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Self balancing robot

K0nradG·self-balancing-robot·Schematic/Schematic.kicad_pcb

Self balancing robot PCB layout, top view — open source Nordic nRF board by K0nradG

About the Self balancing robot PCB

Self balancing robot is an open source Nordic nRF PCB design by K0nradG, published on GitHub under the Apache-2.0 license. It is a 2-layer board measuring 139.7 × 114.3 mm, with 16 components from 11 distinct parts.

Its main chip is the NRF52840-DONGLE, from the Nordic nRF family. Other key parts include the LM1117DT-3.3 and YAAJ_DCDC_StepDown_LM2596. By type, the board carries 5 resistors, 3 ICs, 3 connectors, 2 capacitors and 1 switch.

It belongs with the iot & wireless, robotics & motion and sensors designs in this gallery.

From the project

Self-balancing robot powered by nRF52840 and Zephyr RTOS, with BLE control, OTA updates, and a Raspberry Pi camera interface designed for future autonomous navigation.

This project is licensed under the CERN Open Hardware Licence Version 2 - Permissive (CERN-OHL-P).

The license covers all design files in this directory, including: Electronics: KiCad schematics, PCB layouts, and libraries. Mechanics: Physical case design (Fusion 360 files in the robot-case directory).

Copyright © 2026 Dymczyk Filip and Konrad Grucel

To generate new Gerber files after making changes to the schematic, follow this guide.

Self balancing robot, from the project README
From the project README

Main components on the Self balancing robot

NRF52840-DONGLELM1117DT-3.3YAAJ_DCDC_StepDown_LM2596

Self balancing robot bill of materials (BOM)

16 components, 11 distinct parts.

QtyPartRefs
1
NRF52840-DONGLE
U1
1
LM1117DT-3.3
U3
1
YAAJ_DCDC_StepDown_LM2596
U4
1
S2B-PH-K-S_LF__SN_
J1
2
282837-2
P1, P2
1
GY-521
ACC1
1
1101M2S3CQE2
S1
1
POLOLU-713
TB1
2
100uF
C1, C3
3
100k
R1, R2, R3
2
10kR
R4, R5

Self balancing robot design files

The KiCad project lives in the K0nradG/self-balancing-robot repository on GitHub; these links point at the commit this page was built from.

Self balancing robot: common questions

What microcontroller does the Self balancing robot use?

The Self balancing robot is built around the NRF52840-DONGLE, from the Nordic nRF family.

How big is the Self balancing robot PCB?

The Self balancing robot measures 139.7 × 114.3 mm, has 2 copper layers and is 1.6 mm thick.

How many components are on the Self balancing robot?

16 components, from 11 distinct parts. The full bill of materials is listed on this page.

Where can I download the Self balancing robot design files?

From the K0nradG/self-balancing-robot repository on GitHub, which has the KiCad layout and the schematic; the links under Design files point to each one.

Can I use the Self balancing robot design in my own project?

Yes, under the terms of its Apache-2.0 license, which K0nradG chose for the repository.

Can I test firmware for the Self balancing robot without the hardware?

Yes. HardLabs builds a simulation of the board from its netlist and BOM, so you can run and debug Nordic nRF firmware against it before you order a PCB.

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