Arduino Projects

Environment sensors are of great importance in embedded applications. Many temperature sensors measure the ambient temperature or temperature of a surface. For measuring water temperature and other fluids, waterproof temperature sensors are required. One of such temperature sensors is DS18B20. This sensor can measure the temperature of the air, liquids like water, and ground. The…

When it comes to general-purpose microcontrollers, nobody expects them to perform heavy-duty software operations. Microcontrollers are simple devices that control binary devices and talk over serial interfaces. Building audio/video or multimedia applications on microcontrollers is never attempted. It is challenging and infeasible in most situations to handle any kind of multimedia through microcontrollers. Microcontrollers are…

Adding sound to Arduino is fun, and interfacing speakers with Arduino is relatively straightforward. You can directly attach a speaker to Arduino or connect a speaker through an amplifier circuit. In both cases, Arduino can output digital audio from any GPIO. Whether or not one needs an amplifier circuit depends entirely on the selected speaker.…

In this mini-DIY project, we will make a color-flashing coconut tree. It has two 3W RGB LEDs using, which generate multicolor flashing effects. Also, a tiny 8-pin microcontroller ATtiny85 generates eye-catching colorful LED-chasing effects. It is battery-operated, and the battery is rechargeable so it does not require a power connection through wires. It can be…

The embedded software or firmware is the brain of an embedded device. However, this type of software works differently than the conventional ones on PCs or mobile devices — which are generic and work identically on such operating systems. PC software runs without directly accessing the underlying hardware. The purpose of embedded software works in…

A polygraph is an instrument that records physiological indicators like pulse rate, blood pressure, and electrodermal activity of a human subject under questioning by an operator. It’s commonly referred to as a lie-detector test because it’s designed to assess whether a person is telling the truth. Industry-standard polygraph equipment is said to be 80 to…

Modbus is a popular low-speed serial communication protocol widely used in the automation industry. The protocol was developed by Modicon (now acquired by Schneider Electric) in 1979 for its own programmable logic controllers. The protocol served as a link between PLCs and intelligent automation devices. Now an open protocol maintained by Modbus Organization, the Modbus…

Small organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays are commonly used in embedded devices. This is because OLEDs generally cost the same as character LCDs but feature a better user interface (UI) and user experience (UX).  Typically, embedded OLED screens are used to display textual messages, but what about videos? For example, is it possible to playback…

Node.js is the most popular server at this time. Due to its asynchronous and non-blocking nature, Node is the obvious choice for real-time web applications like chat rooms, single-page applications, video streaming, etc. For the same reasons, Node is attracting IoT engineers. As web applications developed on Node operate in real-time, these are best suitable…

Additive manufacturing or 3D printing is more affordable than it’s ever been. Although some hobbyists buy a printer for crafts and to experiment with, it’s also an excellent engineering tool for innovative electronics or robotic projects.   Typically, printers offer complimentary 3D models or free downloads that are ideal to start with. Eventually, you’ll likely want to…

LiDAR is an acronym for light detection and ranging, an optical technology for sensing distance. Early attempts to measure distance by light beams were first made in the ’30s, and airborne LiDAR became more commonly used in the ’60s, with geospatial measurements beginning in the ’80s.  As the technology evolved, LiDAR’s uses continued to expand.…

Generally, Arduino boards can only serve as USB slaves. They cannot operate as USB hosts. That is why it is impossible to connect USB devices like a USB keyboard or mouse directly to Arduino. These generic USB devices can be a lot useful in many applications. For example, in some applications, a 4X4 keypad might…

Any AVR microcontroller based board which follows the standard arduino schematic and is flashed with the arduino boot-loader can be called an arduino board. The arduino is refered to as open source hardware, since the standard schematic is open to everyone and anybody can make their own version of arduino board following the standard schematic.

There is no other tool available which helps in easy prototyping like the arduino does. Any AVR microcontroller based board which follows the standard arduino schematic and is flashed with the arduino boot-loader can be called an arduino board. The arduino can be used as a stand-alone board of which the output or inputs can be taken from the boards or given to the board using convenient connectors.Both digital and analog inputs and outputs are available in all arduino boards.

Even though the microcontrollers are purely digital devices which work on logic0 and logic1 voltages they are commonly found interfaced with analog system or circuits. The microcontroller can read the analog input voltage by sampling it and converting it to their digital values with the help of Analog to Digital Converter (ADC). The microcontroller can also generate an analog voltage on any external device with the help of Pulse Width Modulated (PWM) waves. Most of the microcontrollers have built-in PWM module and ADC modules which helps them in reading analog voltage inputs and generating analog voltage outputs on an external device. Those who have done some basic experiments with the PWM and ADC modules know how complex it is to get them configured, initialized and make them work properly together.  

Liquid Crystal Display is made use in various kinds of devices from small display screen in calculator to large screens in televisions. There are lots of advantages in using the LCD displays in systems like power efficiency, thin size, low cost etc. LCD based small display modules are normally found in all kinds of embedded devices.The LCD even though looks simple, but it is actually difficult to make it work. The LCD works with voltage pulses only and that with precise timing and voltage levels. Hence special kinds of LCD drivers are developed to drive the LCD. Two or more of this kind of driver ICs together with the LCD screen forms LCD modules which are normally found in embedded systems. 

The LCD module is the most common output unit in a microcontroller board. It is very effective since it can display messages, values, clock etc. Special kinds of LCD drivers are used to drive the LCD. Two or more of this kind of driver ICs together with the LCD screen forms LCD modules found in embedded systems. The characters displayed in the LCD modules are actually stored in the internal memory locations of those controllers. They are stored in such a way that they exactly resemble the ASCII table. Whenever the microcontrollers send an ASCII value the LCD controllers displays the ASCII character which has been stored corresponding to that value.The LCD modules can display not only ASCII characters but custom characters also. 

There are numerous motivations to assemble your own Arduino circuit on a breadboard or PCB. It consumes less space in the breadboard, cheaper than Arduino boards or perhaps you won’t be utilizing a shield, yet despite everything you need an Arduino as the heart of your Project.The following steps will outline how to assemble the circuit on a breadboard.  

Home automation is quickly becoming mainstream, letting residents easily connect with and remotely control appliances or security systems. To support these efforts, there are several popular “smart” home systems available, such as Amazon Hub, Google Nest, Amazon Echo, Apple HomeKit, Hue Smart Hub, and others. For the hobbyist or do-it-yourselfer (DIY), customized home automation systems…

Connecting embedded microcontrollers to the internet is a crucial task in modern applications. The embedded controllers, particularly in consumer devices and wearables, now essentially require ping online. This is more important as the devices are getting smarter. Connecting to the internet is not just crucial but a hefty task as well. The typical TCP/IP stack…