Balancing bot using ADXRS150 gyro

Robotics

Gareth Branwyn is a freelance writer and the former Editorial Director of Maker Media. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books on technology, DIY, and geek culture. He is currently a contributor to Boing Boing, Wink Books, and Wink Fun. His free weekly-ish maker tips newsletter can be found at garstipsandtools.com.

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August 28th, 2008 2

Via HackedGadgets comes this promising-looking self-balancing robot, still a work in progress:

Woohoo! I now have an Analog Devices ADXRS150 gyro on a Sparkfun breakout board (left). That, in combination with my Dimension Engineering DE-ACCM3D accelerometer, should get this thing balancing once I get the software squared away. After playing with it for a while I moved the gyro down to the centerline of the axles where I believe I’ll get the best response from it. The gyro is ultra sensitive and really “locks” the tilt attitude of the robot. You can feel it trying to keep the robot’s tilt right where it is. But it drifts, as all gyros do and pretty soon the bot is leaning way over.

Balancing Robot #2

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