PCA9685 Servo Controller by Adafruit

If you’re building a robot or project with lots of servos (hexapods, animatronics, kinetic art, pan/tilt arrays, etc.), the PCA9685 makes it much easier. Instead of trying to plug many servos directly into an Arduino’s limited pins, the PCA9685 provides up to 16 servo outputs using a simple two‑wire connection (I2C) to the Arduino.

This setup is commonly used with Arduino boards that accept shields such as the Uno, Leonardo, Mega, or ADK. We recommend the Arduino Uno for beginners because it’s compact, inexpensive, and works great with ARC when loaded with the correct EZB firmware.

1. You load EZB firmware onto the Arduino.
   This turns the Arduino into a controller that ARC can talk to.
2. The Arduino talks to the PCA9685 board.
   The Arduino sends I2C commands (usually over pins SDA/SCL). The PCA9685 generates stable servo pulses for up to 16 channels.
3. ARC controls the servos.
   In ARC you add servo controls/scripts and ARC sends commands through the Arduino (EZB firmware) to the PCA9685 outputs.

• Servo power: Servos often need more power than USB can provide. In most builds you will use a separate 5–6V power supply for servos.
  Tip: Many servo issues (jittering, resetting, random movement) are power-related.
• Common ground: If you use a separate servo power supply, make sure the GND (ground) of the servo power supply is connected to the GND of the Arduino/PCA9685 system.
• Servo count: The PCA9685 provides 16 channels. You can often stack or chain boards in some setups, but start with one board until everything works.
• Firmware choice matters: Different firmware builds exist for different Arduino + PCA9685 configurations. If one firmware does not match your hardware layout, ARC may connect but servo channels may not respond as expected.

Choose one of the firmware packages below. If you’re unsure which one to use, start with the newest official-looking option first, then try the others if needed.

• ESP32Cam
  For ESP32 Camera
• Mickey's Firmware (Mar 4, 2019)
  Useful if you have a similar build to Mickey’s original shield-based configuration.
• EZ-Genuino_Uno_Adafruit_16_Servo_Shield.zip (Dec 11, 2022)
  Newer firmware option for Arduino Uno + Adafruit 16-Channel PWM/Servo Shield style setups.
• Miller's Generic PCA9685 EZB_UNO_PCA9685.zip
  Generic PCA9685 firmware option (often helpful for non-shield PCA9685 breakout boards).

After downloading the firmware, follow the step-by-step tutorial to install it on your Arduino: https://synthiam.com/Tutorial/17526