Getting Started

Wire up the ODrive

Hardware Requirements

Warning

Please note that ODrive Pro and ODrive Micro do not include a built-in brake resistor feature. For regenerative braking (needed for most applications), you can use the Regen Clamp or a battery.

  • A brushless motor. See also ODrive Motors.

  • An encoder, unless using sensorless mode.

  • A >12V power supply or battery. Make sure you are within the voltage rating of your ODrive (58V for Pro, 50V for S1, 30V for Micro). Some advice on choosing a power supply can be found here.

Connections

Warning

USB and DC power may only be used together if you have a USB isolator on each ODrive. Make sure to avoid a ground loop! See the ground loop page for details.

  1. Connect (screw terminals or solder) the motor phases to A/B/C (Pro, S1, Micro).

  2. If the motor has a thermistor, connect it to THERMISTOR+ and THERMISTOR- (Pro, S1, Micro).

  3. Solder the power supply cables onto the solder pads that are labelled +/-.

  4. If using an encoder, connect it to the corresponding I/O connector.

Note

Please see the datasheet pinout (Pro, S1, Micro) for important information about pin functionality and specifications.

../_images/pro_pinout.png

Click for full Pro datasheet pinout.

Safety & Power Up

Warning

Always think safety before powering up the ODrive if a motor is attached. Consider what might happen if the motor spins as soon as power is applied.

If possible, connect the power source first and then turn it on to avoid inrush current. If this can’t be avoided then a small spark is normal when plugging in the power connector, this is caused by the capacitors charging up. To avoid this issue we recommend using a dedicated soft-start circuit, or an anti-spark connector.

Status LED

The current status of the ODrive can be observed by the color the LED:

  • blue/teal: The ODrive is idle. It will not move, and has no errors.

  • green: The ODrive is active and running.

  • red: An error has occurred and the ODrive is disabled. Please refer to the troubleshooting page for more information.

Connecting to the ODrive

Configuring the ODrive requires a USB connection to a computer. For interfacing, you can choose between our web GUI or our Python based command line utility odrivetool.

Important

You cannot use odrivetool and the GUI at the same time, if either say Could not claim interface make sure the other is closed and try again.

Next Steps

Please follow the GUI Wizard, or continue to odrivetool Setup to configure your device.