I am developing a Ballbot (robot balancing on a ball) and I've tried every recommended IMU under $50 (6050, BNO055/BNO080, ITG3200/ADXL345), with good, but not great results. I need more precision/accuracy in the <1 degree range.
Can anyone recommend a higher precision/accuracy IMU that isn't $500? Surely a <$200 IMU exists that is at least twice or three times as good as the $20 hobby IMUs?
My searching in that price range brings up mostly multi function (flight controller) boards and its tough to determine if the IMU sensor itself is really any better than the stand alone ones.
Most cheaper IMUs are not very accurate under 1 degree and are lucky to get a consistent and accurate 0.1 degree of sensitivity. While it is highly possible that my control loop and backlash needs to be dialed in, I would rather start with the best sensor possible for the money.
I disagree that MEMS is the wrong tech. The tactical grade IMU-P is a MEMS IMU with a pitch/roll accuracy of 0.05 degrees, but is upwards of $2,000
The VN-100 IMU/AHRS is a MEMS device that also has a tilt accuracy of 0.05 degrees, but costs $800. This one is used by the Rezero ballbot by the way.
Surely a consistently accurate 0.1 degree or slightly better IMU is available for much cheaper.
Surely a consistently accurate 0.1 degree or slightly better IMU is available for much cheaper.
You can do that with cheap IMUs but extremely careful calibration and lots of averaging is required. This probably makes it too slow for your application.
However, as many, many people have demonstrated over the last couple of decades, no balance bot requires that level of accuracy. Good software and mechanical design and construction are far more important.
It was no big deal lending you a hand. For future questions of such nature, what I did was to type the word "IMU" into a internet search engine. Looking at the results, I selected the Amazon link and looked through 3 pages of stuff, finding a few of the low high end models, I then selected one and pasted the info in a message to you. Hopefully, my hint on how to do a bit of research can be useful in the future.
Another helpful hint is to, before buying a product, look at the Datasheet of the device and get the register information. You will find that when going off the beaten path you may have to do your own programming just to communicate with the device and if there is not a register datasheet available, good luck.
Idahowalker:
It was no big deal lending you a hand. For future questions of such nature, what I did was to type the word "IMU" into a internet search engine. Looking at the results, I selected the Amazon link and looked through 3 pages of stuff, finding a few of the low high end models, I then selected one and pasted the info in a message to you. Hopefully, my hint on how to do a bit of research can be useful in the future.
Another helpful hint is to, before buying a product, look at the Datasheet of the device and get the register information. You will find that when going off the beaten path you may have to do your own programming just to communicate with the device and if there is not a register datasheet available, good luck.
I appreciate the help. To be honest, I had already searched Amazon and Google many times and did find those IMUs, the problem is that almost none of them have any reviews and could be of poor quality. The main purpose of my post was to hope that someone had some first hand knowledge of what i would consider "mid-range" IMUs.