1. (/files/deriv/F2K/5L77/H05NHB4C/F2K5L77H05NHB4C.LARGE.jpg)
An Arduino is an open-source microcontroller development board. In plain English,
you can use the Arduino to read sensors and control things like motors and lights.
This allows you to upload programs to this board which can then interact with things
in the real world. With this, you can make devices which respond and react to the
world at large.
For instance, you can read a humidity sensor connected to a potted plant and turn
on an automatic watering system if it gets too dry. Or, you can make a stand-alone
chat server which is plugged into your internet router. Or, you can have it tweet
every time your cat passes through a pet door. Or, you can have it start a pot of
coffee when your alarm goes off in the morning.
Basically, if there is something that is in any way controlled by electricity, the
Arduino can interface with it in some manner. And even if it is not controlled by
electricity, you can probably still use things which are (like motors and
electromagnets), to interface with it.
The possibilities of the Arduino are almost limitless. As such, there is no way that
one single tutorial can cover everything you might ever need to know. That said,
I've done my best to give a basic overview of the fundamental skills and knowledge
About This Instructable
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2. that you need to get your Arduino up and running. If nothing more, this should
function as a springboard into further experimentation and learning.
Step 1: Different types of Arduinos
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There are a number of different types of Arduinos to choose from. This is a brief
overview of some of the more common types of Arduino boards you may
encounter. For a full listing of currently support Arduino boards, check out the
Arduino hardware page (http://www.arduino.cc/en/Main/hardware).
Arduino Uno
The most common version of Arduino is the Arduino Uno. This board is what most
people are talking about when they refer to an Arduino. In the next step, there is a
more complete rundown of its features.
Arduino NG, Diecimila, and the Duemilanove (Legacy Versions)
Legacy versions of the Arduino Uno product line consist of the NG, Diecimila, and
the Duemilanove. The important thing to note about legacy boards is that they lack
particular feature of the Arduino Uno. Some key differences:
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3. The Diecimila and NG use an ATMEGA168 chips (as opposed to the more
powerful ATMEGA328),
Both the Diecimila and NG have a jumper next to the USB port and require
manual selection of either USB or battery power.
The Arduino NG requires that you hold the rest button on the board for a few
seconds prior to uploading a program.
Arduino Mega 2560
The Mega is the second most commonly encountered version of the Arduino family.
The Arduino Mega is like the Arduino Uno's beefier older brother. It boasts 256 KB
of memory (8 times more than the Uno). It also had 54 input and output pins, 16 of
which are analog pins, and 14 of which can do PWM. However, all of the added
functionality comes at the cost of a slightly larger circuit board. It may make your
project more powerful, but it will also make your project larger. Check out the
official Arduino Mega 2560 page
(http://arduino.cc/en/Main/ArduinoBoardMega2560) for more details.
Arduino Mega ADK
This specialized version of the Arduino is basically an Arduino Mega that has been
specifically designed for interfacing with Android smartphones.
Arduino LilyPad
The LilyPad was designed for wearable and e-textile applications. It is intended to
be sewn to fabric and connected to other sewable components using conductive
thread. This board requires the use of a special FTDI-USB TTL serial programming
cable (http://www.ftdichip.com/Products/Cables/USBTTLSerial.htm). For more
information, the Arduino LilyPad page (http://arduino.cc/en/Guide/ArduinoLilyPad)
is a decent starting point.
Step 2: Arduino Uno Features
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Some people think of the entire Arduino board as a microcontroller, but this is
inaccurate. The Arduino board actually is a specially designed circuit board for
programming and prototyping with Atmel microcontrollers.
The nice thing about the Arduino board is that it is relatively cheap, plugs straight
4. into a computer's USB port, and it is dead-simple to setup and use (compared to
other development boards).
Some of the key features of the Arduino Uno include:
An open source design. The advantage of it being open source is that it has a
large community (http://arduino.cc/forum/) of people using and troubleshooting
it. This makes it easy to find someone to help you debug your projects.
An easy USB interface . The chip on the board plugs straight into your USB
port and registers on your computer as a virtual serial port. This allows you to
interface with it as through it were a serial device. The benefit of this setup is
that serial communication is an extremely easy (and time-tested) protocol, and
USB makes connecting it to modern computers really convenient.
Very convenient power management and built-in voltage regulation. You can
connect an external power source of up to 12v and it will regulate it to both 5v
and 3.3v. It also can be powered directly off of a USB port without any external
power.
An easy-to-find, and dirt cheap, microcontroller "brain." The ATmega328 chip
retails for about $2.88 on Digikey. It has countless number of nice hardware
features like timers, PWM pins, external and internal interrupts, and multiple
sleep modes. Check out the official datasheet
(http://www.atmel.com/Images/8271s.pdf) for more details.
A 16mhz clock. This makes it not the speediest microcontroller around, but fast
enough for most applications.
32 KB of flash memory for storing your code.
13 digital pins and 6 analog pins. These pins allow you to connect external
hardware to your Arduino. These pins are key for extending the computing
capability of the Arduino into the real world. Simply plug your devices and
sensors into the sockets that correspond to each of these pins and you are
good to go.
An ICSP connector for bypassing the USB port and interfacing the Arduino
directly as a serial device. This port is necessary to re-bootload your chip
(http://www.instructables.com/id/Bootload-an-Arduino-with-a-ZIF-Socket/) if it
corrupts and can no longer talk to your computer.
An on-board LED attached to digital pin 13 for fast an easy debugging of code.
And last, but not least, a button to reset the program on the chip.
For a complete rundown of all the Arduino Uno has to offer, be sure to check out
the official Arduino page (http://arduino.cc/en/Main/ArduinoBoardUno).
Step 3: Arduino IDE
5. (/files/deriv/FHS/OMOZ/H0A2H36S/FHSOMOZH0A2H36S.LARGE.jpg)
Before you can start doing anything with the Arduino, you need to download and
install the Arduino IDE (http://www.arduino.cc/en/Main/software) (integrated
development environment). From this point on we will be referring to the Arduino
IDE as the Arduino Programmer.
The Arduino Programmer is based on the Processing IDE (http://processing.org/)
and uses a variation of the C and C++ programming languages.
You can find the most recent version of the Arduino Programmer on this page
(http://www.arduino.cc/en/Main/software).
Step 4: Plug it in
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6. Connect the Arduino to your computer's USB port.
Please note that although the Arduino plugs into your computer, it is not a true USB
device. The board has a special chip that allows it to show up on your computer as
a virtual serial port when it is plugged into a USB port. This is why it is important to
plug the board in. When the board is not plugged in, the virtual serial port that the
Arduino operates upon will not be present (since all of the information about it lives
on the Arduino board).
It is also good to know that every single Arduino has a unique virtual serial port
address. This means that every time you plug in a different Arduino board into your
computer, you will need to reconfigure the serial port that is in use.
The Arduino Uno requires a male USB A to male USB B cable
(http://www.amazon.com/Black-Hi-Speed-Printer-Scanner-Lexmark/dp/tech-data/
B0030FMQ90).
Step 5: Settings
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7. Before you can start doing anything in the Arduino programmer, you must set the
board-type and serial port.
To set the board, go to the following:
Tools --> Boards
Select the version of board that you are using. Since I have an Arduino Uno
plugged in, I obviously selected "Arduino Uno."
To set the serial port, go to the following:
Tools --> Serial Port
Select the serial port that looks like:
/dev/tty.usbmodem [random numbers]
Step 6: Run a sketch
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Arduino programs are called sketches. The Arduino programmer comes with a ton
of example sketches preloaded. This is great because even if you have never
programmed anything in your life, you can load one of these sketches and get the
Arduino to do something.
To get the LED tied to digital pin 13 to blink on and off, let's load the blink example.
8. The blink example can be found here:
Files --> Examples --> Basics --> Blink
The blink example basically sets pin D13 as an output and then blinks the test LED
on the Arduino board on and off every second.
Once the blink example is open, it can be installed onto the ATMEGA328 chip by
pressing the upload button, which looks like an arrow pointing to the right.
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Notice that the surface mount status LED connected to pin 13 on the Arduino will
start to blink. You can change the rate of the blinking by changing the length of the
delay and pressing the upload button again.
Step 7: Serial monitor
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9. The serial monitor allows your computer to connect serially with the Arduino. This is
important because it takes data that your Arduino is receiving from sensors and
other devices and displays it in real-time on your computer. Having this ability is
invaluable to debug your code and understand what number values the chip is
actually receiving.
For instance, connect center sweep (middle pin) of a potentiometer to A0, and the
outer pins, respectively, to 5v and ground. Next upload the sketch shown below:
File --> Examples --> 1.Basics --> AnalogReadSerial
Click the button to engage the serial monitor which looks like a magnifying glass.
You can now see the numbers being read by the analog pin in the serial monitor.
When you turn the knob the numbers will increase and decrease.
The numbers will be between the range of 0 and 1023. The reason for this is that
the analog pin is converting a voltage between 0 and 5V to a discreet number.
Step 8: Digital in
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The Arduino has two different types of input pins, those being analog and digital.
To begin with, lets look at the digital input pins.
Digital input pins only have two possible states, which are on or off. These two on
and off states are also referred to as:
HIGH or LOW
1 or 0
5V or 0V.
This input is commonly used to sense the presence of voltage when a switch is
opened or closed.
Digital inputs can also be used as the basis for countless digital communication
protocols. By creating a 5V (HIGH) pulse or 0V (LOW) pulse, you can create a
binary signal, the basis of all computing. This is useful for talking to digital sensors
like a PING ultrasonic sensor, or communicating with other devices.
For a simple example of a digital input in use, connect a switch from digital pin 2 to
5V, a 10K resistor** from digital pin 2 to ground, and run the following code:
10. File --> Examples --> 2.Digital --> Button
**The 10K resistor is called a pull-down resistor because it connects the digital pin
to ground when the switch is not pressed. When the switch is pressed, the
electrical connections in the switch has less resistance than the resistor, and the
electricity no longer connects to ground. Instead, electricity flows between 5V and
the digital pin. This is because electricity always chooses the path of least
resistance. To learn more about this, visit the Digital Pins
(http://arduino.cc/en/Tutorial/DigitalPins) page.
Step 9: Analog in
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Aside from the digital input pins, the Arduino also boasts a number of analog input
pins.
Analog input pins take an analog signal and perform a 10-bit analog-to-digital
(ADC) conversion to turn it into a number between 0 and 1023 (4.9mV steps).
This type of input is good for reading resistive sensors. These are basically
sensors which provide resistance to the circuit. They are also good for reading a
varying voltage signal between 0 and 5V. This is useful when interfacing with
various types of analog circuitry.
If you followed the example in Step 7 for engaging the serial monitor, you have
already tried using an analog input pin.
Step 10: Digital out
11. (/files/deriv/FGG/JIJL/H1426JNH/FGGJIJLH1426JNH.LARGE.jpg)
A digital out pin can be set to be HIGH (5v) or LOW (0v). This allows you to turn
things on and off.
Aside from turning things on and off (and making LEDs blink), this form of output is
convenient for a number of applications.
Most notably, it allows you to communicate digitally. By turning the pin on and off
rapidly, you are creating binary states (0 and 1), which is recognized by countless
other electronic devices as a binary signal. By using this method, you can
communicate using a number of different protocols.
Digital communication is an advanced topic, but to get a general idea of what can
be done, check out the Interfacing With Hardware
(http://arduino.cc/playground/Main/InterfacingWithHardware) page.
If you followed the example in Step 6 for getting an LED to blink, you have already
tried using a digital output pin.
Step 11: Analog out
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12. As mentioned earlier, the Arduino has a number of built in special functions. One of
these special functions is pulse width modulation, which is the way an Arduino is
able to create an analog-like output.
Pulse width modulation - or PWM for short - works by rapidly turning the PWM pin
high (5V) and low (0V) to simulate an analog signal. For instance, if you were to
blink an LED on and off rapidly enough (about five milliseconds each), it would
seem to average the brightness and only appear to be receiving half the power.
Alternately, if it were to blink on for 1 millisecond and then blink off for 9
millisecond, the LED would appear to be 1/10 as bright and only be receiving 1/10
the voltage.
PWM is key for a number of applications including making sound, controlling the
brightness of lights, and controlling the speed of motors.
For a more in-depth explanation, check out secrets of PWM
(http://arduino.cc/en/Tutorial/SecretsOfArduinoPWM) page.
To try out PWM yourself, connect an LED and 220 ohm resistor to digital pin 9, in
series to ground. Run the following example code:
File --> Examples --> 3.Analog --> Fading
Step 12: Write your own code
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To write your own code, you will need to learn some basic programming language
syntax. In other words, you have to learn how to properly form the code for the
programmer to understand it. You can think of this kind of like understanding
grammar and punctuation. You can write an entire book without proper grammar
and punctuation, but no one will be abler to understand it, even if it is in English.
Some important things to keep in mind when writing your own code:
An Arduino program is called a sketch.
All code in an Arduino sketch is processed from top to bottom.
Arduino sketches are typically broken into five parts.
13. 1. The sketch usually starts with a header that explains what the sketch is doing,
and who wrote it.
2. Next, it usually defines global variables. Often, this is where constant names
are given to the different Arduino pins.
3. After the initial variables are set, the Arduino begins the setup routine. In the
setup function, we set initial conditions of variables when necessary, and run
any preliminary code that we only want to run once. This is where serial
communication is initiated, which is required for running the serial monitor.
4. From the setup function, we go to the loop routine. This is the main routine of
the sketch. This is not only where your main code goes, but it will be executed
over and over, so long as the sketch continues to run.
5. Below the loop routine, there is often other functions listed. These functions
are user-defined and only activated when called in the setup and loop routine.
When these functions are called, the Arduino processes all of the code in the
function from top to bottom and then goes back to the next line in the sketch
where it left off when the function was called. Functions are good because
they allow you to run standard routines - over and over - without having to
write the same lines of code over and over. You can simply call upon a
function multiple times, and this will free up memory on the chip because the
function routine is only written once. It also makes code easier to read. To
learn how to form your own functions, check out this page
(http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/FunctionDeclaration).
All of that said, the only two parts of the sketch which are mandatory are the
Setup and Loop routines.
Code must be written in the Arduino Language
(http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/HomePage), which is roughly based on C.
Almost all statements written in the Arduino language must end with a ;
Conditionals (such as if statements (http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/If) and for
loops (http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/For)) do not need a ;
Conditionals have their own rules and can be found under "Control Structures
(http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/HomePage)" on the Arduino Language
(http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/HomePage) page
Variables are storage compartments for numbers. You can pass values into and
out of variables. Variables must be defined (stated in the code) before they can
be used and need to have a data type associated with it. To learn some of the
basic data types, review the Language Page
(http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/HomePage).
Okay! So let us say we want to write code that reads a photocell connected to pin
A0, and use the reading we get from the photocell to control the brightness of an
LED connected to pin D9.
First, we want to open the BareMinimum sketch, which can be found at:
File --> Examples --> 1.Basic --> BareMinimum
The BareMinimum Sketch should look like this:
void setup() {
// put your setup code here, to run once:
}
void loop() {
// put your main code here, to run repeatedly:
}
Next, lets put a header on the code, so other people know about what we are
making, why, and under what terms:
14. /*
LED Dimmer
by Genius Arduino Programmer
2012
Controls the brightness of an LED on pin D9
based on the reading of a photocell on pin A0
This code is in the Public Domain
*/
void setup() {
// put your setup code here, to run once:
}
void loop() {
// put your main code here, to run repeatedly:
Once that is all squared away, let us define the pin names, and establish variables:
}
/*
LED Dimmer
by Genius Arduino Programmer
2012
Controls the brightness of an LED on pin D9
based on the reading of a photocell on pin A0
This code is in the Public Domain
*/
// name analog pin 0 a constant name
const int analogInPin = A0;
// name digital pin 9 a constant name
const int LEDPin = 9;
//variable for reading a photocell
int photocell;
Now that variables and pin names are set, let us write the actual code:
void /*
setup() {
LED // put Dimmer
your setup code here, to run once:
by Genius Arduino Programmer
2012
}
Controls the brightness of an LED on pin D9
based on the reading of a photocell on pin A0
void loop() {
// put your main code here, to run repeatedly:
This }
code is in the Public Domain
*/
// name analog pin 0 a constant name
const int analogInPin = A0;
// name digital pin 9 a constant name
const int LEDPin = 9;
//variable for reading a photocell
int photocell;
If we want to see what numbers the analog pin is actually reading from the
photocell, we will need to use the serial monitor. Let's activate the serial port and
output those numbers:
void setup() {
//nothing here right now
}
void loop() {
//read the analog in pin and set the reading to the photocell variable
photocell = analogRead(analogInPin);
//control the LED pin using the value read by the photocell
analogWrite(LEDPin, photocell);
//pause the code for 1/10 second
15. /*
LED Dimmer
by Genius Arduino Programmer
2012
Controls the brightness of an LED on pin D9
based on the reading of a photocell on pin A0
This code is in the Public Domain
*/
// name analog pin 0 a constant name
const int analogInPin = A0;
// name digital pin 9 a constant name
const int LEDPin = 9;
//variable for reading a photocell
int photocell;
For more information about formulating code, visit the Foundations Page
(http://arduino.cc/en/Tutorial/Foundations). If you need help with the Arduino
Language, void setup() then {
the Language Page (http://arduino.cc/en/Reference/HomePage) is
the Serial.place begin(for you.
9600);
Also, }
the Example Sketch Page (http://arduino.cc/hu/Tutorial/HomePage) is a great
place to start messing around with code. Don't be afraid to change things and
experiment.
void loop() {
//read the analog in pin and set the reading to the photocell variable
photocell = analogRead(analogInPin);
//print the photocell value into the serial monitor
Serial.print("Photocell = " );
Serial.println(photocell);
Step 13: Shields
//control the LED pin using the value read by the photocell
analogWrite(LEDPin, photocell);
//pause the code for 1/10 second
//1 second = 1000
delay(100);
}
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Shields are expansion apdapter boards that plug in over top of the Arduino Uno and
gives it special functions.
Since the Arduino is open hardware, anyone who has the inclination is free to
make an Arduino shield for whatever task they wish to accomplish. On account of
this, there are countless number of Arduino shields out in the wild. You can find an
ever-growing list of Arduino shields
(http://www.arduino.cc/playground/Main/SimilarBoards) in the Arduino playground.
Keep in mind that there will be more shield in existence than you will find on listed
on that page (as always, Google is your friend).
16. To give you a small sense of the capabilities of Arduino shields, check out these
tutorials on how to use three official Arduino shields:
Wireless SD Shield (http://www.instructables.com/id/Arduino-Wireless-SD-Shield-
Tutorial/)
Ethernet Shield (http://www.instructables.com/id/Arduino-Ethernet-Shield-
Tutorial/)
Motor Shield (http://www.instructables.com/id/Arduino-Motor-Shield-Tutorial/)
Intro to Arduino by randofo (/member/randofo/)
Download (/id/Intro-to-Arduino/?download=pdf) (/id/Intro-to-Arduino/) 15 Steps + Collection Favorite
Step 14: Building an external circuit
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As your projects get more complex, you will want to build your own circuits to
interfacewith the Arduino. While you won't learn electronics overnight, the internet
is an unbelievable resource for electronic knowledge and circuit diagrams.
To get started with electronics, visit the Basic Electronics
(http://www.instructables.com/id/Basic-Electronics/) Instructable.
Step 15: Going beyond
17. (/files/deriv/FG8/BV6T/H0A288B0/FG8BV6TH0A288B0.LARGE.jpg)
From here, the only thing left to do is make some projects. There are countless
awesome Arduino resources and tutorials online.
Be sure to check out the Official Arduino Page (http://arduino.cc/) and Forum
(http://forum.arduino.cc/). The information listed here is invaluable and very
complete. This is great resource for debugging projects.
If you need inspiration for some fun beginner projects, check out the 20
Unbelievable Arduino Projects (http://www.instructables.com/id/20-Unbelievable-
Arduino-Projects/) guide.
For a vast listing or Arduino project, the Arduino Channel
(http://www.instructables.com/tag/type-id/category-technology/channel-arduino/) is
a great place to start.
That's it. You're on your own.
Good luck and happy hacking!
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3 months ago Reply (C9V9WX6HKM946Y4)
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tin701 (/member/tin701/) says:
Very good
profpat (/member/profpat/) says:
very good instructable!
18. 4
(/member/profpat/)
3 months ago Reply (CM8QW2OHKITG56G)
Raphango (/member/Raphango/) says:
Wonderfull tutorial! It has enlightened me up pretty much. I'm pretty much familiar to
arduino now, and pretty much confident about not blowing up my projects. Thank you
very much!
(/member/Raphango/)
3 months ago Reply (CTCU6F6HK1DFRS7)
Toon_ca7 (/member/Toon_ca7/) says:
Im looking forward to work some animatronics projects using arduino lillypads.
Was guessing if there's a way you can bring me some starying data about Arduino,
just like this you're publishing here, in a pdf format, so I can study it offline.
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4 months ago Reply (C49HFKDHJ5ZL1CD)
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6 months ago Reply (CFEDP0RHH2VMAW6)
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8 months ago Reply (CMM3Z2LHEXS4LID)
2
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8 months ago Reply (CNBRR4THET0RRZP)
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11 months ago Reply (C9FP9DZHAUNNGHU)
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11 months ago Reply (CINX482HAWBWK2P)
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1 year ago Reply (CENBRSNH8CVDEVV)
earslan1 (/member/earslan1/) says:
Thank you, this is very good :)
naldobatumbakal (/member/naldobatumbakal/) says:
Liked Arduino and I would like to study
them.
I have a project that needs to contrlol relays
to switch on/of 12volts.
Can Arduino capable of doing multi-switching
(9 or 12 volts) around 6 to 10
switches?
I don't often open my account, would it be
better to give me a reply on my mail?
at ronald_av@yahoo.com....Thank you very
much.
teknohawk (/member/teknohawk/) says:
The Uno R3 is most likely the "best" Arduino to use. It is probably the newest,
cheapest and smartest to use for protoboarding (or what ever you need it to do). It
has a Atmel328 and is quit common, mostly used by beginners to Arduino, all the way
to Advanced electrical hobbyists. But really, most Arduino's can use a sketch meant
for " only one type of Arduino"
HBang (/member/HBang/) says:
I'm trying to make a robot arm to grab things and place it in different places. Which
Arduino should I buy? As a beginner, I am having some trouble in figuring out which
Arduino to use... Thank you!:)
charmquark (/member/charmquark/) says:
Excellent guide to get up and going with arduino! Thanks a lot!
rustygray (/member/rustygray/) says:
I bought a new Uno board, and it plugs in and lights up, but the serial port command is
greyed out.
I did select the Uno as my board. I reset it, I unplugged and replugged.
I still cannot get the serial port to allow me to make a choice.
Suggestions?
19. 3
Psychic Master (/member/Psychic+Master/) in reply to rustygray
you might need to manually
update the drivers, thats what i
had to do with my mega 2560
(/member/Psychic+Master/)
11 months ago Reply (CPW9ISHHA5M7P2V)
238
randofo (/member/randofo/) (author) in reply to rustygray
...exchange it for a new one?
(/member/randofo/)
1 year ago Reply (CXDZPK3H8CVG2BC)
rustygray (/member/rustygray/) in reply to randofo
i obtained a 2nd one and same
issue. I have windows 7, and
downloaded the latest software. i
will check for an update.
(/member/rustygray/)
11 months ago Reply (CBORUZ3HA4MB964)
elfarandulero (/member/elfarandulero/) says:
First I have to be clear,what is Arduino I see that name all over the Internet?
(/member/elfarandulero/)
1 year ago Reply (C0Z5IUKH7ZPBXO4)
238
randofo (/member/randofo/) (author) in reply to elfarandulero
From the first paragraph of my
explanation of what an Arduino is:
An Arduino is an open-source
microcontroller development board.
In plain English, you can use the
Arduino to read sensors and control
things like motors and lights. This
allows you to upload programs to this
board which can then interact with
things in the real world. With this, you
can make devices which respond
and react to the world at large.
(/member/randofo/)
1 year ago Reply (C8SONJQH7UQN496)
elfarandulero (/member/elfarandulero/) in reply to randofo
Since I don't know anything about
microcontroller; I like Electronics I
keep using the regular PCB for my
projects;let the wizard one work with
Arduino; I don't need Arduino at this
point
(/member/elfarandulero/)
1 year ago Reply (CF6SDJ8H7URC19Q)
elfarandulero (/member/elfarandulero/) says:
Some people think of the entire Arduino board as a microcontroller, but this is
inaccurate. The Arduino board actually is a specially designed circuit board for
programming and prototyping with Atmel microcontroller.. Then why not use a regular
PCB board? I don't know a hell about microcontroller; I don't even know what is that
and what is the use for microcontroller????/
(/member/elfarandulero/)
1 year ago Reply (C7Z8PGQH7ZPBXO9)
238
randofo (/member/randofo/) (author) in reply to elfarandulero
Because a PCB board is a
fiberglass board with copper on it. It
does not do anything.
A microcontroller is a computer chip,
which is like a mini computer that
controls things.
You attach microcontrollers (and
(/member/randofo/)
1 year ago Reply (CFRKGHYH7UQN49D)
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1 year ago Reply (C4LQZUGH4AFSGZE)
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1 year ago Reply (CX9WBVHH4AGJHIO)
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1 year ago Reply (CN3JWXOH4AGJLW8)
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1 year ago Reply (CQML3PBH4AGJN1R)
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1 year ago Reply (CVIFAEFH4V015O8)
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1 year ago Reply (CA504RTH4ZN4RKQ)
other components) to PCB boards.
ride on toy dude (/member/ride+on+toy+dude/) says:
Hey Randofo!! I had a few questions about
beginning in arduino.
-What would be the best starter project for
arduino?
-Do you recommend any particular books or
ibles on this subject?
-Does a computer have to have USB 2.0
ports to operate an arduino?
(Mine only has USB 1.0 ports.)
if anybody has any other advice, please
leave a comment below.
randofo (/member/randofo/) (author) in reply to ride on toy dude
I think USB 1.0 should be fine.
I recommend this one ;-)
...but you should try searching the site
for some of the Arduino guides and
eBooks. Those are pretty good. Also,
arduino.cc has a ton of useful
information. It just takes a little digging
through.
What do you ultimately want to make
with an Arduino? Once I have a sense
of that, I can probably recommend
some intro projects that might help
you.
ride on toy dude (/member/ride+on+toy+dude/) in reply to randofo
Also, is an led cube a beginner,
intermediate, or advanced project?
randofo (/member/randofo/) (author) in reply to ride on toy dude
An led cube is probably a beginner to
intermediate project. I would start
small with a 3 x 3 x 3 LED cube. It
may not seem like much, but that is
27 LEDs to solder together, which
will take a bit of work.
ride on toy dude (/member/ride+on+toy+dude/) in reply to randofo
I have the cube soldered together!!
However I still need the resistors,
transistors, and perfboard. Good luck
at Red Bull Creation!!!
The people who won last year had a
human sized hamster wheel that
printed dot matrix words. People in the
crowd were told to text it and it would
print the texts.
It was awesome! :):):):):)!!
randofo (/member/randofo/) (author) in reply to ride on toy dude
Good luck with the cube. We did our
best on the challenge. Now it is up to
the internet to vote for us. I guess we
21. 16
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1 year ago Reply (CJADPQDH51AS3RB)
238
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1 year ago Reply (CCPHRATH4ZN58CO)
16
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1 year ago Reply (CJEIBEWH4ZN59Q6)
238
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1 year ago Reply (C266HHMH51ASO91)
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1 year ago Reply (CBFJAKKH4AFSHCT)
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1 year ago Reply (CSNCHR7H4AFZFQD)
will see how it goes.
ride on toy dude (/member/ride+on+toy+dude/) in reply to randofo
I finished it!! it works really well!
Never fear with the voting. you've got
everybody on Instructables supporting
you guys!!
randofo (/member/randofo/) (author) in reply to ride on toy dude
Awesome! Nice job on your first
Arduino project. You should share it
with a Photo Instructable.
ride on toy dude (/member/ride+on+toy+dude/) in reply to randofo
I am going to try to rebuild it with a
hackduino so I can keep the Arduino I
have know. I try to post it then. How
would I build an infrared rc system with
Arduino?
I had a n idea for a door that had a
key fob so that I could remotely unlock
the door to my room. Or build a
system that would open up my closet
doors when I pushed a button. : )
randofo (/member/randofo/) (author) in reply to ride on toy dude
This might get you started with the IR
part of things:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Clone-a-
Remote-with-Arduino/
(http://www.instructables.com/id/Clone-a-
Remote-with-Arduino/)
There are bunch of projects on
Instructables for electronic door locks.
You should search the site for those.
ride on toy dude (/member/ride+on+toy+dude/) in reply to randofo
I want to tart out with something like a
small led cube. I also found a really
interesting arduino starter kit online.
here's a
linkhttp://www.amazon.com/Arduino-
Uno-Starter---Solderless-
Breadboard/dp/B0051QHPJM/ref=sr_1_2?
ie=UTF8&qid=1341878297&sr=8-
2&keywords=arduino
(http://www.amazon.com/Arduino-
Uno-Starter---Solderless-
Breadboard/dp/B0051QHPJM/ref=sr_1_2?
ie=UTF8&qid=1341878297&sr=8-
2&keywords=arduino)
Harshaeinstein (/member/Harshaeinstein/) says:
thank you very much....
i am not able to understand why there is a
16Mhz crystal(SPK 16.000) on arduino(uno)
board.
please help me out..
thank you....
22. 238
randofo (/member/randofo/) (author) in reply to Harshaeinstein
It is on there to provide a stable clock
for the microcontroller.
(/member/randofo/)
1 year ago Reply (COL7UPYH4AGJHIZ)
1
ms10 (/member/ms10/) says:
awesome instructable thanks it helped me a lot
my arduino works lights up the green light but when i upload code into it at the minute
it says
"arvdude :verification error,first mismatch at byte 0x00000xc != 0x62
arvdude : verification error ; content mismatch"
i new to arduino and i just bought it 2 days ago
do you have some idea on what's going on
(/member/ms10/)
1 year ago Reply (COQMILTH1EN6RVR)
3
waterlubber (/member/waterlubber/) in reply to ms10
Oh no...sometimes, you just retry. If
that doesn't work, do this:
V
V
V
V
(/member/waterlubber/)
1 year ago Reply (C088SDSH3KOVX46)
238
randofo (/member/randofo/) (author) in reply to ms10
Double check the configuration you
setup in step 5. I am not certain why
you are getting that error, but it seems
like the board or the serial port is not
selected properly.
(/member/randofo/)
1 year ago Reply (CLT7F93H1ERMW62)
1
ms10 (/member/ms10/) in reply to randofo
thanks
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1 year ago Reply (C1T72MPH1ERNF5P)
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1 year ago Reply (CSXAJLKH2MYJZRV)
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1 year ago Reply (CGTM2DDH1KH9P1B)
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1 year ago Reply (CDY720WH1EN787S)
Orngrimm (/member/Orngrimm/) says:
Cool 'ible! Nice ans painless. Will forward it to some folks who want to gain foot with
Arduino.
BTW: Didnt you forgot one popular Arduino?
The Arduino Nano http://arduino.cc/en/Main/ArduinoBoardNano
I often use it (Or a cheaper chinese replica) for the movement of the finished project
off to the cheaper and final resting place...
jimvandamme (/member/jimvandamme/) says:
Typo: First page, under "Arduino NG,
Diecimila, and the Duemilanove" paragraph,
you meant ATMEGA328, not '368
linda555 (/member/linda555/) says:
This comes at the perfect time for me. Very clear and understandable. This is beyond
a doubt the clearest, most inclusive explanation of how to get the Arduino up and
running.
You have been posting a lot of very helpful Instructables.
Thanks for this one and the many others.
