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Arduino – Basics
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ARDUINO – OVERVIEW
Arduino is a prototype platform (open-source) based on an easy-to-use hardware and
software. It consists of a circuit board, which can be programed (referred to as
a microcontroller) and a ready-made software called Arduino IDE (Integrated Development
Environment), which is used to write and upload the computer code to the physical board.
The key features are:
Arduino boards are able to read analog or digital input signals from different sensors
and turn it into an output such as activating a motor, turning LED on/off, connect to
the cloud and many other actions.
You can control your board functions by sending a set of instructions to the
microcontroller on the board via Arduino IDE (referred to as uploading software).
Unlike most previous programmable circuit boards, Arduino does not need an extra
piece of hardware (called a programmer) in order to load a new code onto the board.
You can simply use a USB cable.
Additionally, the Arduino IDE uses a simplified version of C++, making it easier to
learn to program.
Finally, Arduino provides a standard form factor that breaks the functions of the microcontroller into a more accessible package.
Board Types
Various kinds of Arduino boards are available depending on different microcontrollers used. However, all Arduino boards have one thing in common: they are programed through the Arduino IDE. The differences are based on the number of inputs and outputs (the number of sensors, LEDs, and buttons you can use on a single board), speed, operating voltage, form factor etc. Some boards are designed to be embedded and have no programming interface (hardware), which you would need to buy separately. Some can run directly from a 3.7V battery, others need at least 5V.
Here is a list of different Arduino boards available.
ARDUINO – BOARD DESCRIPTION
In this chapter, we will learn about the different components on the Arduino board. We will study the Arduino UNO board because it is the most popular board in the Arduino board family. In addition, it is the best board to get started with electronics and coding. Some boards look a bit different from the one given below, but most Arduinos have majority of these components in common.
1. 3.3V (6): Supply 3.3 output volt
2. 5V (7): Supply 5 output volt
Most of the components used with Arduino board works fine with 3.3 volt and
5 volt.
3. GND (8)(Ground): There are several GND pins on the Arduino, any of which
can be used to ground your circuit.
4. Vin (9): This pin also can be used to power the Arduino board from an external
power source, like AC mains power supply.
10 - Analog pins
The Arduino UNO board has five analog input pins A0 through A5. These pins can read the signal from an analog sensor like the humidity sensor or temperature sensor and convert it into a digital value that can be read by the microprocessor.
11 - Main microcontroller
Each Arduino board has its own microcontroller (11). You can assume it as the brain of your board. The main IC (integrated circuit) on the Arduino is slightly different from board to board. The microcontrollers are usually of the ATMEL Company. You must know what IC your board has before loading up a new program from the Arduino IDE. This information is available on the top of the IC. For more details about the IC construction and functions, you can refer to the data sheet.
12 - ICSP pin
Mostly, ICSP (12) is an AVR, a tiny programming header for the Arduino consisting of MOSI, MISO, SCK, RESET, VCC, and GND. It is often referred to as an SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface), which could be considered as an "expansion" of the output. Actually, you are slaving the output device to the master of the SPI bus.
13 - Power LED indicator
This LED should light up when you plug your Arduino into a power source to indicate that your board is powered up correctly. If this light does not turn on, then there is something wrong with the connection.
14 - TX and RX LEDs
On your board, you will find two labels: TX (transmit) and RX (receive). They appear in two places on the Arduino UNO board. First, at the digital pins 0 and 1, to indicate the pins responsible for serial communication. Second, the TX and RX led (13). The TX led flashes with different speed while sending the serial data. The speed of flashing depends on the baud rate used by the board. RX flashes during the receiving process.
15 - Digital I / O
16 - AREF
ARDUINO – INSTALLATION
After learning about the main parts of the Arduino UNO board, we are ready to learn how to set up the Arduino IDE. Once we learn this, we will be ready to upload our program on the Arduino board. In this section, we will learn in easy steps, how to set up the Arduino IDE on our computer and prepare the board to receive the program via USB cable
Step 1: First you must have your Arduino board (you can choose your favorite board) and a USB cable. In case you use Arduino UNO, Arduino Duemilanove, Nano, Arduino Mega 2560, or Diecimila, you will need a standard USB cable (A plug to B plug), the kind you would connect to a USB printer as shown in the following image:
Step 5: Open your first project:
Once the software starts, you have two options:
Create a new project.
Open an existing project example.
To create a new project, select File --> New
To open an existing project example, select File -> Example -> Basics -> Blink.
Here, we are selecting just one of the examples with the name Blink. It turns the LED on and off with some time delay. You can select any other example from the list.
Step 6: Select your Arduino board:
To avoid any error while uploading your program to the board, you must select the correct Arduino board name, which matches with the board connected to your computer. Go to Tools -> Board and select your board.
Thanks and have a nice day
