Intro to Arduino

Zero to Prototyping
in a Flash!

Material designed by Linz Craig, Nick Poole, Prashanta Aryal,

Theo Simpson, Tai Johnson, and Eli Santistevan

Overview of Class
Getting Started:
Installation, Applications and Materials
Electrical:
Components, Ohm's Law, Input and Output, Analog and
Digital
----------------------------Programming:
Split into groups depending on experience
Serial Communication Basics:
Troubleshooting and Debugging
Virtual Prototyping:
Schematics and PCB Layout in Fritzing

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Arduino Board
Strong Friend Created in Ivrea, Italy
in 2005 by Massimo Banzi & David Cuartielles
Open Source Hardware
Processor
Coding is accessible & transferrable (C++, Processing,
java)

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Arduino
is the go-to gear for artists, hobbyists,
students, and anyone with a
gadgetry dream.
rose out of anotherformidable
challenge: how to teach students to
create electronics, fast.

http://spectrum.ieee.org/geek-life/hands-on/the-making-of-arduino

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Getting Started
SW Installation: Arduino (v.1.0+)
Fritzing
SIK Guide Code
Drivers (FTDI)
Materials:

SIK Guide
Analog I/O, Digital I/O, Serial,
& Fritzing handouts
Arduino CheatSheet

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USB
(to Computer)

PWR IN

RESET

SCL\SDA
(I2C Bus)

POWER
5V / 3.3V / GND

Digital I\O
PWM(3, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11)

Analog
INPUTS

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USB
(to Computer)

PWR IN

RESET

SCL\SDA
(I2C Bus)

POWER
5V / 3.3V / GND

Digital I\O
PWM(3, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11)

Analog
INPUTS

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Go ahead and plug your board in!

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Arduino Shields
PCB

Built Shield

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Inserted Shield

Arduino Shields

Micro SD

MP3 Trigger

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LCD

SIK Components
Type

Function

Notes

Push Button

Digital Input

Switch - Closes
or opens circuit

Polarized, needs
resistor

Trim
potentiometer

Analog Input

Variable resistor

Also called a
Trimpot.

Photoresistor

Analog Input

Light Dependent
Resistor (LDR)

Resistance varies
with light.

Relay

Digital Output

Switch driven by
a small signal

Used to control
larger voltages

Temp Sensor

Analog Input

Temp Dependent
Resistor

Flex Sensor

Analog Input

Variable resistor

Soft Trimpot

Analog Input

Variable resistor

Careful of shorts

RGB LED

Dig & Analog

Output

16,777,216
different colors

Ooh... So pretty.

Name

Image

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SIK Components

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SIK Components

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SIK Components

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Electricity \ Electronics Basic

Concept Review

Ohms Law
Voltage
Current
Resistance
Using a Multi-meter

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Ohms Law

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Electrical Properties
Voltage
V

Current
I

Defined as
the
amount of
potential
energy in a
circuit.

The rate of
charge
flow in a
circuit.
Units: Amperes
(A)

Units: Volts (V)

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Resistance
R

Current Flow Analogy

High Current

Low Current

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Voltage Analogy
Water
Tower

Water
Tower

More Energy == Higher Voltage

Less Energy == Lower Voltage

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Resistance Analogy
Water
Tower

Water
Tower

Big Pipe == Lower Resistance

Small Pipe == Higher Resistance

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Continuity Is it a Circuit?
The word circuit is derived from the circle. An
Electrical Circuit must have a continuous LOOP
from Power (Vcc) to Ground (GND).
Continuity is important to make portions of
circuits are connect. Continuity is the simplest
and possibly the most important setting on
your multi-meter. Sometimes we call this
ringing out a circuit.

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Measuring Electricity Voltage

Voltage is a measure of potential
electrical energy. A voltage is also called
a potential difference it is measured
between two points in a circuit across
a device.

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Measuring Electricity -- Current

Current is the measure of the rate of charge flow.
For Electrical Engineers we consider this to
be the movement of electrons.
In order to measure this you must break the
circuit or insert the meter in-line (series).

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Measuring Electricity -- Resistance

Resistance is the measure of how much
opposition to current flow is in a circuit.
Components should be removed entirely from
the circuit to measure resistance. Note the
settings on the multi-meter. Make sure that
you are set for the appropriate range.
Resistance
settings

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Prototyping Circuits
Solderless Breadboard
One of the most useful tools in an
engineer or Makers toolkit. The three
most important things:
A breadboard is easier than soldering
A lot of those little holes are connected, which ones?
Sometimes breadboards break

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Whats a Breadboard?

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Solderless Breadboard

Each row (horiz.) of 5

holes are connected.
Vertical columns
called power bus are
connected vertically

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Using the Breadboard to built a

simple circuit
Use the breadboard
to wire up a single
LED with a 330
Ohm Resistor
(Orange-OrangeBrown).
Note: the longer leg on the
LED is the positive leg and
the shorter leg is the
negative

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Fritzing View of Breadboard Circuit

What happens
when you break
the circuit?
What if you
wanted to add
more than one
LED?

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Adding control lets use the

Arduino
and start programming!!!

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Concepts: INPUT vs. OUTPUT

Referenced from the perspective of the microcontroller (electrical
board).

Inputs is a signal /

Output is any signal

information going into the

board.

exiting the board.

Almost all systems that use physical computing will have

some form of output
What are some examples of Outputs?

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Concepts: INPUT vs. OUTPUT

Referenced from the perspective of the microcontroller (electrical
board).

Inputs is a signal /

Output is any signal

information going into the

board.

exiting the board.

Examples: Buttons Switches, Examples: LEDs, DC motor,

Light Sensors, Flex Sensors, servo motor, a piezo buzzer,
Humidity Sensors,
relay, an RGB LED
Temperature Sensors

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Concepts: Analog vs. Digital

Microcontrollers are digital devices ON or
OFF. Also called discrete.
analog signals are anything that can be a
full range of values. What are some
examples? More on this later
5V

5V

0V

0V

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Open up Arduino
Hints:
For PC Users

For Mac Users

1.Let the installer copy

and move the files to
the appropriate
locations, or

1. Move the Arduino

executable to the
dock for ease of
access.

2.Create a folder under

C:\Program Files (x86)
called Arduino. Move
the entire Arduino
program folder here.

2. Resist the
temptation to run
these from your
desktop.

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Arduino
Integrated Development Environment (IDE)
Two required functions
/ methods / routines:
void setup()
{
// runs once
}

error & status messages

void loop()
{
// repeats
}

Settings: Tools Serial Port

Your computer
communicates to the
Arduino microcontroller
via a serial port
through a USB-Serial
adapter.
Check to make sure that
the drivers are properly
installed.

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Settings: Tools Board

Next, double-check that the proper board is selected

under the ToolsBoard menu.

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Arduino & Arduino Compatible Boards

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BIG 6 CONCEPTS

digitalWrite()
analogWrite()
digitalRead()
if() statements /
Boolean
analogRead()
Serial
communication

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Lets get to coding

Project #1 Blink
Hello World of Physical Computing

Psuedo-code how should this work?

Turn
LED ON

Turn
LED
OFF

Wait

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Wait

Rinse &
Repeat

Comments, Comments, Comments

Comments are for you the programmer and
your friendsor anyone else human that
might read your code.
// this is for single line comments
// its good to put a description at the
top and before anything tricky
/* this is for multi-line comments
Like this
And this.
*/

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comments

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Three commands to know

pinMode(pin, INPUT/OUTPUT);
ex: pinMode(13, OUTPUT);
digitalWrite(pin, HIGH/LOW);
ex: digitalWrite(13, HIGH);
delay(time_ms);
ex: delay(2500); // delay of 2.5 sec.
// NOTE: -> commands are CASE-sensitive

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Project #1: Wiring Diagram

Move the green

wire from the
power bus to
pin 13 (or any
other Digital I/O
pin on the
Arduino board.

Image created in Fritzing

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A few simple challenges

Lets make LED#13 blink!
Challenge 1a blink with a 200 ms
second interval.
Challenge 1b blink to mimic a
heartbeat
Challenge 1c find the fastest blink
that the human eye can still detect
1 ms delay? 2 ms delay? 3 ms

delay???

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Try adding other LEDs

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Programming Concepts: Variables

Variable Scope

Global
---

Functionlevel

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Programming Concepts: Variable

Types
Variable Types:

8 bits
byte
char

16 bits
int
unsigned int

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32 bits
long
unsigned long
float

Fading in and Fading Out

(Analog or Digital?)
A few pins on the Arduino allow for us
to modify the output to mimic an
analog signal.
This is done by a technique called:
Pulse Width Modulation (PWM)

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Concepts: Analog vs. Digital

To create an analog signal, the
microcontroller uses a technique called
PWM. By varying the duty cycle, we can
mimic an average analog voltage.
Pulse Width Modulation (PWM)

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Project #2 Fading
Introducing a new command
analogWrite(pin, val);
pin refers to the OUTPUT
pin (limited to pins 3, 5, 6, 9,
10, 11.) denoted by a ~
symbol
val 8 bit value (0 255).
0 => 0V

255 => 5V

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Move one of your LED pins over to

Pin 9
In Arduino, open up:
File Examples 01.Basics Fade

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Fade - Code Review

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Fade - Code Review

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Project# 2 -- Fading
Challenge 2a Change the rate of the
fading in and out. There are at least
two different ways to do this can
you figure them out?
Challenge 2b Use 2 (or more) LEDs
so that one fades in as the other
one fades out.

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R G B

Color Mixing
Tri-color LED

In the SIK, this is a standard

Common Cathode LED
This means the negative
side of the LED is all tied to
Ground.

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Project 3 RGB LED

Note: The
longest leg of
the RGB LED
is the
Common
Cathode. This
goes to GND.
Use pins 5, 6, &
9

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How many unique colors can you

create?

Use Colorpicker.com or
experiment on your
own.
Pick out a few colors
that you want to try
re-creating for a
lamp or lighting
display...

Play around with this

with the
analogWrite()

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RGB LED Color Mixing

int redPin = 5;
int greenPin = 6;
int bluePin = 9;
void setup()
{
pinMode(redPin, OUTPUT);
pinMode(greenPin, OUTPUT);
pinMode(bluePin, OUTPUT);
}

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RGB LED Color Mixing

void loop()
{
analogWrite(redPin, 255);
analogWrite (greenPin, 255);
analogWrite (bluePin, 255);
}

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Project: Mood Lamp / Light Sculpture

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Napkin
Schematics
Emphasize the
engineering
design process
with students. We
like to skirt the
line between
formal and
informal with a
tool called
Napkin
Schematics.

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Napkin
Schematics
Emphasize the
engineering
design process
with students. We
like to skirt the
line between
formal and
informal with a
tool called
Napkin
Schematics.

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Driving Motors or other High Current

Loads
NPN Transistor (Common Emitter Amplifier
Circuit)

to Digital
Pin 9

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Input
Input is any signal entering an electrical system
.
Both digital and analog sensors are forms of
input
Input can also take many other forms:
Keyboards, a mouse, infrared sensors,
biometric sensors, or just plain voltage from a
circuit

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Project #4 Digital Input

In Arduino, open up:
File Examples 02.Digital
Button

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Digital Sensors (a.k.a. Switches)

Pull-up Resistor (circuit)

to Digital Pin 2

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Digital Sensors (a.k.a. Switches)

Add an indicator LED to Pin 13
This is just like our
1st circuit!

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Digital Input
Connect digital input to your Arduino using Pins # 0
13 (Although pins # 0 & 1 are also used for
programming)
Digital Input needs a pinMode command:
pinMode (pinNumber, INPUT);
Make sure to use ALL CAPS for INPUT
To get a digital reading:
int buttonState = digitalRead (pinNumber);
Digital Input values are only HIGH (On) or LOW

(Off)

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Digital Sensors
Digital sensors are more straight forward than
Analog
No matter what the sensor there are only two
settings: On and Off
Signal is always either HIGH (On) or LOW (Off)
Voltage signal for HIGH will be a little less than
5V on your Uno
Voltage signal for LOW will be 0V on most
systems

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http://opensourcehardwarejunkies.com/tutorial-03-digitalread-and

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Programming: Conditional
Statements
if()

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Programming: Conditional
Statements
if()
void loop()
{
int buttonState = digitalRead(5);
if(buttonState == LOW)
{ // do something
}
else
{

// do something else

}
}

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DIG
INPUT

Boolean Operators

(
(
(
(
(
(

<Boolean>

Description

)
)
)
)
)
)

is equal?
is not equal?
greater than
greater than or equal
less than
less than or equal

==
!=
>
>=
<
<=

(
(
(
(
(
(

)
)
)
)
)
)

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Trimpot (Potentiometer)
Variable Resistor

fixed
end
wiper
fixed
end

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Analog Sensors
3 Pin Potentiometer = var. resistor (circuit
)
a.k.a. Voltage Divider Circuit

wiper
fixed
ends

1.0 V

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1.0 V

Ohms Law (just the basics)

Actually, this is the voltage divider

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analogRead()
Arduino uses a 10-bit A/D Converter:
this means that you get input values
from 0 to 1023

0V0
5 V 1023

Ex:
int sensorValue = analogRead(A0);

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Using Serial Communication

Method used to transfer data between two
devices.
Data passes between the computer and Arduino
through the USB cable. Data is transmitted as zeros
(0) and ones (1) sequentially.

Arduino dedicates Digital I/O pin # 0 to

receiving and Digital I/O pin #1 to transmit.

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Serial Monitor & analogRead()

Initializes the Serial

Communication
9600 baud data rate

prints data to serial bus

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Serial Monitor & analogRead()

Opens up a
Serial Terminal
Window

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Analog Sensors
2 Pin Analog Sensors = var. resistor
Take two sensors -- Use
the Serial Monitor and
find the range of input
values you get for each
sensor.
MaxAnalogRead = _________
MinAnalogRead = _________

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Analog Sensors

Examples:
Sensors
Mic
Photoresistor
Potentiometer
Temp Sensor
Flex Sensor
Accelerometer

Variables
soundVolume
lightLevel
dialPosition
temperature
bend
tilt/acceleration

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Additional Serial Communication

Sending a Message
void loop ( )
{
Serial.print(Hands on ) ;
Serial.print(Learning ) ;
Serial.println(is Fun!!!) ;
}

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Serial Communication:
Serial Debugging
void loop()
{
int xVar = 10;
Serial.print ( Variable xVar is ) ;
Serial.println ( xVar ) ;
}

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Serial Communication:
Serial Troubleshooting
void loop ( )
{
Serial.print (Digital pin 9: );
Serial.println (digitalRead(9));
}

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Virtual Electrical Prototyping Project

started in 2007 by the Interaction Design Lab
at the University of Applied Science Potsdam, Germany
Open Source
Prototypes: Document, Share, Teach, Manufacture

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Now that you feel comfortable putting

together circuits with your breadboard
lets talk about how to go from the
breadboard to a PCB

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Free Time
The rest of the class is dedicated to free
pursuit
Experiment with the various circuits and
lessons in the SIK.
Explore the additional tutorials available on
learn.sparkfun.com
Thank you for attending our Intro to Arduino
class

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Questions?

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www.sparkfun.com
6175 Longbow Drive, Suite 200
Boulder, Colorado 80301

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