Hi,
I have been trying to run the following code on my balboa. However, one of the motors doesn’t run at all and the other one runs only in a single direction. I am using fresh batteries.
Code:
#include <Balboa32U4.h>
#include <Wire.h>
Balboa32U4Motors motors;
Balboa32U4ButtonA buttonA;
void setup() {
Wire.begin();
buttonA.waitForButton();
delay(1000);
}
void loop() {
motors.setSpeeds(-100, -100);
delay(2000)
motors.setSpeeds(100,100);
delay(2000)
}
Link for video
Hello.
I cannot access your video; can you change the sharing settings for it?
Is this your first attempt at using the motors on your Balboa robot, or were they working before and just started showing this new behavior? Can you use a multimeter to check if the voltage output is present at the motor terminals? (You might need to temporarily remove the encoder magnet discs to access that easily.)
- Patrick
Hi Patrick,
This is a new behavior observed. The motors were fine before. The terminals of the motor that doesn’t run read 0 V. The other one reads 0.73 V.
The video is accessible
I noticed that the program you posted will not compile as it is written; it is missing some semicolons after the delay commands. Can you confirm that is the program you actually have uploaded to your Balboa and also try the MotorTest example program from the Balboa 32U4 Arduino library?
Something else that’s not adding up is your motor voltage measurement. Your program suggests you are driving the motors at 25% duty cycle, but if you were measuring 0.73V on the working motor, then that indicates that your battery voltage is only around 3V. Could you double check that you are using fully charged batteries? One way you could check your Balboa’s overall supply voltage would be to probe between VSW and GND on your board.
Additionally, can you post some close up pictures of the Baloba control board without the Raspberry Pi installed so we can inspect the surface-mount components?
- Patrick
Hello Patrick,
The MotorTest example behaves in a similar manner. The right motor runs slowly in only one direction while the left doesn’t run at all. The VSW reads 7.79 V. The code on balboa is given below:
#include <Balboa32U4.h>
#include <Wire.h>
Balboa32U4Motors motors;
Balboa32U4ButtonA buttonA;
void setup() {
Wire.begin();
buttonA.waitForButton();
delay(1000);
}
void loop() {
motors.setSpeeds(-100, -100);
delay(2000);
motors.setSpeeds(100,100);
delay(2000);
}
Unfortunately, it is starting to appear like there might be something wrong with the motor drivers on your Balboa control board. Can you email us at support@pololu.com with your order information and a reference to this thread?
- Patrick
