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MPU6050 IMU Sensor

A 6-axis motion tracking device that combines a 3-axis gyroscope and a 3-axis accelerometer on the same silicon die.

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MPU-6050

The MPU6050 tracks linear acceleration and angular velocity. The on-board Digital Motion Processor (DMP) can fuse this data to provide precise roll, pitch, and yaw angles. In OpenHW Studio, the sensor features a Live Data HUD where you can manipulate forces and orientation in real-time.

SensorsIMUI2C

Overview

IMU stands for Inertial Measurement Unit. The MPU6050 measures acceleration in three axes (X, Y, Z) and rotation (gyroscope) in three axes (roll, pitch, yaw). It communicates using the I2C protocol, meaning it only requires two data pins.

Pin Reference

Pin	Type	Description
VCC	power	Power supply (3.3V or 5V; breakout board has a regulator).
GND	power	Ground. Connect to Arduino GND.
SCL	input	I2C Clock. Connect to Arduino A5 (or dedicated SCL).
SDA	input	I2C Data. Connect to Arduino A4 (or dedicated SDA).
XDA	input	Auxiliary I2C Data (used to connect an external magnetometer).
XCL	input	Auxiliary I2C Clock.
AD0	input	I2C Address Select. LOW = 0x68 (Default). HIGH = 0x69.
INT	output	Interrupt pin. Used when DMP data is ready (optional).

Configurable Attributes

Attribute	Type	Default	Description
accelX	number	0	Initial acceleration in the X axis.
accelY	number	0	Initial acceleration in the Y axis.
accelZ	number	1	Initial acceleration in the Z axis (gravity).
gyroX	number	0	Initial rotation in the X axis.
gyroY	number	0	Initial rotation in the Y axis.
gyroZ	number	0	Initial rotation in the Z axis.
temperature	number	25	Initial temperature in Celsius.

Wiring Diagram (Arduino Uno)

1. Connect VCC to Arduino 5V.
2. Connect GND to Arduino GND.
3. Connect SDA to Arduino A4.
4. Connect SCL to Arduino A5.

Example Arduino Code

Install the Adafruit_MPU6050 library via the Library Manager before running this sketch.

#include <Adafruit_MPU6050.h>
#include <Adafruit_Sensor.h>
#include <Wire.h>

Adafruit_MPU6050 mpu;

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(115200);
  
  if (!mpu.begin()) {
    Serial.println("Failed to find MPU6050 chip");
    while (1) {
      delay(10);
    }
  }
  
  Serial.println("MPU6050 Found!");
  
  // Basic configuration
  mpu.setAccelerometerRange(MPU6050_RANGE_8_G);
  mpu.setGyroRange(MPU6050_RANGE_500_DEG);
  mpu.setFilterBandwidth(MPU6050_BAND_21_HZ);
}

void loop() {
  /* Get new sensor events with the readings */
  sensors_event_t a, g, temp;
  mpu.getEvent(&a, &g, &temp);

  /* Print out the values */
  Serial.print("Acceleration X: ");
  Serial.print(a.acceleration.x);
  Serial.print(", Y: ");
  Serial.print(a.acceleration.y);
  Serial.print(", Z: ");
  Serial.print(a.acceleration.z);
  Serial.println(" m/s^2");

  Serial.print("Rotation X: ");
  Serial.print(g.gyro.x);
  Serial.print(", Y: ");
  Serial.print(g.gyro.y);
  Serial.print(", Z: ");
  Serial.print(g.gyro.z);
  Serial.println(" rad/s");

  Serial.print("Temperature: ");
  Serial.print(temp.temperature);
  Serial.println(" degC");
  
  Serial.println("");
  delay(500);
}

Simulation Notes

• In the simulator, right-click on the MPU6050 module to open its interactive 3D control panel. This allows you to smoothly adjust pitch, roll, and yaw during runtime to test your code's response to movement.

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