Making a DIY one wheel skateboard can be a confusing process, but only if you don’t have the directions to start. Here, you’ll read how to structure the main parts of your self-balancing, one-wheeled electric skateboard with creativity and functionality in mind.
Here are some parts that you’ll need to get started, courtesy of Instructables.com:
Control System
A control system with a development board. Instructables.com used an ATmega32 controller, which is from a series of Atmel processors called the AVR. The controller’s operating program, known as the “AVRStudio4”, has to be transferred from your PC to the microcontroller but can be found for free online in most places after a quick Google search.
After running the software from your PC, you can transfer it to the memory of your microprocessor.
Accelerometer and Gyroscope
You’ll need a solid state accelerometer to measure the speed of your skateboard, as well as a solid-state gyroscope to maintain balance. Instructables.com recommends the ADXL320 and ADXRS150, which can be found both as part of the IMU Combo Board, but he also used an Accelerometer Interface Board ADXL202JE and a Silicon Sensing Systems CRS-03 gyroscope.
Motor
Instructables.com used a 24 volt, 420-watt motor, which was cost efficient, yet saddled the board down due to too much weight.
Other motor options to consider are import options with a lighter weight but higher price. Or cheaper motors from China or the United Kingdom, which can be found on eBay or other marketplace sites like here.
Motor Controller
The motor controller receives signals from your microcontroller, then uses them for asserting control over the surge of power that is transmitting from the battery to the motor.
Your motor controller has to be durable and able to handle high currents. Instructables.com recommended to check out the websites for heavyweight combat robots to find a selection built to serve your skateboard needs, preferably one with extra circuits to prevent breaking and at an affordable price.
The Instructables.com selection was the OSMC, but your needs may vary, so consider researching additional motor controllers to find what suits you.
Sprocket
When you decide to purchase a motor, you’ll also need a sprocket, i.e., a wheel lined with teeth to connect a chain which is required to fit within the spindle of the motor. The fewer the teeth, the better, as fewer teeth will provide for a smoother internal movement.
Azusa engineering specializes in sprockets and spindles, with every size available in the building of your self-balancing one wheeled electric skateboard.
Sprocket for the Main Axel
Image via New Atlas
These big sprockets can be found in an online marketplace or sporting goods retail location, preferably those with large bike departments. The big sprocket fits into the main axel and can be bolted there with six bolts. The axels that support the sprockets should be selected in small diameters. Here’s an example of the Instructables.com big sprocket for the 219 chain.
Chain
Instructables.com used a 219 chain, which is a very thin size that is normally used in European go-karts. Though foreign, the 219 can be found in plentiful supply on eBay. These chains can be shortened at your local bike shop to fit you one-wheeled electric skateboard.
Wheel
One tip: Find the biggest rear wheel you can on eBay, Amazon, or other bike or go-kart shop in your community. The bigger, the better. But why? Large rear wheels help with stability of the skateboard itself and your balance when riding it. Most options can be found online, such as here and here.
Kart Axle
Kart axles can be purchased for around $40 online. The diameter of the kart axle isn’t very important, as long as it is designed to fit your diameter axel and serve as a hub for the wheel.
Bearings
Bearings are needed to support and connect to our axels, like those here.
Steel Paneling
You can hire machinist’s to help you copy cardboard templates for your steel. Or, if you want a more hands-on approach, you can visit your metal sheet supplier or metal fabrication business and buy up their old, discarded sheets. (Maybe they’ll give them to you for free.)
Take some of the home cuts with you and experiment on mocking up the frame of your self-balancing one-wheeled electric cardboard. When done, revisit that metal fabrication business and ask if they can make a copy of what you’ve done in sheet metal. Try to learn as much as you can if you decide to replicate the process in the future.
Batteries
Last but not least, the batteries. Instructables.com had lead-acid 12-volt batteries, powered by a 12 amp-hour. But you can arrange your combination to determine what works.
Buy or Create Your Own Today!
Self-balancing one wheeled electricity devices feel like a taste of the future, in the present. Although the price can be a major deal-breaker for most, affordable pre-owned options exist on eBay.
You can also use our guide, or other guides on the internet, to build your own. Regardless of your decision, the self-balancing one wheeled electric skateboard is riding on the innovation of the future, and you have multiple options to hop on!
Feature image via Refined Guy
