Servos are tiny motors that you can control the position of by generating a special signal.  You might use a servo to move something back and forth, like moving a dial to indicate a measurement or even moving a latch to open and close a door.  There are even special 'continuous rotation' servos that can act like little motors with control over their speed and direction--perfect for building a simple robot!  The possibilities for movement with servos are unlimited! 

This guide will explore how to control servo motors from CircuitPython and Python code.  You can use simple Python code to move a servo to different positions.  You can even use the CircuitPython REPL to move a servo interactively!

In addition this guide will also show basic servo control with Arduino code too!

Familiarization

Before you get started it will help to familiarize yourself with servos by reading these guides:

Using Servos with the Adafruit CRICKIT Board

If you are using an Adafruit Circuit Playground Express, Adafruit Feather, BBC micro:bit or Raspberry Pi, you can control servos, motors, and more using the Adafruit CRICKIT add-on board. 

CRICKIT has four ports for plugging in servo motors.

For more information on using CRICKIT and servos, see the following guide:

This guide was first published on Jan 15, 2018. It was last updated on Mar 18, 2024.

This page (Overview) was last updated on Mar 08, 2024.

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