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Project Notes

#056 JoystickServoControl

Control two SG90 servos with a joystick.

Build

Here’s a quick demo:

JoystickServoControl

Notes

This is a demonstration of joystick control of two servos. This would be how you could setup pan/tilt control for example.

It’s a simple circuit:

  • two digital pins are used for PWM control signals to the servos.
  • two analog pins are used to read the X-Y joystick input

A separate power supply is used for the servo motors to ensure they get enough current and to avoid interference.

I’m using custom pulse width settings that I’ve found suit my particular servos best to give accurate 0-180 degree control. See the ServoTest project for more exploration of servo control and fine-tuning servo parameters.

Construction

The Breadboard

The Schematic

The Build

Credits and References

About LEAP#56 Human InputArduino
Project Source on GitHub Project Gallery Return to the LEAP Catalog

This page is a web-friendly rendering of my project notes shared in the LEAP GitHub repository.

LEAP is just my personal collection of projects. Two main themes have emerged in recent years, sometimes combined:

  • electronics - usually involving an Arduino or other microprocessor in one way or another. Some are full-blown projects, while many are trivial breadboard experiments, intended to learn and explore something interesting
  • scale modelling - I caught the bug after deciding to build a Harrier during covid to demonstrate an electronic jet engine simulation. Let the fun begin..
To be honest, I haven't quite figured out if these two interests belong in the same GitHub repo or not. But for now - they are all here!

Projects are often inspired by things found wild on the net, or ideas from the many great electronics and scale modelling podcasts and YouTube channels. Feel free to borrow liberally, and if you spot any issues do let me know (or send a PR!). See the individual projects for credits where due.