Chapter 5. Arduino in motion
This chapter covers
- Connecting to small DC motors
- Reverse and speed control of DC motors
- Stepper motors
- Servomotors
- Brushless motors
- Using a purpose-designed motor shield
Earlier chapters provided you with a strong foundation for using the Arduino to communicate in the digital and analog worlds. You’ve built and developed a small number of projects from start to finish that have demonstrated these principles. You’ve also explored how to use libraries and shields to extend the basic functionality of the Arduino and enable it to work with an increasingly wide range of devices.
It’s now time to consider the ways that the Arduino can be used in your own projects, whether it’s a tweeting bread oven, an internet remote-controlled robot, or an automatic cat door. This and successive chapters will give you the tools and techniques to achieve these goals.
Starting with this chapter, you’re going to look at ways of adding mobility to a project. You’ll examine different ways of controlling a variety of off-the-shelf motors or motors you may already have. Perhaps you have an old junk printer that can be stripped for its stepper motors, or old toys powered by small DC motors; these are all motors you can use!