Self-balancing devices offer a unique combination of challenge and innovation. Then (mircemk)’s project caught our attention. Balancing cubes is not a new concept, Hackaday has published several over the years, and (mircemk) couldn’t help but be impressed. This design features a 3D printed cube that uses reaction wheels to balance itself. Utilizing gyro and accelerometer sensors, the device can adapt to changes in weight and maintain stability.
The core of this project employs an Arduino Nano microcontroller and an MPU6050 gyroscope/accelerometer to ensure precise control. Adding nuts and bolts to the reaction wheel adds weight and increases the effect on the cube’s balance. they have nothing. It just adds weight. The build includes multiple 3D printed components, including reaction wheels and various mounting plates, each of which takes several hours to manufacture. After assembly, users can fine-tune the device via Bluetooth, allowing for an easy calibration process to set the balance point.
If you want to see early examples of this kind, we featured other designs in 2010, 2013, and 2016. These always remind me of the Stewart platform, but they’re pretty much the same thing flipped.
