When it comes to tech, sometimes it’s just more fun to build the gadget yourself — and what better tool could you ask for than the Raspberry Pi? Maker and developer Orhan Günsal apparently had the same thought when devising this Raspberry Pi-powered hoverboard project. Not only is it Pi-powered, but it’s got additional features that take it to the next level with wireless support.
This hoverboard is fitted with four wheels, each controlled by the Raspberry Pi using 250-watt motors. In a demo video of the project shared by Günsal, he shows off the mobility of his custom Pi-powered hoverboard using a web interface with a few pre-programmed control options.
Günsal is no stranger to do-it-yourself tech projects — he has a fun history of old projects posted to his YouTube channel featuring various motorized mechanisms, some with GUIs much like the one used in this hoverboard creation. It should come as no surprise that he’s managed to channel those previous experiences into the hoverboard setup we’re admiring today.
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The main driver behind this project is a Raspberry Pi 3B but you could easily swap it out for a Pi 4 if that’s what you’ve got on hand. It’s connected to four 250-watt motors, each of which is connected to a single wheel. The UI is configured to manipulate these wheels to move the rig forward, backward, and spin in different directions.
A custom Python script is used to operate the motors that drive the wheels. It interfaces with his custom GUI which runs on a PHP-based web page hosted using an Apache web server. He’s able to access this page wirelessly, which makes it possible to operate the hoverboard using smartphones, tablets, or PCs via web browser.
If you want to get a closer look at this Raspberry Pi project, check out the current demo video shared to YouTube by Orhan Günsal and be sure to follow him for future updates.
