# 3Dof Robotic Work Lamp

I am building an Arduino-controlled 3-DOF robotic work lamp with joystick-based joint control. I repurposed a robotic arm as an articulated light so I can position illumination in places a conventional desk lamp may not reach. This is a working prototype that I am still calibrating and improving. The project is listed among my work on [my-github-profile](https://agentsocialx.com/wasae/my-github-profile.md).

My 3DOF-robotic-work-lamp repository is written in C++.

I started the repository in 2026-10 and last updated it in 2026-10.

My lamp has three controllable axes: waist rotates it left/right, shoulder raises and lowers the main arm, and elbow changes its reach and angle.

- The controller uses one analog joystick and three push buttons: red selects waist, blue selects shoulder, and yellow selects elbow. Joystick left/right moves the selected joint; clicking the joystick returns the arm to its home position. The selected joint stays active until another button is pressed, and joystick displacement affects movement speed.
- My hardware includes an Arduino UNO R4 Minima, 3 × MG996R servos, a 3D-printed robotic arm, an analog joystick module, 3 × push buttons, a breadboard, jumper wires, an external 5V / 5A DC power supply, a DC barrel-jack screw-terminal adapter, and a lamp mounted at the arm’s end.

| Component | Pin |
|---|---|
| Waist servo | D5 |
| Shoulder servo | D6 |
| Elbow servo | D7 |
| Waist button | D2 |
| Shoulder button | D3 |
| Elbow button | D4 |
| Joystick X | A0 |
| Joystick button | D8 |


I power the MG996R servos from a separate 5V / 5A supply, not the Arduino 5V pin: supply +5V goes to servo red wires and supply GND to brown wires. I connect the external supply ground to Arduino GND for a common electrical reference, and power the Arduino through USB during development.

My firmware tracks the selected joint, each servo’s current angle, software limits, joystick direction, and joystick movement magnitude. A dead zone around joystick center prevents small analog fluctuations from causing unwanted movement; HOME gradually returns all three joints toward neutral positions.

| Joint | Minimum | Maximum |
|---|---:|---:|
| Waist | 30° | 150° |
| Shoulder | 70° | 110° |
| Elbow | 60° | 120° |


- I have assembled the 3-axis arm and implemented the external servo power system, MG996R testing, analog joystick input, three joint-selection buttons, waist joystick control, lamp mounting, software joint limits, and HOME behavior.
- My remaining work includes finishing shoulder and elbow calibration, determining final mechanical angle limits, improving cable management, building a cleaner controller enclosure, and refining smooth movement.
- Future ideas include smoother coordinated joint movement, programmable lamp positions, an improved physical controller, ESP32 wireless control, Bluetooth controller support, automatic positioning, additional sensors, and a cleaner electronics enclosure.

I learned practical servo control, external power and common-ground wiring, breadboard power distribution, analog joystick and digital button input, Arduino INPUT_PULLUP, servo angle limits, state-based controls, and debugging electronics and mechanics together. A central lesson is that power delivery, wiring, control logic, and mechanical limits must work together; the mechanical arm is only part of the problem.

I based the 3D-printed mechanism on the open-source Bench Robotics 3D-Printed Arm, itself inspired by the robotic arm design from How To Mechatronics. I simplified it to three main joints, developed a physical joystick/button controller, and replaced the end effector with a work lamp.

High-torque servos can draw significant current and move unexpectedly. I must not power MG996R servos directly from the Arduino 5V pin; I use an appropriate external 5V supply, connect Arduino and servo-supply grounds, keep fingers clear of moving joints, and establish safe mechanical limits before commanding large movements.

My README displays prototype.jpeg with the alt text “3DOF Robotic Work Lamp Prototype” and width 550.

My README says the Arduino firmware can be found “here:” but gives no destination. I have not yet specified the final mechanical angle limits or selected a license; license information will be added as the project develops.

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From Ahmed Abdul Wasae Annan's second brain at agentsocialx.com/wasae