ESP8266 and ESP32 are popular WiFi development solutions that can be programmed in several ways using different programming languages. Common languages include MicroPython, C, JavaScript, and LUA script. The choice of embedded firmware and software tools makes it possible to program ESP8266 and ESP32 in different languages. The versatility and flexibility to program ESP boards…

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. All arduino boards should be compatible with the arduino IDE which can be used to program the arduino boards. The arduino IDE is also open source and anybody can contribute their libraries to the arduino. There is no other tool available which helps in easy prototyping like the arduino does. The arduino board has all the required circuitary to get the built-in AVR microcontroller running. The output or inputs can be taken from the boards or given to the board using convenient connectors.

没有其他工具帮助在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.When it comes to programming the arduino board anyone who have basic knowledge of c programming can quickly get started with the arduino IDE. Since the arduino board can act as a stand-alone system it should have capabilities to take inputs process the input and then generate a corresponding output.

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.

The PS2 keyboard uses a simple synchronous serial protocol using only two wires for communication. Due to its simplicity the PS2 keyboards are widely used with simple microcontroller based boards also. The PS2 keyboard always acts as a slave device which can send the equivalent ASCII value of the key which has been pressed to its master device which can be a PC or a microcontroller.The SD memory card comes in large storage capacities from 1 GB up to 32 GB are available. They are used mostly in costly devices like digital camera, media players etc. The SD memory cards are interfaced in high end devices using SD bus which provides very high speed data transfer between the device and the memory card. They also can be interfaced with a device using the low speed and comparatively simple SPI bus and hence they are widely used in microcontroller based system also.

The applications of microcontroller are not limited to control simple electrical or electronic device but they are widely used in robotics and automotive industries nowadays. From simple rear view mirror control to complex engine control functions are done by the microcontroller. The microcontroller can even implement to automatically controlling the vehicle without a human driver inside it and such kinds of vehicles are called Unmanned Vehicles (UV). The UVs are commonly used research, military, rescue and agriculture fields. For any UVs the real time tracking of their path is necessary to ensure that they are moving through the proper way.This project demonstrates how it is possible to make a simplest path tracking device for a ground vehicle with the help of optical mouse. This project makes use of an optical mouse which works on PS2 protocol and is interfaced with an Arduino board to read the data from it.

The mouse and the Keyboard form the standard input unit for a Personal computer. The QWERT keyboard which is used in the PC comes with a PS2 connector or USB port connector. The PS2 keyboard uses a simple synchronous serial protocol using only two wires for communication. Due to its simplicity the PS2 keyboards are widely used with simple microcontroller based boards also. The PS2 keyboard always acts as a slave device which can send the equivalent ASCII value of the key which has been pressed to its master device which can be a PC or a microcontroller. The ZigBee is the name of a wireless protocol maintained by the IEEE 802.15 standard. This is a protocol specified for wireless Personal Area Network (PAN) using low powered wireless transceivers. There are already wireless transmitter and receiver modules which can do point to point communication.

One can use a cell phone with any cellular networks around the globe if the proper SIM card is inserted in it. This is possible because there is some device inside the cell phone which follows a global standard enabling them to connect with different cellular networks. This standard is called Global System for Mobile communications (GSM). The mobile phones have built in GSM modules which then be used by the processor inside the phone to make a call, send or receive message or even connect with the GPRS network. In certain applications the microcontroller based systems has to be connected with the GSM network which will enable a user to control the system by sending messages or making a call. The systems can also send messages to the user to alert or inform about the status of the system running.

The mobile phones have built –in GSM module which enables them to connect with any cellular network around the globe. The GSM stands for Global System for Mobile communications. In certain applications the microcontroller based systems has to be connected with the GSM network which will enable a user to control the system by sending messages or making a call. The systems can also send messages to the user to alert or inform about the status of the system running. In all such cases a separate GSM module is used rather than using the mobile phones. There are GSM modules available which can do serial communication with microcontroller based systems. The communication is done by sending or receiving AT commands with the GSM module. This particular project demonstrates how to interface a GSM module and dial a call using the standard PS2 keyboard with the help of an Arduino board.

在某些应用程序基于单片机的systems has to be connected with the GSM network which will enable a user to control the system by sending messages or making a call. The advantage of using a GSM communication with a system or device is that the user can control the system wirelessly no matter how far it is kept compared to any other wireless communication, provided that both the user and the device should be in a cellular coverage area. The mobile phones have built in GSM modules which then be used by the processor inside the phone to make a call, send or receive message or even connect with the GPRS network. When it comes to a microcontroller based system a separate GSM module is used rather than using a cell phone as such. There are GSM modules available which can do serial communication with microcontroller based systems.

Renesas Electronics Corporation, a supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions, has announced an investment in Arduino’s new round of Series B funding. The partnership with Arduino enables Renesas to make its broad range of products available for Arduino’s technology platforms used by its worldwide developer community. Arduino was first developed as an easy-to-use tool for fast…

Contactless temperature-measurement guns became popular during the Covid pandemic. Several places used this device to ensure safety protocols. However, one of the drawbacks of the contactless temperature measurement guns available today is that they measure body temperature — not the distance of the body (object) from the sensor. The body’s distance from the sensor is…

In this article, we will be creating a pet feeding system that can be controlled by WhatsApp. Components required Tools required/ libraries required Linux based machine Python-based WhatsApp API MQTT based Python IDE Arduino IDE Technical insights The complete project has three types of communication and devices. XMPP (WhatsApp, MQTT, and Arduino Serial) can also…

In this article, we will be controlling devices that do not support WhatsApp but support other communication protocols like MQTT, TCP, IMAP, etc. If a house is installed with home automation devices that do not support Whatsapp, we will communicate with these devices (controllers) using protocols supported by these devices. Thus, we will be able…

It is common to use different sensors with microcontrollers in embedded applications. Microcontrollers are equipped with parallel data ports and several serial data communication interfaces that allow them to interface and communicate with sensors. There are times when the data fetched from sensors need to be stored for future use. This may be just for…

In Part I and Part II of this series, we learned how to use an analog sensor — including a potentiometer (POT), a light-dependent resistor (LDR), and a soil-moisture sensor — to present values on an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display. In Part III, we’ll also present data on an OLED display, but this time…

In Part I of this tutorial, we learned how to present data (or values) using a potentiometer (POT) and an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display. For this project, the POT was an analog sensor (potentiometers can also be digital), which acts as a resistor to control the flow of an electric current. The OLED technology…

Digital compasses are electronic devices that use sensors to determine the magnetic field, displaying the navigational direction numerically. These types of compasses typically use a magnetometer sensor to measure the strength of the magnetic field to detect the direction. One low-cost, three-axis digital magnetometer is the HMC5883L. It measures the value of the magnetic field…