Learn Electronics with Arduino

✍ Scribed by Wilcher, Don

• Publisher: Apress
• Year: 2012
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 267
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Have you ever wondered how electronic gadgets are created? Do you have an idea for a new proof-of-concept tech device or electronic toy but have no way of testing the feasibility of the device? Have you accumulated a junk box of electronic parts and are now wondering what to build?Learn Electronics with Arduino

will answer these questions to discovering cool and innovative applications for new tech products using modification, reuse, and experimentation techniques. You'll learn electronics concepts while building cool and practical devices and gadgets based on the Arduino, an inexpensive and easy-to-program microcontroller board that is changing the way people think about home-brew tech innovation.Learn Electronics with Arduinouses the discovery method. Instead of starting with terminology and abstract concepts, You'll start by building prototypes with solderless breadboards, basic components, and scavenged electronic parts. Have some old blinky toys and gadgets lying around? Put them to work! You'll discover that there is no mystery behind how to design and build your own circuits, practical devices, cool gadgets, and electronic toys.

As you're on the road to becoming an electronics guru, you'll build practical devices like a servo motor controller, and a robotic arm. You'll also learn how to make fun gadgets like a sound effects generator, a music box, and an electronic singing bird.

✦ Table of Contents

Title Page ......Page 1
Copyright Page ......Page 2
Table of Contents......Page 4
Foreword......Page 11
About the Author......Page 12
About the Technical Reviewer......Page 13
Acknowledgments......Page 14
Contacting the Author......Page 15
Parts List......Page 16
What Is Physical Computing?......Page 17
How It Works......Page 18
Transistor Basics......Page 22
Transformer Action......Page 24
The Voltage Divider......Page 27
Light Detection Circuits with a Photocell......Page 29
Testing the Light Detection Circuit with a Voltmeter and an Oscilloscope......Page 30
Using an Oscilloscope......Page 31
Assembly of the Electronic Singing Bird Circuit on a Breadboard......Page 35
Creating the Interactive Control Software......Page 37
What Is a Sketch?......Page 38
Final Testing of the Electronic Singing Bird......Page 39
Further Discovery Methods......Page 40
Parts List......Page 41
How It Works......Page 43
Forward Biasing a LED......Page 44
LED Circuit Analysis......Page 45
The LED Bar Display......Page 46
Mini Roulette Game, Version 1......Page 48
Adding the Game Software......Page 49
The Seven-Segment LED Display Basics......Page 51
Testing the Seven-Segment LED Display......Page 52
Build an Arduino-based Seven Segment LED Display Flasher-Tester......Page 54
The 7447 BCD-to-Decoder IC Basics......Page 58
Build a BCD-to-Decimal Circuit with Seven Segment LED Display......Page 60
Assembly of the Final Circuit on the Breadboard......Page 61
Further Discovery Method Suggestions......Page 62
Parts List......Page 64
Remix Revisited......Page 65
The Potentiometer......Page 67
Measurement Setup Procedure......Page 69
How to Drive Multiple LEDs with a Microcontroller......Page 72
Building the Remixed Interactive LED Sequencer Device......Page 76
Creating the Sequential-Switching Software......Page 77
Further Discovery Methods......Page 80
Parts Lists......Page 81
Remixing Revisited......Page 82
How It Works......Page 83
A Base Biasing Transistor Driver Circuit......Page 84
D1: Flyback Diode......Page 86
Experimenting with a Transistor Relay Driver DC Motor Control Circuit......Page 87
Electromechanical Relay Preparation......Page 90
The Basics of Physical Computing with Electric Motors......Page 92
Potentiometer Input Control......Page 93
The 2N2222 Transistor Pinout......Page 96
Light Detection Input Control......Page 97
Further Discovery Methods......Page 99
Parts List......Page 100
Remixing Motion Controls......Page 101
How It Works......Page 103
Experimenting with a Servo Motor......Page 104
Fritzing Software......Page 105
Physical Computing: A Servo Motor with a Potentiometer......Page 108
Physical Computing: A Servo Motor with a Joystick......Page 111
Physical Computing: A Servo Motor with a FlexiForce Sensor......Page 113
The Darlington Transistor......Page 116
The Unipolar Stepper Motor......Page 118
A Multisim Digital Controller Model for a Unipolar Stepper Motor......Page 119
Build an Arduino Unipolar Stepper Motor Controller......Page 121
Adding a Speed Control Function......Page 125
Final Testing of the Servo and Stepper Motor Controllers......Page 127
Further Discovery Method Suggestions......Page 128
Parts List......Page 129
Remixing Physical-Computing and Driver Interface Circuits......Page 130
How It Works......Page 132
Experimenting with PWM......Page 133
Building and Testing a Basic Music Box Controller......Page 137
Try It!......Page 140
Driving a Speaker......Page 143
Physical Computing and the Music Box Controller......Page 145
What Is a PMOSFET?......Page 146
A PMOSFET Multisim Circuit Model......Page 147
Sketch for the Interactive Music Box Controller......Page 151
Building and Testing a Basic Music Box Controller with a Keypad......Page 155
Further Discovery Methods......Page 158
Parts List......Page 159
Remixing Physical Computing and Driver Interface Circuits......Page 160
Experimenting with a Vibration Motor......Page 162
Physical Computing: A Vibration Motor......Page 169
Try It Out......Page 173
Keypad Haptics......Page 175
FlexiForce Sensor Haptics......Page 184
A Robot End Effector Test Stand......Page 187
Further Discovery Method Suggestions......Page 188
Parts List......Page 189
Remixing Physical-Computing Input Interface Circuits......Page 190
How It Works: The LCD Test Jig......Page 193
The Real “Hello World”: Arduino and the LCD......Page 197
Try It Out!......Page 202
The Vanishing Message......Page 208
Building an Evaluation Board......Page 210
Further Discovery Methods......Page 214
Parts List......Page 215
How It Works......Page 216
Testing a NAND Gate......Page 218
The Seven-Segment LED Display and the Arduino......Page 221
Building a Smart Logic Probe......Page 230
Building an Improved Smart Logic Probe......Page 234
Further Discovery Methods......Page 236
Parts List......Page 237
How It Works......Page 238
Building an Electronic Thermometer......Page 239
A Computer Thermometer......Page 242
Final Completion of Computer Thermometer......Page 245
Try It Out!......Page 249
An LCD Electronic Thermometer......Page 253
A Temperature Controller......Page 255
Final Thoughts and Suggestions......Page 258
Index......Page 260