DC Motor
A DC motor converts electrical energy into continuous rotation.
Part images
What it is
A DC motor converts electrical energy into continuous rotation.
How students use it
Students use it for fans, wheels, pumps, and motion projects. The Pico controls a driver chip or transistor; the motor current does not come directly from GPIO.
Pins and power
Two motor terminals. Reversing polarity reverses rotation direction when the driver circuit supports it.
SunFounder identifies this as a 3V DC motor with 1-6V operation range, 70mA free-run current at 3V, 13000RPM free-run speed at 3V, 800mA stall current at 3V, and 2mm shaft diameter.
A bare DC motor has no signal pin. Use a motor driver such as TA6586 for direction control and safe current handling.
Voltage and safety
Motor startup and stall current can be much higher than free-run current. Do not power a motor from a Pico GPIO pin.
Keep fingers, hair, wires, and loose parts away from a spinning shaft or fan. Stop if the motor, driver, or power wires heat up.
Module internals
Permanent magnet/stator, rotor/armature, brushes, commutator, shaft, and winding.
Datasheet notes
SunFounder gives the key kit motor specs but not a manufacturer model number. Stall current is the number students should respect most when choosing a driver or power source.
Common libraries
Use machine.Pin for direction inputs through a driver and machine.PWM if speed control is taught.
Common mistakes
Driving the motor directly from GPIO, ignoring stall current, forgetting flyback/driver protection, missing common ground, and using weak USB power for a motor load.