How to use the MPU6050 with the Raspberry Pi 4

November 5, 2023

In this quick tutorial learn how to learn how to easily connect the MPU6050 Accelerometer with the Raspberry Pi to start getting readings in Python!

Where to Buy MPU6050:

ShillehTek: shillehtek.com

Amazon: Amazon Store ShillehTek

Code:

https://github.com/shillehbean/youtube-p2/blob/main/mpu6050_test.py

Library Link:

https://github.com/m-rtijn/mpu6050

Other MPU6050 Tutorials:

How to Calibrate:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xLHZEl0h10 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoNeIaXc0vs

How to Connect to Arduino: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkqZWeC_xCg

How to Connect to ESP32: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9e1Up7xHjc

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Step 1-) Enable I2C on the Raspberry Pi

You must enable I2C on the Pi manually by configuring it and rebooting the device.

Run this command in the command line:
sudo raspi-config

Select Interfacing Options > I2C.

Raspberry Pi Kernel I2C Interfacing options selection on Linux terminal

Select Yes when prompted to enable the I2C interface.

Raspberry Pi Kernel I2C Interfacing enabling options

Select Yes when prompted to automatically load the I2C kernel module.
Select Finish.
Select Yes when prompted to reboot.

You can also reboot by running 'sudo reboot' in the command line if you would like.

Step 2-) Physical Connection

Connect the MPU6050 respectively as shown in the diagram below. It must be pre-soldered; you can purchase MPU6050 pre-soldered at our Amazon Store in the link above!

Step 3-) Code

You will first need to install the respective library.

Run the following commands:

sudo apt install python3-smbus

pip install mpu6050-raspberrypi

This should be all you need to have the setup to run the code sample below.

https://github.com/shillehbean/youtube-p2/blob/main/mpu6050_test.py

I go through the code explanation in the video in more detail, but we simply create an MPU6050 object with the library and pull the values every second. You can use any editor to run the code. In my case I used Thonny.

Conclusion:

Hope this was quick and you got setup with ease. If you did, do not forget to subscribe to our channel and leave a comment. Also let us know if you ever have any questions. Thanks for following ShillehTek.