Hello - this is our first post.
We are trying to get Project 05 - Mood Cue - from the Starter Kit working.
We are almost there however the servo motor is not spinning and making a clicking noise.
The Serial Monitor is showing variable pot and angle values but no activity on the servo.
Anything we can do here or do we most likely have a broken servo ?
Anything we can do here
Start by posting your code but please see Read this before posting a programming question and follow the advice given.
How is the servo powered ?
The code is the standard code from the project p05-ServMoodIndicator - it is follows:
/*
Arduino Starter Kit example
Project 5 - Servo Mood Indicator
This sketch is written to accompany Project 5 in the Arduino Starter Kit
Parts required:
- servo motor
- 10 kilohm potentiometer
- two 100 uF electrolytic capacitors
created 13 Sep 2012
by Scott Fitzgerald
http://www.arduino.cc/starterKit
This example code is part of the public domain.
*/
// include the Servo library
#include <Servo.h>
Servo myServo; // create a servo object
int const potPin = A0; // analog pin used to connect the potentiometer
int potVal; // variable to read the value from the analog pin
int angle; // variable to hold the angle for the servo motor
void setup() {
myServo.attach(9); // attaches the servo on pin 9 to the servo object
Serial.begin(9600); // open a serial connection to your computer
}
void loop() {
potVal = analogRead(potPin); // read the value of the potentiometer
// print out the value to the Serial Monitor
Serial.print("potVal: ");
Serial.print(potVal);
// scale the numbers from the pot
angle = map(potVal, 0, 1023, 0, 179);
// print out the angle for the servo motor
Serial.print(", angle: ");
Serial.println(angle);
// set the servo position
myServo.write(angle);
// wait for the servo to get there
delay(60);
}
The servo is powered through the USB cable from my laptop (which is plugged in to power)
Thanks !
Check the wiring to the servo. Exactly how is it connected to the Arduino and power ?
We fixed it! The capacitor was badly connected 
Thanks for you help!
What is the purpose of the capacitor and how is it connected to the circuit ?
The servo is powered through the USB cable from my laptop (which is plugged in to power)
I don't understand what you have said. Is the servo getting its current via the Arduino ?
Correct - the servo is receiving power via Arduino. The Arduino is powered via USB,
Does the Sweep example work correctly ?