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Want to start playing with sensors, but don’t know where to begin? This kit includes a variety of basic sensors for any beginner or experienced programmer. With everything included in this kit, you’ll be able to sense acceleration, force, vibration, Infrared light, ambient light, temperature, and more! These are some great basic sensors from varying categories.

This huge assortment of sensors makes an amazing gift for that very special electronics geek; they won’t be able to thank you enough!

Kit Includes:

  • Triple Axis Accelerometer Breakout - MMA8452Q - Senses acceleration along all three axes, with a range of up to ±3g. Fully analog interface.
  • Hall Effect Sensor - Holding a magnet near this sensor will cause the output pin to toggle. This makes for a robust presence sensor.
  • Tilt Sensor - A simple AT407 basic tilt switch that can easily be used to detect orientation on your project.
  • Piezo Element - These two Piezo elements come in handy when you need to detect vibration or a knock. You can use these for tap or knock sensors pretty easily by reading the voltage on the output.
  • Insulated Reed Switch - Senses magnetic fields, makes for a great non-contact switch.
  • IR Receiver Diode - The TSOP382 is a miniaturized receiver for infrared remote control systems.
  • Infrared LED - This is a very simple, clear infrared LED. These devices operate between 940-950nm and work well for generic IR systems.
  • TMP36 - Temperature Sensor - The TMP36 is a low voltage, precision centigrade temperature sensor. It provides a voltage output that is linearly proportional to the Celsius temperature.
  • Trimpot 10K with Knob - This 10K trimmable potentiometer has a small knob built right in and it’s breadboard friendly to boot!
  • 0.25" Magnet Square - Plays nicely with the reed switch. Embed the magnet into stuffed animals or inside a box to create a hidden actuator to the reed switch.
  • 0.5" Force Sensitive Resistor - A force sensing resistor with a 0.5" diameter sensing area. Great for sensing pressure (i.e. if it’s being squeezed).
  • Mini Photocell - The photocell will vary its resistance based on how much light it’s exposed to. Will vary from 1kΩ in the light to 10kΩ in the dark.
  • Flex Sensor - As the sensor is flexed, the resistance across the sensor increases. Useful for sensing motion or positioning
  • Piezo Buzzer/Speaker - This is a small 12mm round speaker that operates around the audible 2kHz range. You can use these speakers to create simple music or user interfaces.
  • Resistor 1.0M Ohm 1/6 Watt PTH - Two 1/6th Watt, +/- 5% tolerance PTH resistors. Commonly used in breadboards and perf boards

Documents:

The SparkFun Essential Sensor Kit appears in the following collections:

SKU SF-SEN-12862