Make your own remote-controlled, two-wheeled car. It can be used in a wide variety of projects!
- Material List
- Safety First
- Part 1: Program the remote control and the robot (20 minutes)
- CAR Code (receiver)
- REMOTE Code (transmitter)
- Part 2: Wire the motors, battery and brain (20 minutes)
- 1) Motors
- 2) Power
- 3) Brain
- Part 3: Test and orient the motors (10 minutes)
- Part 4: Put your chassis together (30 minutes)
Make a remote-controlled car using simple materials and electronics!
Material List
Safety First
Risk of Fire: Short Circuits
Incorrectly connecting components to a power supply may cause overheating and lead to damaged equipment, serious burns or fires. Always double check your circuit before connecting it to power. If you’re not sure, ask a friend or educator to check as well.
Part 1: Program the remote control and the robot (20 minutes)
For this part, you will need a laptop, a micro USB cable, and 2 micro:bits.
CAR Code (receiver)
Code: [start here] https://makecode.microbit.org/S12691-45637-03585-97953
The receiver code goes on the car. It listens for new values from the controller (transmitter), and updates the motor speeds.
REMOTE Code (transmitter)
Code: [start here]
https://makecode.microbit.org/S89420-92623-09825-74154
The transmitter code goes on the controller. It senses the controller’s tilt using an accelerometer and uses this to decide how to spin the motors. It then sends this information to the car (receiver).
Part 2: Wire the motors, battery and brain (20 minutes)
1) Motors
Grab a pair of motors. We often use a yellow hobby motor called TT Motors.
Connect motor wires to the motor terminals.
Black goes to M-
Red goes to M+
Repeat for the second motor.
2) Power
Time to connect a power source to the motor:bit. This could be a battery, a connector, or even a wall wart!
Connect the red wire to VIN.
Connect the black wire to GND.
3) Brain
Last but not least, it’s time for the micro:bit! The micro:bit serves as the “brain” for the motor:bit and tells the motors how to move.
Plug the micro:bit into the wide grey slot. Look at the picture here to make sure it is facing the correct direction!
Part 3: Test and orient the motors (10 minutes)
Now it’s time to test out the code and make sure our motors are spinning in the correct direction. Below is a graphic explaining how to test your wiring and get the motors spinning in the correct direction:
Tilt the controller forward.
Both motors should spin forward.
Tilt the controller back.
Both motors should spin backward.
Tilt the controller to the left.
The left motor should spin backward.
The right motor should spin forward
Tilt the controller to the right.
The left motor should spin forward.
The right motor should spin backward.
Part 4: Put your chassis together (30 minutes)
Use cardboard to create a body for your RC car, and use mounting tape or hot glue to attach the motors. The most important thing to remember is that you want most of the weight over the wheels. Why do you think that is?
