more slaves, incorporating EtherCAT Junctions into the system is recommended to simplify the cabling process.

Example EtherCAT Junction Devices:

DIY Option

The user can create a custom solution that can be connected through the IP network. IO Builder has a Custom Lens Motor node developed for the purpose.

DIY Option Protocol Guide

This guide explains how to communicate between the IO Builder software and an external device (called "your box") to control camera lens features like Focus, Iris, and Zoom (FIZ). We use UDP, a way to send and receive messages, for this communication.

UDP Port: The external device should wait for messages from IO Builder on an arbitrary port (for example, port 10000).
Message Format: Messages between IO Builder and the external device are written in text/json format.

⬇️ From IO Builder to Your Box: IO Builder sends instructions like this

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{
  "f": 0.0,   // Focus target 
  "i": 0.0,   // Iris target
  "z": 0.0,   // Zoom target
  "f_cal": false, //Focus Calibration Request
  "i_cal": false, //Iris Calibration Request
  "z_cal": false  //Zoom Calibration Request
}

Target Values (f, i, z): (Percentage, 0 - 100.0 float; any negative value should disable the corresponding motor (removing power from the motor))
Calibration Request (f_cal, i_cal, z_cal): Start calibration on rising edge (true)

⬆️ From Your Box to IO Builder: After getting a message, reply to IO Builder with this format to the source UDP port:

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{
  "f": 0.0,   // Actual focus position
  "i": 0.0,   // Actual iris position
  "z": 0.0,   // Actual zoom position
  "f_stat": 0, // Focus status
  "i_stat": 0, // Iris status
  "z_stat": 0  // Zoom status
}

Actual position: (Percentage, 0-100.0 float)
Calibration status (f_stat, i_stat, z_stat):

Status	Value
Offline	0
Uncalibrated	1
Calibration in progress	2
Calibrated, ready	3

Immediate response with the current status after receiving a control packet ensures a reliable feedback loop, enabling IO Builder to adjust commands based on real-time lens positions and calibration status.