The HW-130 Motor Control Shield is a high-power driver designed to sit directly on an Arduino Uno or Mega. It is based on the L293D dual H-bridge chipset, which is capable of driving various inductive loads like DC motors, steppers, and servos. ⚙️ Technical Specifications
The shield integrates two L293D chips and one 74HC595 shift register to minimize the number of Arduino pins used.
Motor Channels: 4 H-Bridges (can drive 4 DC motors or 2 Stepper motors).
Voltage Range: 4.5V to 25V (supports up to 36V in some chip variants). Current Output: 600mA per channel (1.2A peak).
Servo Support: 2 dedicated 3-pin headers connected to Arduino’s high-resolution timers (Pins 9 and 10).
Thermal Protection: Automatic shutdown if the chip overheats. 🔌 Pinout & Connections
The shield uses a serial-to-parallel latch (74HC595) to control motor directions using only a few digital pins. Arduino Pins Used DC Motor 1 / Stepper 1 Digital 11 Speed / Activation DC Motor 2 / Stepper 1 Speed / Activation DC Motor 3 / Stepper 2 Speed / Activation DC Motor 4 / Stepper 2 Speed / Activation Servo 1 Signal Control Servo 2 Digital 10 Signal Control Shift Register 4, 7, 8, 12 Directional Control
Note: Digital pins 2 and 13, and all Analog pins (A0-A5), are typically left unused and can be used for sensors. 🔋 Power Management There are two main ways to power your setup: hw 130 motor control shield for arduino datasheet free
Shared Power: Keep the Power Jumper installed. Power supplied to the Arduino (via DC jack) will also power the motors. Warning: This can cause resets if motors pull too much current.
Separate Power (Recommended): Remove the Power Jumper. Connect an external battery/supply (up to 25V) to the EXT_PWR terminal blocks. This keeps motor noise away from the Arduino logic. 🛠️ Getting Started (Code)
To use this shield, you must install the AFMotor library (Adafruit Motor Shield V1 library). Simple DC Motor Example: Controlling 12V DC Motors with L293D | PDF - Scribd
HW-130 Motor Control Shield for Arduino is a widely available "plug-and-play" driver shield based on the L293D chipset
. It is essentially a clone of the original Adafruit Motor Shield (v1) and is designed to drive DC, stepper, and servo motors simultaneously. Technical Specifications Driver Chips
: Two L293D dual H-bridge motor drivers and one 74HC595 shift register. Output Channels 4 bi-directional DC motors with individual 8-bit speed selection. 2 stepper motors (unipolar or bipolar). 2 dedicated headers
for 5V "hobby" servos connected to the Arduino's high-resolution timers. Current Limits The HW-130 Motor Control Shield is a high-power
: 0.6A per bridge (1.2A peak) with thermal shutdown protection. Voltage Range : Motor supply voltage from 4.5V to 25V (though many variants are rated up to 12V-16V for safety). Dimensions : Approximately 69mm x 53mm. 5.imimg.com Pinout and Connectivity
The shield uses a shift register to save Arduino pins, requiring only a few digital pins to control all 8 H-bridge directions. Arduino Pins Used Digital Pin 9 Digital Pin 10 DC Motors / Steppers Digital Pins 4, 7, 8, and 12 (via 74HC595) PWM (Speed Control) Pins 11 (M1), 3 (M2), 5 (M3), 6 (M4) Unused/Free Pins Digital Pin 2, Pin 13, and Analog Pins A0–A5 Power Management The HW-130 features a power jumper
(often labeled PWR_SEL) that determines how the board and Arduino are powered: Jumper Connected
: The Arduino and motors share the same power source (usually via the Arduino DC jack). Jumper Removed
: The motors are powered by an external source connected to the
terminal, while the Arduino is powered separately via USB or its own DC jack.
Note: Using a 9V battery is generally discouraged as it cannot provide enough current for most motors. Software Support To use this shield, you must install the Adafruit Motor Shield library (v1) , which can be found in the Arduino Library Manager by searching for "Adafruit Motor Shield library". to test a DC motor with this shield? L293D Based Arduino Motor Shield On-board 5V regulator – can power the Arduino’s
| Parameter | Value | | :--- | :--- | | Driver Chip | L298P (Dual Full-Bridge Driver) | | Operating Voltage (Logic) | 5V (Supplied by Arduino) | | Operating Voltage (Motor) | 6V – 12V (Recommended), Max 25V | | Output Current (Per Channel) | 0.5A – 1A (Nominal), Max 2A (Peak) | | Control Logic Voltage | 5V Compatible | | Thermal Protection | Built-in Heat Sink | | Dimensions | Standard Arduino Shield Size |
Unlike the generic L293D, the HW 130 shield includes onboard power regulation, status LEDs, and logic-level converters.
| Parameter | Value | | :--- | :--- | | Driver IC | L293D (x1) | | Logic Voltage | 5V (from Arduino) | | Motor Supply (VS) | 4.5V – 36V DC (External terminal) | | Max Continuous Current per channel | 600 mA | | Peak Current (per channel) | 1.2 A (for ~100ms) | | Max Total Current (all motors) | 1.2 A | | PWM Frequency Range | 0 – 5 kHz (optimal) | | Thermal Shutdown | Yes (at ~150°C) | | Flyback Diodes | Integrated (inside L293D) | | Board Size | 68.6mm x 53.3mm (Uno R3 footprint) |
The HW-130 is a dual H-Bridge motor driver shield designed for Arduino Uno, Mega, and compatible development boards. It is based on the popular L298P driver IC. This shield allows users to drive two DC motors or one stepper motor with ease, featuring built-in current sensing and heat sinks for improved thermal performance.
The L298P is a "low efficiency" driver compared to modern MOSFET drivers. It dissipates heat to control speed. If you require higher efficiency or are using 3.3V logic boards (like the ESP32), this shield may not
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