Basic question

can i hook a sensor output directly to a servo input to trigger the servo? Or do these things need a middleware controller like the arduino?

Sorry about the noob question

Hello.

Hobby servos require a specific kind of pulse input, so unless you have a very specialized kind of sensor specifically designed to output hobby RC servo pulses, you will need an intermediate device to interpret the sensor output and generate the appropriate servo signals. If your sensor outputs an analog voltage or a simple high/low signal, you might consider using one of our Micro Maestro servo controllers for this. If it has a more complex interface, such serial, PWM, or I2C, you would probably want to use a programmable microcontroller board, like an Arduino or Orangutan.

Jan’s Pololu blog has a number of posts about servos that you might find helpful.

- Ben

thanks for clearing that up!