Can't run DC Motor with Arduino and Adafruit Motor Shield

Question

I'm very new with Arduino and Adafruit and I'm trying to get a DC motor running with my Adafruit Motor Shield V2.3, but it's not running. I have connected the motor to the right terminal (M3). I'm following the Adafruit website guide. Does anyone know what I'm doing wrong?

Here is the Arduino and Motor Shield:

And here is my code:

#include <Wire.h>
#include <Adafruit_MotorShield.h>
#include "utility/Adafruit_MS_PWMServoDriver.h"
Adafruit_MotorShield AFMS = Adafruit_MotorShield();
Adafruit_DCMotor *myMotor = AFMS.getMotor(3);

void setup()
{
  AFMS.begin();
  myMotor->setSpeed(255);
}

void loop()
{
  myMotor->run(FORWARD);
  delay(2000);
  myMotor->run(BACKWARD);
  delay(2000);
  myMotor->run(FORWARD);
  delay(2000);
  myMotor->run(RELEASE);
  delay(1000);
}

The code uploads with no errors but nothing happens after that.

Answer 1

To quote Adafruit:

You cannot power motors from a 9V battery. You must use AA batteries or a lead acid battery for motors.

You can grab a decent SLA (Sealed Lead Acid) battery by grabbing an alarm battery from any battery store for a relatively decent price (or an online retailer). Alternatively you could get an AA battery holder that lets you put several AA batteries in series.

The reason why a 9V battery won't work is because 9V batteries are chemically incapable of providing the inrush current required to start a motor. The 9 volt battery can be used to power the arduino through the power jack since it requires little current to function.