Products for USB Sensing and Control
Accelerometers are the quintessential motion sensor, from robotics to motion capture. The Accelerometer Phidget measures up to ±8g (or 78.5 m/s²) in each axis, which is more than you'll ever produce in most ordinary applications. The MOT1100 connects to a port on a VINT Hub. See the Comaptible Products tab for a list of hubs.
The most common use for an accelerometer is to measure the movement of an object, such as a person or robotic vehicle. You can compare the acceleration values on each axis to determine the direction and strength of the acceleration, and in some situations, even estimate velocity and position. An accelerometer could also be used to detect vibration. For example, mounted to a walking surface, it could be used to record the footsteps of a person walking or running. Another common way to use an accelerometer is as a tilt sensor. When mounted on a stationary object, an accelerometer will measure ≈1g downward (due to the earth's gravity). If the object is tilted, the angle of this 1g acceleration will change and this change can be measured.
The Accelerometer Phidget works best in applications that care mostly about the direction and approximate strength of movement. If you need more precise measurements, have a look at the Other Accelerometers tab for more appropriate options.
This Phidget is a smart device that must be controlled by a VINT Hub. For more information about VINT, have a look at the VINT Primer. You can use a Phidget Cable to simply and easily connect the two devices. Here's a list of all of the different VINT Hubs currently available:
Use a Phidget cable to connect this device to the hub. You can solder multiple cables together in order to make even longer Phidget cables, but you should be aware of the effects of having long wires in your system.
Welcome to the MOT1100 user guide! In order to get started, make sure you have the following hardware on hand:
Next, you will need to connect the pieces:
In order to demonstrate the functionality of the MOT1100, the Phidget Control Panel running on a Windows machine will be used.
The Phidget Control Panel is available for use on both macOS and Windows machines.
To open the Phidget Control Panel on Windows, find the 
icon in the taskbar. If it is not there, open up the start menu and search for Phidget Control Panel
To open the Phidget Control Panel on macOS, open Finder and navigate to the Phidget Control Panel in the Applications list. Double click on the icon to bring up the Phidget Control Panel.
For more information, take a look at the getting started guide for your operating system:
Linux users can follow the getting started with Linux guide and continue reading here for more information about the MOT1100.
After plugging the MOT1100 into your computer and opening the Phidget Control Panel, you will see something like this:
The Phidget Control Panel will list all connected Phidgets and associated objects, as well as the following information:
The Phidget Control Panel can also be used to test your device. Double-clicking on an object will open an example.
Double-click on the Accelerometer object "Accelerometer Phidget" in order to run the example:
General information about the selected object will be displayed at the top of the window. You can also experiment with the following functionality:
Before you can access the device in your own code, and from our examples, you'll need to take note of the addressing parameters for your Phidget. These will indicate how the Phidget is physically connected to your application. For simplicity, these parameters can be found by clicking the button at the top of the Control Panel example for that Phidget.
In the Addressing Information window, the section above the line displays information you will need to connect to your Phidget from any application. In particular, note the Channel Class field as this will be the API you will need to use with your Phidget, and the type of example you should use to get started with it. The section below the line provides information about the network the Phidget is connected on if it is attached remotely. Keep track of these parameters moving forward, as you will need them once you start running our examples or your own code.
You are now ready to start writing your own code for the device. The best way to do that is to start from our examples:
This Phidget is compatible with the Accelerometer Examples.
Once you have your example, you will need to follow the instructions on the page for your programming language to get it running. To find these instructions, select your programming language from the Software Overview page.
The current consumption of this device depends on what the data interval is set to.
For more information on how to use an accelerometer, have a look at the Accelerometer Primer.
| Board Properties | |
|---|---|
| Controlled By | VINT |
| Accelerometer | |
| Acceleration Measurement Max | ± 8 g |
| Acceleration Measurement Resolution | 1 mg |
| Accelerometer Noise | ± 5 mg |
| Sampling Interval Min | 20 ms/sample |
| Sampling Interval Max | 60 s/sample |
| Electrical Properties | |
| Current Consumption Max | * 2.3 mA |
| Current Consumption Min | 319 μA |
| Physical Properties | |
| Operating Temperature Min | -40 °C |
| Operating Temperature Max | 85 °C |
* - Current consumption varies depending on selected data interval. See the technical section of the User Guide for details.
| Channel Name | API | Channel |
|---|---|---|
| 3-Axis Accelerometer | Accelerometer | 0 |
| API | Detail | Language | OS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accelerometer | C | Multiple | Download | |
| Accelerometer | C# | Windows | Download | |
| Accelerometer | Java | Multiple | Download | |
| Accelerometer | Java | Android | Download | |
| Accelerometer | JavaScript | Nodejs | Download | |
| Accelerometer | JavaScript | Browser | Download | |
| Accelerometer | Objective-C | macOS | Download | |
| Accelerometer | Swift | macOS | Download | |
| Accelerometer | Swift | iOS | Download | |
| Accelerometer | Python | Multiple | Download | |
| Accelerometer | Visual Basic .NET | Windows | Download | |
| Accelerometer | Max/MSP | Multiple | Download |
| Date | Board Revision | Device Version | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 2018 | 0 | 201 | Product Release |
| January 2018 | 0 | 202 | Fixed issue occurring when DataInterval is set before Enable |
| Product | Accelerometer | Gyroscope | Magnetometer | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | Part Number | Price | Acceleration Measurement Max | Acceleration Measurement Resolution | Gyroscope Speed Max | Gyroscope Resolution | Magnetometer Resolution | Magnetic Field Max |
 |
1041_0B | $40.00 | ± 8 g | 976.7 μg | — | — | — | — |
 |
1042_0B | $70.00 | ± 8 g | 976.7 μg | ± 2000°/s | 0.07°/s | 3 mG | 5.5 G |
 |
1043_0B | $80.00 | ± 2 g | 76.3 μg | — | — | — | — |
 |
1044_0B | $140.00 | ± 2 g | 76.3 μg | — | — | 3 mG | 5.5 G |
 |
MOT1100_0 | $20.00 | ± 8 g | 1 mg | — | — | — | — |
 |
MOT1101_0 | $30.00 | ± 8 g | 1 mg | ± 2000°/s | * 0.07°/s | 300 μG | ± 8 G |
