Practical Arduino

Create your own Arduino-based designs, gain an in-depth knowledge of the architecture of Arduino, and learn the easy-to-use Arduino language all in the context of practical projects that you can build yourself at home. Get hands-on experience using a variety of projects and recipes for everything from home automation to test equipment.

Arduino has taken off as an incredibly popular building block among ubicomp (ubiquitous computing) enthusiasts, robotics hobbyists, and DIY home automation developers. Practical Arduino provides detailed instructions for building a wide range of both practical and fun Arduino-related projects covering areas such as hobbies, automotive, communications, home automation, and instrumentation.

• Take Arduino beyond “blink” to a wide variety of projects from simple to challenging.
• Hands-on recipes for everything from home automation to interfacing with your car engine management system.
• Explanations of techniques and references to handy resources for ubiquitous computing projects.

Supplementary material includes a circuit schematic reference, introductions to a range of electronic engineering principles and general hits and tips. These combine with the projects themselves to make Practical Arduino: Cool Projects for Open Source Hardware an invaluable reference for Arduino users of all levels. You’ll learn a wide variety of techniques that can be applied to your own projects.

What you’ll learn

• Reading analog and digital input and writing analog and digital output
• Communication with serial devices including RFID readers, temperature sensors, and GPSmodules
• Connecting Arduino to Ethernet and WiFi networks
• Interfacing with resistive touch screens
• Adding synthesized speech to Arduino projects
• Linking physical devices to software environments
• Linking Arduino to web services
• Decoding data streams from commercial wireless devices
• Reading input from PS/2 keyboards and mice
• Interfacing with common 16×2 and 20×4 LCD modules
• The Arduino memory architecture
• Mass storage using USB memory sticks
• How to use both regular interrupts and pin-change (port-level) interrupts
• How to make DIY prototyping shields for only a couple of dollars

Featured projects

• Appliance Remote Control
• Time-Lapse Camera Controller
• Virtual USB Keyboard
• PS/2 Keyboard Or Mouse Input
• Security / Automation Sensors
• Online Thermometer
• Touch Control Panel
• Speech Synthesizer
• Water Flow Gauge
• Oscilloscope / Logic Analyzer
• Water Tank Depth Sensor
• Weather Station Receiver
• RFID Access Control System
• Vehicle Telemetry Platform