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SparkFun Triple Axis Accelerometer Breakout - ADXL337
The ADXL337 is a small, thin, low power, complete 3-axis accelerometer with signal conditioned analog voltage outputs that measures acceleration with a full-scale range of ±3g. This board has broken out all the pins you’ll need to get the necessary data from the accelerometers. The breakout is perfect for applications like, disk drive protection, game controllers, and image stabilization.
Getting the ADXL337 Breakout set-up is easy. Simply supply the accelerometer with power (3.3V and GND), then hookup the X, Y, and Z lines of the sensor to ADC pins on your chosen development board and you will be good to go. Bandwidths can even be selected to suit the needed application, with a range of 0.5 Hz to 1600 Hz for X and Y axes and a range of 0.5 Hz to 550 Hz for the Z axis.
It should be noted that this breakout has a maximum voltage of 3.6V. Fortunately, you won’t need a lot of power to make the accelerometers work. In normal operating mode they typically draw about 300 µA.
- Operating Voltage: 1.8V - 3.6V
- Typical Current: 300 μA
- Range: ±3g
- 3-axis sensing
- Bandwidth adjustment with a single capacitor per axis
- 1x Mounting Hole
- Schematic
- Eagle Files
- Hookup Guide
- Datasheet (ADXL337)
- GitHub (Design Files & Example Code)
- Product Video
SparkFun Triple Axis Accelerometer Breakout - ADXL337 Product Help and Resources
ADXL337 and ADXL377 Accelerometer Hookup Guide
July 17, 2014
How to get started using both the ADXL337 and ADXL377 3-axis accelerometers with analog outputs.
Low-G Acceleration Calibration
To calibrate low-G accelerometers, just use Earth’s gravity (1G) for each axis while the accelerometer is at rest. Make sure that each axis is perpendicular to the flat surface that you are using to calibrate the sensor.
Core Skill: Soldering
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Skill Level: Noob - Some basic soldering is required, but it is limited to a just a few pins, basic through-hole soldering, and couple (if any) polarized components. A basic soldering iron is all you should need.
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Core Skill: Programming
If a board needs code or communicates somehow, you're going to need to know how to program or interface with it. The programming skill is all about communication and code.
Skill Level: Competent - The toolchain for programming is a bit more complex and will examples may not be explicitly provided for you. You will be required to have a fundamental knowledge of programming and be required to provide your own code. You may need to modify existing libraries or code to work with your specific hardware. Sensor and hardware interfaces will be SPI or I2C.
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Core Skill: Electrical Prototyping
If it requires power, you need to know how much, what all the pins do, and how to hook it up. You may need to reference datasheets, schematics, and know the ins and outs of electronics.
Skill Level: Rookie - You may be required to know a bit more about the component, such as orientation, or how to hook it up, in addition to power requirements. You will need to understand polarized components.
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Customer Reviews
5 out of 5
Based on 1 ratings:
This guy works
I used this in a tilt-based toy and it was very easy to interface with. Very approachable, not as intimidating as an accelerometer might seem.
From the datasheet you can easily calibrate it to get decently accurate G values. From there I got angle data and used it for my project.
Cheap and effective. A little vulnerable to vibration so be sure to take an average of a few readings.
What is the difference between this and the ADXL335? Are they interchangeable? Thanks!
There are a few notable differences between this breakout board and SparkFun's ADXL335 breakout (SEN-09269), which should be kept in mind if using both types:
According to the Eagle files, this board measures 0.7x0.7"; the ADXL335 board measures 0.7x0.6".
One of the #4 mounting holes has been removed.
The axis orientation is different. ADXL335 = X axis points toward the pins, ADXL337 = Y axis points toward the pins (90 degrees CCW from ADXL335).
The ADXL335 breakout populates Cx/Cy/Cz with 0.1uF capacitors, resulting in a 50Hz bandwidth for each axis (as noted on the product page). According to the schematic for the ADXL337 version, Cx/Cy/Cz are 10nF. This sets bandwidth at 500Hz, which isn't mentioned here. (See the datasheet for details.)
I'm somewhat disappointed that this board doesn't match the ADXL335 form factor or bandwidth characteristics, when it could easily have been so. I use the ADXL335 boards in a custom-machined sensor probe, and these small differences make this board incompatible with my application.
Judging from the datasheets... yes and no. They're different size packages and different pinouts, so one is not a drop-in replacement for the other.
However, in terms of specifications, it looks like they are largely the same. The ADXL337 is lower power, but with a slightly higher noise density on X/Y. The performance characteristic charts are plotted on different scales and intervals (why, Analog? Whyyyyyyyy??) so not much use comparing those, though most of those relate highly to calibration and temperature fluctuation anyway (the 337 does seem to have quite different temperature sensitivity profiles compared to the 335, but it's rather marginal in both cases).
Edit: Oh, and in terms of the breakouts, much the same applies; the pins are broken out slightly different, but other than that.. if you previously used the ADXL335 breakout, you can use the ADXL337 breakout as a replacement.. just make sure you check those pins.