DC Motors vs Servos vs Steppers
How the three motor types work, what each is good at, how you control them and a simple guide to choosing the right one for your build.
→ wheels = DC, angles = servo, steps = stepper
section 4, the yellow band
Motors & Servos
DC motors, servos, steppers and the drivers that run them.
How to Control a Servo with Arduino
Wire an SG90 servo, move it with the Servo library, control it with a knob, sweep it smoothly and power larger servos without resetting your board.
→ board resets? servo needs its own supply
Why You Need a Motor Driver (L298N vs TB6612)
What an H-bridge does, why Arduino pins cannot drive motors directly, and how to wire and code the L298N and TB6612FNG drivers.
→ TB6612: don't forget STBY high
Driving a Stepper Motor with the A4988
Wire a NEMA 17 stepper to an A4988 driver, set the current limit safely, choose microstepping and move it precisely with Arduino code.
→ set Vref BEFORE connecting the motor
Controlling DC Motor Speed with a Transistor and PWM
Drive a small DC motor from an Arduino with a MOSFET or transistor, control its speed with PWM and protect the circuit with a flyback diode.
→ no flyback diode = dead transistor
Brushless Motors and ESCs Explained
How brushless DC motors work, what KV ratings mean, why you need an ESC, and how to arm and control one safely from an Arduino with the Servo library.
→ props off while you test code
Why Is My Servo Jittering? Causes and Fixes
The real reasons hobby servos twitch, buzz or reset an Arduino, from weak power and missing grounds to library conflicts, with a step-by-step checklist to fix each one.
→ 9 times out of 10 it's the power supply
28BYJ-48 Stepper Motor with ULN2003 and Arduino
How the cheap 28BYJ-48 geared stepper works, how many steps per revolution it really has, wiring the ULN2003 driver board, and code for both the Stepper and AccelStepper libraries.
→ 2048 steps per turn, and the pin order is 8, 10, 9, 11
How to Control a Solenoid with Arduino (MOSFET + Diode)
Drive push-pull solenoids and solenoid locks safely from an Arduino with a logic-level MOSFET and a flyback diode, plus the duty-cycle rule and a PWM hold trick to stop them overheating.
→ Never without the flyback diode
Control 16 Servos with a PCA9685 Driver and Arduino
Drive up to 16 servos from two Arduino pins with the PCA9685 I2C board. Wiring logic and servo power correctly, the Adafruit library, angle and microsecond code, calibration, and chaining boards.
→ VCC is logic, V+ is servo power. Never mix them up
How to Use the L293D Motor Shield with Arduino (4 DC Motors)
Drive up to four DC motors, two steppers or two servos with the popular L293D motor shield: power jumper explained, the AFMotor library, speed and direction code, and which pins stay free.
→ Remove the PWR jumper when motors have their own battery
SG90 vs MG996R Servo: Which One Do You Need?
A practical comparison of the SG90 micro servo and the MG996R metal-gear servo, with torque, speed, current and size side by side, a simple way to calculate the torque your project needs, and how to power each one.
→ torque = weight × arm length
DRV8833 Motor Driver: Small, Efficient Control for Two DC Motors
How to use the DRV8833 dual motor driver module with Arduino. Pinout, the sleep pin that stops most first attempts, the four control states, fast vs slow decay PWM, and why it beats the L298N for small battery-powered robots.
→ pull nSLEEP high or nothing moves