Tutorial 14 – Using a Motor Driver with Arduino

Welcome back to the CraftedTech Engineering Arduino tutorial series! In this tutorial, we’ll show you how to use an H-Bridge motor driver with Arduino to control motors in both directions. This opens up a world of possibilities, such as controlling robotic vehicles, automated systems, and much more.

🔌 What You’ll Need

  • 1 Arduino Board (e.g., Arduino UNO)
  • 1 H-Bridge Motor Driver (e.g., L298N)
  • 1 DC Motor
  • External power supply for the motor
  • Breadboard
  • Jumper wires
  • USB cable for Arduino

You can order the required components here:

🧠 What Is an H-Bridge Motor Driver?

An H-Bridge motor driver is a circuit that allows you to control the direction and speed of a DC motor. By switching the current’s direction through the motor, the motor can rotate forward or backward, making it ideal for controlling robotics or any system that requires bidirectional movement.

🧾 Step-by-Step Instructions

🔧 Step 1: Wiring the Motor Driver

  • Connect the VCC pin of the L298N motor driver to the 5V pin on the Arduino.
  • Connect the GND pin of the L298N to the GND pin on the Arduino.
  • Connect the IN1 and IN2 pins of the L298N to digital pins 9 and 10 on the Arduino (for controlling direction).
  • Connect the ENA pin to 5V (for enabling the motor driver).
  • Connect the OUT1 and OUT2 pins to the motor terminals.
  • Connect an external power supply (e.g., 9V battery) to the motor's power input on the L298N (if needed for higher voltage motors).

💻 Step 2: Arduino Code to Control the Motor

const int motorPin1 = 9; // IN1 pin connected to digital pin 9 const int motorPin2 = 10; // IN2 pin connected to digital pin 10 void setup() { pinMode(motorPin1, OUTPUT); // Set motor pins as outputs pinMode(motorPin2, OUTPUT); } void loop() { // Motor forward digitalWrite(motorPin1, HIGH); digitalWrite(motorPin2, LOW); delay(2000); // Motor runs forward for 2 seconds // Motor backward digitalWrite(motorPin1, LOW); digitalWrite(motorPin2, HIGH); delay(2000); // Motor runs backward for 2 seconds }

🔍 Code Breakdown

  • pinMode(): Configures the motor pins as outputs.
  • digitalWrite(): Controls the direction of the motor by setting the IN1 and IN2 pins.
  • delay(): Pauses the program for the specified amount of time, allowing the motor to run in one direction for 2 seconds before reversing.

🧪 Try This!

  • Change the delay() times to make the motor run for different durations in each direction.
  • Experiment with using PWM pins for controlling motor speed.

🛠️ Troubleshooting Tips

  • Ensure the motor power supply is sufficient for your motor.
  • Double-check the wiring, especially the connections to IN1 and IN2 pins.
  • If the motor doesn't move, check if the ENA pin is connected to 5V to enable the motor driver.

🧭 What You Learned in This Tutorial

✔️ How to wire and control a motor driver with Arduino
✔️ How to control the direction of a DC motor using an H-Bridge
✔️ How to reverse the motor direction programmatically
✔️ How to use digitalWrite() to control motor movement

📌 Next Up: Tutorial 15 – Controlling a Servo Motor with Arduino

In the next tutorial, we’ll show you how to control a servo motor using Arduino. Servos are great for precise angular movements, such as in robotic arms or automated doors.

📣 Don’t forget to follow CraftedTech Engineering for more hands-on tutorials and project ideas!

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