TECHNICAL SUPPORT
Published 2026-03-24
Have you also encountered this situation? I bought aservo, connected it to power, and found that it could only turn half a turn. I wanted to make a car or an automatic curtain, but it got stuck on the angle limit and was completely useless. In fact, what you need is not a standardservo, buta microservo 360, which is what we often call a 360-degree continuous rotating servo. The difference between it and ordinary servos is that it can continue to rotate without angle restrictions. It is especially suitable for wheels, winches or any project that requires continuous movement. Today we will talk about this little guy who looks like a "perpetual motion machine", how to use it, how to wire it, and what fun things it can make.
If you wantthe micro servo 360to rotate continuously, the key is to understand how it is different from the control signals of ordinary servos. Ordinary servos determine the angle by pulse width. For example, a 1.5ms pulse corresponds to the middle position, and 1ms and 2ms correspond to the left and right limits respectively. But the 360-degree servo is different. It changes the pulse width into speed control - it stops around 1.5ms, turns in one direction if it is less than 1.5ms, turns in the opposite direction if it exceeds 1.5ms, and the more the deviation, the faster it turns. So you only need to output a specific pulse signal to the PWM pin in or other controller, and it will continue to rotate.
The actual operation is very simple. Taking Uno as an example, you only need to call theServo.hlibrary, and then use the()function. Fill in 1500 to stop, fill in 1300 to turn forward, and fill in 1700 to turn reverse. If you want to adjust the speed, adjust the value to either side of 1500. The further away, the faster the speed. It's like stepping on the accelerator when driving a car. It will go as fast as you give it. However, please note that different brands ofmicro servo 360may have slight differences, and some stop points are not exactly 1500. You need to measure it to find its true "neutral" position.
You don’t have to worry about wiring.The micro servo 360is just like an ordinary servo, with only three wires - power, ground, and signal. Usually the brown or black one is the ground wire (GND), the red one is the positive pole of the power supply (VCC, usually 5V), and the orange or yellow one is the signal wire (PWM). You just need to connect these three wires to the controller: the red wire is connected to the 5V output, the brown wire is connected to GND, and the orange wire is connected to the PWM pin you defined. Be sure not to connect it backwards, otherwise the servo may not turn, or it may burn out.
Here is a small reminder. If you need to use several servos in your project, or the servos need to drive a relatively heavy load, it is best to power the servos separately. Do not take power directly from the 5V pin of the development board. Because the 5V output capability of the development board is limited, it can only provide one or two small servos. If there are more, it will be easy to reset or even burn the board. You can use a battery box or an adjustable power supply to power the servo, and then connect the negative pole of the power supply to the GND of the development board to ensure that the signal can be transmitted normally. In this way, yourmicro servo 360can run smoothly and safely.
Controlling the speed is actually simpler than you think, because the 360-degree servo turns angle control into speed control. You only need to change the degree of the pulse width from the stall point. For example, if you find that its stall point is 1500 microseconds, then 1550 microseconds is slow forward rotation, 1600 microseconds is medium speed, and 1700 microseconds is full speed. In turn, 1450, 1400, and 1300 are reversals of different speeds. You can use a variable in the program to dynamically adjust this value to achieve infinite speed adjustment from slow to fast.
There is a common misunderstanding that I would like to remind you. Many people find that setting the angle is useless when usingwrite()function. That is because the 360-degree servo does not recognize the angle command at all. You can only give the pulse width directly using(). If you want to achieve more precise speed control, such as letting the servo run according to the speed curve you set, you can combine the () function for timing and adjust the pulse width every tens of milliseconds, so that you can create a smooth acceleration and deceleration effect. Used on a robot car or gimbal, the experience will be greatly improved.
When it comes to projects,the micro servo 360is simply the universal part for makers. The most common application is to make a car chassis. You only need two servos and two wheels to make a differential steering car. It is easier than using a DC motor because it has its own drive circuit and does not need an additional motor drive board. It is small in size and light in weight, making it especially suitable for mini robots or teaching demonstrations. In the curriculum design of many university mechanical majors, students like to use it to make tracking cars or obstacle avoidance cars. It is low-cost and effective.
In addition to the car, it can also be used as an automatic feeder, a remote-controlled pan-tilt, an automatic curtain, a rotating base for a robotic arm, and can even be used as a dynamic component in art installations. For example, you can make a display stand that can rotate by itself, put the model on it, and it can be displayed 360 degrees without blind spots; or you can make an automatic flower waterer and let it rotate slowly to ensure that each pot of plants can receive even irrigation. As long as you need to "turn continuously" or "turn according to speed",micro servo 360can handle it, and it is very easy to control, eliminating the trouble of adjusting PID.
There are many models ofmicro servo 360on the market, the most common ones are SG90, MG90S, DS04-NB, etc. SG90 is a plastic gear with low torque but cheap, suitable for light load projects, such as small ornaments and toy cars. MG90S has metal teeth, which has greater torque and is more durable. It is suitable for places that require a little strength, such as robotic arms or hill-climbing cars. DS04-NB is a dedicated continuous rotation servo with better accuracy and stability. It is suitable for scenarios that require high speed consistency, such as automatic tracking gimbals.
When choosing a model, you must first think about how much torque, speed, and power supply voltage your project requires. Generally, small servos are powered by 5V, and the torque is between 1-2kg·cm. It is no problem to bring a mobile phone or a small camera, but it is more difficult to drive a metal arm or a large wheel. In addition, you have to pay attention to the installation dimensions. Although they are all called micro servo, the hole positions of different brands may be slightly different. It is best to confirm whether it can be directly installed on your bracket before buying. If you are really not sure, you can buy two common models and try them out first. They are not expensive anyway, and the cost of trial and error is very low.
When using a 360-degree servo, the most common problem encountered is "cannot turn". The reason is probably that the stop point is not found correctly. You can write a small program to let the servo slowly scan from 1400 to 1600 microseconds and observe the value near which it stops rotating. That value is your stopping point. Due to mechanical errors of some servos, the stopping point may not be strictly 1500, but 1490 or 1510. After finding it, subsequent control will be stable. Another common problem is servo jitter, usually due to unstable power supply or signal line interference. Adding a 100uF capacitor between the power supply and ground can improve it.
Some friends find that the servo can only turn in one direction, or the speed cannot be adjusted. At this time, it is necessary to check whether the pulse range is sufficient. The effective range of mostmicro servo 360is 1000-2000 microseconds, beyond which it may not respond or behave abnormally. Also, don’t forget that the 360-degree servo has no angle feedback function, so you can’t expect it to stop at a specific angle. It can only control direction and speed. If you need to accurately control the number of turns, you need to use an encoder or a limit switch, or directly switch to a servo motor with feedback.
Have you ever thought about usingmicro servo 360to make a remotely controlled pet feeder, or a solar charging stand that rotates by itself? Give it a try, start with a small project, and you will find that the fun of continuous rotation is far beyond your imagination. If you have better ideas, please share them in the comment area, and don’t forget to like and save them so that more people can see the great role of these small servos!
Update Time：2026-03-24
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