Home Test Station

Hello,

I have a slc 5/04 with analog in/out and an encoder card with encoder, along with some digital ins/outs. I have a fairly heafty 24vdc supply and a 5vdc supply.
I would like to make up a small test station. I'm not sure what I want to build yet, but I'm thinking of something like a small robotic arm or possibly a little cutoff simulator.
Notice I mean small.

If I could put a 480 3 phase drive and a 5 horse motor on my dining room table, I don't think I'd even have a question, that is what I am familiar with. But I have NO IDEA how to go about obtaining a motor/drive setup for what I want to do, which is build something small.

Just for clarity, I want to build a little mechanical device that I can set on a table in my apartment that uses some analog and an encoder, without having a big monstrosity sitting around when company comes.

If I only had a garage...

Any ideas about what to build or specifically what to use would be appreciated.

Thanks

Blue,

I would look at small DC motors, like those from toy cars, trains, and planes. Your 5 vdc power supply could handle those. Use relay outputs for control, and you may can rig up a variable voltage output to vary the speed of the dc motors.