Introduction to Bottango

Get started with Bottango – a visual tool for animating servos and bringing your robotic creations to life without writing code.

Bottango is a powerful and intuitive motion engine designed to let you animate servos and other actuators without writing any code. Whether you’re creating a robotic puppet, an animatronic character, or simply want to add motion to your DIY project, Bottango makes it easy to bring your ideas to life.

🛠️ What is Bottango?

Bottango (https://bottango.com) is a free application for Windows and Mac that connects to microcontroller boards like Arduino Uno or ESP32. It gives you a timeline-style editor, similar to animation software, where you can create precise servo movements, add events, and even sync animations to music.

Unlike traditional servo control that requires coding, Bottango provides a drag-and-drop interface and real-time playback, making it ideal for beginners and advanced makers alike.

✨ What You’ll Learn

In this course, you’ll learn how to:

• Install and set up Bottango on your computer
• Connect and configure supported microcontroller boards
• Wire up servos to create motion
• Design motion sequences using Bottango’s timeline editor
• Use triggers and external controls like gamepads
• Build interactive or synchronized performances

🔧 What You’ll Need

Here’s a list of recommended components to follow along with the course:

• A Windows or Mac computer
• A microcontroller (Arduino Uno, Nano, or ESP32)
• 1–3 SG90 or MG90S servos
• USB cable to connect your board
• External power supply (for more than 1 servo)
• Jumper wires and a breadboard (optional)

You’ll also need to download Bottango from the official site:

🔗 Download Bottango

🤖 Why Use Bottango?

Traditional servo control often requires you to:

• Write code
• Upload it to the board
• Recompile for every small change

With Bottango, you:

• Design and test motion in real-time
• Create fluid, lifelike movements
• Add interactivity without a single line of code

Let’s dive in and get your board talking to Bottango!

Next up: Installing Bottango

Next >