Connecting a Wii Nunchuck to an Arduino?

So I need to do this for a school project, and I thought, simple enough right? I was wrong. So I've looked around a bit and found some code but each one I try to use has some different problems. I'm not really smart enough to look at the code and figure it out, and the program doesn't highlight the errors like it does in other sketches. Please help! Here's the code I'm trying to use right now, when I try to compile it it says it has a problem compiling for arduino/genuino uno. I'm using a sparkfun redboard, and so far everything else has worked fine.

/*
 * Nunchuck -- Use a Wii Nunchuck
 * Tim Hirzel http://www.growdown.com
 * 
 notes on Wii Nunchuck Behavior.
 This library provides an improved derivation of rotation angles from the nunchuck accelerometer data.
 The biggest different over existing libraries (that I know of ) is the full 360 degrees of Roll data
 from teh combination of the x and z axis accelerometer data using the math library atan2. 

 It is accurate with 360 degrees of roll (rotation around axis coming out of the c button, the front of the wii),
 and about 180 degrees of pitch (rotation about the axis coming out of the side of the wii).  (read more below)

 In terms of mapping the wii position to angles, its important to note that while the Nunchuck
 sense Pitch, and Roll, it does not sense Yaw, or the compass direction.  This creates an important
 disparity where the nunchuck only works within one hemisphere.  At a result, when the pitch values are 
 less than about 10, and greater than about 170, the Roll data gets very unstable.  essentially, the roll
 data flips over 180 degrees very quickly.   To understand this property better, rotate the wii around the
 axis of the joystick.  You see the sensor data stays constant (with noise).  Because of this, it cant know
 the difference between arriving upside via 180 degree Roll, or 180 degree pitch.  It just assumes its always
 180 roll.


 * 
 * This file is an adaptation of the code by these authors:
 * Tod E. Kurt, http://todbot.com/blog/
 *
 * The Wii Nunchuck reading code is taken from Windmeadow Labs
 * http://www.windmeadow.com/node/42
 * 
 * Conversion to Arduino 1.0 by Danjovic
 * http://hotbit.blogspot.com 
 * 
 */

#ifndef WiiChuck_h
#define WiiChuck_h


#include "Arduino.h"
#include <Wire.h>
#include <math.h>


// these may need to be adjusted for each nunchuck for calibration
#define ZEROX 510  
#define ZEROY 490
#define ZEROZ 460
#define RADIUS 210  // probably pretty universal

#define DEFAULT_ZERO_JOY_X 124
#define DEFAULT_ZERO_JOY_Y 132



class WiiChuck {
    private:
        uint8_t cnt;
        uint8_t status[6];              // array to store wiichuck output
        uint8_t averageCounter;
        //int accelArray[3][AVERAGE_N];  // X,Y,Z
        int i;
        int total;
        uint8_t zeroJoyX;   // these are about where mine are
        uint8_t zeroJoyY; // use calibrateJoy when the stick is at zero to correct
        int lastJoyX;
        int lastJoyY;
        int angles[3];

        bool lastZ, lastC;


    public:

        uint8_t joyX;
        uint8_t joyY;
        bool buttonZ;
        bool buttonC;
        void begin() 
        {
            Wire.begin();
            cnt = 0;
            averageCounter = 0;
            // instead of the common 0x40 -> 0x00 initialization, we
            // use 0xF0 -> 0x55 followed by 0xFB -> 0x00.
            // this lets us use 3rd party nunchucks (like cheap $4 ebay ones)
            // while still letting us use official oness.
            // only side effect is that we no longer need to decode bytes in _nunchuk_decode_byte
            // see http://forum.arduino.cc/index.php?topic=45924#msg333160
            //  
            Wire.beginTransmission(0x52);       // device address
            Wire.write(0xF0);
            Wire.write(0x55);
            Wire.endTransmission();
            delay(1);
            Wire.beginTransmission(0x52);
            Wire.write(0xFB);
            Wire.write((uint8_t)0x00);

            Wire.endTransmission();
            update();            
            for (i = 0; i<3;i++) {
                angles[i] = 0;
            }
            zeroJoyX = DEFAULT_ZERO_JOY_X;
            zeroJoyY = DEFAULT_ZERO_JOY_Y;
        }


        void calibrateJoy() {
            zeroJoyX = joyX;
            zeroJoyY = joyY;
        }

        void update() {

            Wire.requestFrom (0x52, 6); // request data from nunchuck
            while (Wire.available ()) {
                // receive byte as an integer
                status[cnt] = _nunchuk_decode_byte (Wire.read()); //
                cnt++;
            }
            if (cnt > 5) {
                lastZ = buttonZ;
                lastC = buttonC;
                lastJoyX = readJoyX();
                lastJoyY = readJoyY();
                //averageCounter ++;
                //if (averageCounter >= AVERAGE_N)
                //    averageCounter = 0;

                cnt = 0;
                joyX = (status[0]);
                joyY = (status[1]);
                for (i = 0; i < 3; i++) 
                    //accelArray[i][averageCounter] = ((int)status[i+2] << 2) + ((status[5] & (B00000011 << ((i+1)*2) ) >> ((i+1)*2))); 
                    angles[i] = (status[i+2] << 2) + ((status[5] & (B00000011 << ((i+1)*2) ) >> ((i+1)*2))); 

                //accelYArray[averageCounter] = ((int)status[3] << 2) + ((status[5] & B00110000) >> 4); 
                //accelZArray[averageCounter] = ((int)status[4] << 2) + ((status[5] & B11000000) >> 6); 

                buttonZ = !( status[5] & B00000001);
                buttonC = !((status[5] & B00000010) >> 1);
                _send_zero(); // send the request for next bytes

            }
        }


    // UNCOMMENT FOR DEBUGGING
    //byte * getStatus() {
    //    return status;
    //}

    float readAccelX() {
       // total = 0; // accelArray[xyz][averageCounter] * FAST_WEIGHT;
        return (float)angles[0] - ZEROX;
    }
    float readAccelY() {
        // total = 0; // accelArray[xyz][averageCounter] * FAST_WEIGHT;
        return (float)angles[1] - ZEROY;
    }
    float readAccelZ() {
        // total = 0; // accelArray[xyz][averageCounter] * FAST_WEIGHT;
        return (float)angles[2] - ZEROZ;
    }

    bool zPressed() {
        return (buttonZ && ! lastZ);
    }
    bool cPressed() {
        return (buttonC && ! lastC);
    }

    // for using the joystick like a directional button
    bool rightJoy(int thresh=60) {
        return (readJoyX() > thresh and lastJoyX <= thresh);
    }

    // for using the joystick like a directional button
    bool leftJoy(int thresh=60) {
        return (readJoyX() < -thresh and lastJoyX >= -thresh);
    }


    int readJoyX() {
        return (int) joyX - zeroJoyX;
    }

    int readJoyY() {
        return (int)joyY - zeroJoyY;
    }


    // R, the radius, generally hovers around 210 (at least it does with mine)
   // int R() {
   //     return sqrt(readAccelX() * readAccelX() +readAccelY() * readAccelY() + readAccelZ() * readAccelZ());  
   // }


    // returns roll degrees
    int readRoll() {
        return (int)(atan2(readAccelX(),readAccelZ())/ M_PI * 180.0);
    }

    // returns pitch in degrees
    int readPitch() {        
        return (int) (acos(readAccelY()/RADIUS)/ M_PI * 180.0);  // optionally swap 'RADIUS' for 'R()'
    }

    private:
        uint8_t _nunchuk_decode_byte (uint8_t x)
        {
            //decode is only necessary with certain initializations 
            //x = (x ^ 0x17) + 0x17;
            return x;
        }

        void _send_zero()
        {
            Wire.beginTransmission (0x52);      // transmit to device 0x52
            Wire.write ((uint8_t)0x00);         // sends one byte
            Wire.endTransmission ();    // stop transmitting
        }

};

#endif

You seem to have posted the .h header file from a library for accessing the Nunchuck but not posted a sketch that uses it and possibly not the .cpp file that goes with the header

And you think, an error is an error? No need to post it?

Sorry, here's the error:

Arduino: 1.6.8 (Windows 10), Board: "Arduino/Genuino Uno"

C:\Users\Mark\AppData\Local\Temp\buildafa7b3e467a9123c8d711c3ce711d2d9.tmp/core\core.a(main.cpp.o): In function `main':

C:\Program Files (x86)\Arduino\hardware\arduino\avr\cores\arduino/main.cpp:43: undefined reference to `setup'

C:\Program Files (x86)\Arduino\hardware\arduino\avr\cores\arduino/main.cpp:46: undefined reference to `loop'

collect2.exe: error: ld returned 1 exit status

exit status 1
Error compiling for board Arduino/Genuino Uno.

This report would have more information with
"Show verbose output during compilation"
option enabled in File -> Preferences.

Would you like the verbose version, or is that enough?

Maybe try a better tutorial than the one you got the library from.

Maybe this one Wii Nunchuck Arduino Tutorial - Oscar Liang

If the code from you first post is the only code you try then yeah, it's not going to work. That code is part of a library which you load and use in you own code. On it's own it does nothing at all. So indeed, get yourself some tutorials about Arduino and Wii Numchuck but also about Arduino and libraries in general.

Thanks for the help, problem solved. I just had no idea how to use libraries, or even what they were. I feel pretty stupid, but I got it to work just now :slight_smile: Sorry for the trouble.

Dashiva:
Thanks for the help, problem solved. I just had no idea how to use libraries, or even what they were. I feel pretty stupid, but I got it to work just now :slight_smile: Sorry for the trouble.

We all have to start somewhere and new things can even trip up old timers. :slight_smile: