Read an MPU6050 over I2C

Steps

Screens captured against Wokwi ESP32 Compiled with arduino-cli 1.5.2-rc.1 for esp32 core 3.3.11; booted headlessly with wokwi-cli 0.26.1 on 2026-09-07; serial line 'Ax=0.000 g, Ay=0.000 g, Az=1.000 g' seen at 7.268 s (wall time from CLI start; scenario timeout 20 s simulated time); captured in the Wokwi web editor on 2026-09-09 on 2026-09-06; the tool may have moved on — the text steps are the contract.

1. 1 Step 1

   Do

   In the Simulation panel, inspect the MPU6050 wiring after pasting both supplied files.

   You will see

   The MPU6050 has power and ground connections, with SDA on ESP32 pin 21 and SCL on pin 22.

   Why it matters

   The MPU6050 combines an accelerometer and gyroscope on one I2C chip. Following its wires connects the motion readings to the interface carrying them.

2. 2 Step 2

   Do

   In the sketch.ino editor tab, find the address 0x68 and the acceleration divisions by 16384.0.

   You will see

   The code requests six acceleration bytes and divides each signed axis value by 16384.0 to print g units.

   Why it matters

   The chapter maps 1 g to 16,384 counts at the ±2 g setting. Keeping the range and scale together prevents a wrong conversion.

3. 3 Step 3

   Do

   In the Simulation toolbar, click the play button and wait for compilation.

   You will see

   The timer starts and the Serial Monitor prints Wake status=0 (0 means ACK).

   Why it matters

   The startup acknowledgement checks communication before you interpret motion. It does not establish the bias, scale, or calibration of a physical sensor.

4. 4 Step 4

   Do

   In the Serial Monitor panel, compare Ax, Ay, and Az with the expected stationary readings.

   You will see

   The Serial Monitor shows Ax=0.000 g, Ay=0.000 g, Az=1.000 g about every 500 ms.

   Why it matters

   At rest, horizontal axes read near zero while the vertical axis shows gravity. This is the chapter’s starting prediction for orientation checks.

5. 5 Step 5

   Do

   In the Simulation panel, select the MPU6050 and set X acceleration to 0.5 g.

   You will see

   The next readings show Ax=0.500 g, Ay=0.000 g, Az=1.000 g.

   Why it matters

   Changing one axis tests whether its label matches the reported value. The chapter asks you to predict the sign before reading the sensor.

6. 6 Step 6

   Do

   In the MPU6050 control panel, set Z acceleration to 0 g.

   You will see

   The next readings show Ax=0.500 g, Ay=0.000 g, Az=0.000 g.

   Why it matters

   These controls supply model inputs rather than a physical board movement. A real motion test must compare the readings with the action actually made.

7. 7 Step 7

   Do

   In the MPU6050 control panel, restore X acceleration to 0 g and Z acceleration to 1 g.

   You will see

   The Serial Monitor returns to Ax=0.000 g, Ay=0.000 g, Az=1.000 g.

   Why it matters

   Returning to the still state gives a repeat check. The chapter also repeats this test after power loss to reveal an old offset.