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HardFOC driver

DYNAMIXEL Driver

A C++17 driver for ROBOTIS DYNAMIXEL X-series smart servos over Protocol 2.0. It pings and identifies servos, sets the operating mode, commands position, velocity and PWM, reads telemetry and runs sync reads and writes, on any MCU with a half-duplex UART.

Quickstart API guide Source on GitHub

The driver has no platform code. You give it a small class that writes and reads bytes on a UART and tells the time; it does the rest: Protocol 2.0 packets and CRC (through the official ROBOTIS SDK), reply timeouts, local-echo handling, the X-series control table and error mapping.

Smart servo actuators, Protocol 2.0 DYNAMIXEL X-series ROBOTIS
Servos
XC430-W150 (validated), XC430-W240, XL430-W250, XM430-W210 / W350, XH430-W210 / W350, other X-series by fallback
Bus
Half-duplex TTL (3-pin) or RS-485 (4-pin) multidrop, 8 data bits, no parity, 1 stop bit
Speed
9600 bit/s to 4.5 Mbit/s; factory default 57600 bit/s
Addressing
IDs 0 to 252, factory ID 1; broadcast ID 254 (0xFE)
Supply (servo)
XC430-W150: 6.5 V to 14.8 V, 12 V recommended; XM430-W350: 10.0 V to 14.8 V
Modes the driver uses
Position, extended position, velocity, PWM; current is a raw register write

XC430-W150 e-Manual · XM430-W350 e-Manual · Protocol 2.0

What you get

  • A bus and a device. dynamixel::Bus owns one serial line; dynamixel::Device is one servo on it, with typed calls for torque, mode, goals and telemetry. See API guide.
  • Model-aware. Identify() pings the servo and binds its control table from a catalog of seven X-series models, or a shared X-series fallback. See Model support.
  • The official protocol engine. Packets, CRC and sync instructions come from the ROBOTIS DYNAMIXEL SDK 4.1.0, hidden behind the public headers. See SDK integration.
  • Results you can act on. Every call returns a DriverResult with a DriverError and the raw SDK and device codes; a write whose reply was lost is UncertainOutcome, not a silent failure. See API guide.
  • Any half-duplex wiring. Direction buffer, auto-direction transceiver or single wire with local echo: the transport decides, the driver never touches a pin. See Porting.
  • Safe by construction. No constructor opens the UART, enables torque or moves a servo. See Quickstart.
  • Tested without hardware. Host tests run the real SDK against a scripted transport. See Testing and CI.

Where to go next

  • Quickstart

    Wire a servo, write the transport, read it in about 20 lines.

  • Hardware

    Connectors, half-duplex wiring, bus settings and power.

  • Architecture

    The three layers and what each one owns.

  • API guide

    Identify, configure, move, read and handle errors, task by task.

  • Porting

    Implement the transport for your MCU.

  • API reference

    Every class and member, generated from the headers.