Nucleo Mechanism Control Board

[ahsrabrifat]

I came across this shared project: Nucleo Mechanism Control Board  (link below), which is designed to interface with an STM32 Nucleo board for controlling actuators (vacuum pump, air valve, stepper motor, AX-series actuator, servos).

https://www.pcbway.com/project/shareproject/Nucleo_Mechanism_Control_Board_b3dd524d.html

I have a few questions/suggestions and would appreciate any advice or feedback from people familiar with similar designs:

1. What would be the best practices for ensuring safe power regulation on this kind of board when driving mixed loads (vacuum pump + stepper + servos)?

2. Are there any considerations or potential pitfalls when routing signals and grounding for both high-current actuators and more delicate control signals in this layout?

3. For the stepper & AX-series actuator: would off-the-shelf driver modules be sufficient, or is there benefit in integrating custom driver circuitry (e.g. to improve motion smoothness, reduce noise, or increase reliability)?

4. If I want to extend this design to include feedback (e.g. encoders or sensors), what are some good ways to integrate those with STM32 Nucleo, especially for precise positioning?

Thanks for your input!

[Pavel A.]

While waiting for more helpful replies: note that Nucleo boards are not advised to serve as a part of any product. They are development and demo tools.