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Instructions
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Warning: Double check to make sure your wires are in the right place, as placing the wires incorrectly may cause the Servo to break.

 

  1. Insert the white wire into the white wire socket of the standard Servo.

  2. Insert the red wire into the red wire socket of the standard Servo.

  3. Insert the black wire into the black wire socket of the standard Servo.

 

STEM Connections

The red and black wires will create a circuit for electric current to flow through the Servo and provide the energy for movement. The white wire will send signals to the Servo with instructions about how and when to move.

Electrical wires are often color coded like this, as color coding wires minimizes mistakes. In electronics, red is typically used for the positive terminal of the power source, black is typically used for the negative terminal of the power source (or ground, GND), and white is typically used for wires that will send signals to components in the circuit.

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Implementation
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At the Thinkabit Lab, in the spirit of making the experience fun, we like to be dramatic about this step and pretend the students had no idea that red goes to red, black goes to black, and white goes to white by saying “Did YOU know that this red wire goes into the… wait for it… the opening for the red wire?”

  • Technically the color of the wires doesn’t have any electrical difference, but color coding wires minimizes mistakes. In electronics, red typically means the positive side of power and black typically means the negative side power.

 

If you are using the Thinkabit Lab Notebook:
 

There is no need to write down this step in the notebook.  The spaces at the bottom of page 15 will be used to note the placement of the wires into the Arduino board.

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Troubleshooting
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The wires keep falling out of the Servo connector

  1. Try holding the wires with your fingers for experimenting and use tape for your final project

  2. If bent, try straightening the wire with your fingers so the wire goes in further and the red and black wire do not touch.

  3. Or, try a different Servo

  4. Check that you are using solid 22-gauge wire.

Instruction Category
Video