I use this little fella:

http://www.hobbytronics.co.uk/i2clcd-backpack

It uses the I2C bus, just analog pins 4 and 5 plus a ground and 5volts.
It's really easy to use and comes with it's own library.
Instead of the pins that came with it, I soldered a 16 pin socket to the board.
That way I can just clip any display to it.
I'm quite the novice but it's very easy to use.

Paul

If you're making shields up or need something longer to work with breadboard, these stackables come in really handy.

http://www.hobbytronics.co.uk/arduino/arduino-stackable-header-kit

http://www.oomlout.co.uk/extra-pieces-headers-c-70_89.html

Paul

Hi, thanks for that.
Yes, everything is wired up correctly.
When I upload with the Uno (either via jumper wires or actually placing the chip in the Uno) everything works perfectly.
The chips are bootloaded. I even have both Uno and Duemilanove bootloaders on different chips. Neither of which want to work.

Thanks for that Shellycat.
I'll check that out, thank you!

Thanks
Colaboy

Hi.
Is there a knack to programming a standalone chip using an FTDI cable?
I have tried allsorts and I just can't upload a sketch no matter what I try.
I can upload one just fine using my Uno, taking the chip out and using jumper wires.
I know the cable is working as it is a recognised com port and when attached to a working chip, it sends serial data back and forth.
I think I read somewhere that the timing of pressing reset is crucial. I have approached this in a very methodical manner(timing, gaps etc.) but to no avail.
As the Uno sorts the reset out for me but the FTDI cable doesn't, I think this may very well be the problem.

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance.
Colaboy

Wow!
Thanks for all the info gang.

Lots to take in and mull over.

I will weigh up my options and decide which way to go.

Thanks again, much appreciated I can assure you.

Paul

Thanks for the input guys.

I'll add the capacitor as you mentioned.

I won't be using analog read on this occasion. I may in the future though, would this require anything different?

Thanks again
Paul

Hi.

I need to make a very small Arduino to put inside a project.
Could I just solder the components straight to the chip socket as shown in the picture.
If so, have I missed any vital components?
It will be powered by a seperate power supply, as shown in the schematic in the corner.
Also, the chip will be programmed using an uno, so i don't need any programming wiring.

Thanks
Paul

That's great guys, thank you very much.

I was hoping that would be the case as it gives me a lot more flexibility with my pin placing.

I searched lots of posts first but completely forgot about the reference section.

Thanks again.

Kind regards
Paul

Hi, I wonder if somebody could advise me please.

I have a couple of little LCD projects up and running and on the whole, I’m very pleased with them.
I have noticed though, that the pin configurations in the sketches are different.

Below are two examples of different sketches where the LCD is declared:

LiquidCrystal lcd(2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7);

LiquidCrystal lcd(12, 11, 5, 4, 3, 2);


They both work, but how?
How does the Arduino know which pin is connected to where?
Can you use any pins you want as long as you declare them?
Do they have to be declared in a certain order for it to work?

Thanks for any advice.

Kind regards
Paul

Hi.
Here is a link to an FS Forum.

http://www.mycockpit.org/forums/showthread.php/22564-Link2FS_Arduino_Keys_beta2

It's all free. You download the small utility, then you upload the sketch to your Arduino.
Any pin connected to ground (except 1, 2 and 13) gives you a key press or combination of key presses.
It's all fully programable and is a fantastic piece of freeware.
The guy who wrote it will also gladly answer any questions on it via the above forum.

I currently use it with an Uno and it gives me 19 inputs via USB. I believe a Mega will give you 56!

If anybody else is interested, it will also work with virtually anything that expects key presses.
As a test, I made a little control panel for CAD, very nice!

Colaboy

Thanks for that Jim.

Being new to programing, I tend to copy and paste bits of code from different places and just try to get them to work.

I'm all for trying to do it properly though.

Thanks again.

Paul

Thanks for the info Mike.

But as Crossroads eluded to, this is just the early stages of the project.
There are a lot more things I want it to do as well, a bit further down the line.

Much appreciated though.

Thanks
Paul

Hi, thanks for the info.

I'm very new to all this so I did a bit of searching and I managed to cobble this together from a few different places.

Code:

/*
 Multiple State Change Test
   
 The circuit:
 * Pushbuttons attached to pins 2 and 3 from +5V
 * 10K resistosr attached to pins 2 and 3 from ground
 * LEDs attached to pins 10 and 11 to ground

*/

const int  buttonPin1 = 2;    // the pin that pushbutton 1 is attached to
const int  buttonPin2 = 3;    // the pin that pushbutton 2 is attached to
const int ledPin1 = 10;       // the pin that LED 1 is attached to
const int ledPin2 = 11;       // the pin that LED 2 is attached to

// Variables will change:
int buttonState1 = 0;         // current state of button 1
int buttonState2 = 0;         // current state of button 2
int lastButtonState1 = 0;     // previous state of button 1
int lastButtonState2 = 0;     // previous state of button 2

void setup() {
  // initialize the button pins as inputs
  pinMode(buttonPin1, INPUT);
  pinMode(buttonPin2, INPUT);
  // initialize the LEDs as outputs
  pinMode(ledPin1, OUTPUT);
  pinMode(ledPin2, OUTPUT);
}


void loop() {
  buttonState1 = digitalRead(buttonPin1);  //Read the pushbutton input pin

  // Compare the buttonState to its previous state
  if (buttonState1 != lastButtonState1) {  // if the state has changed,
     
   
    if (buttonState1 == HIGH) {      // If the button is high
      digitalWrite(ledPin1, HIGH);  // Turn LED 1 on
      delay(250);                   // Wait quarter of a second
      digitalWrite(ledPin1, LOW);   // Turn LED 1 off
    }
    else {                          // If the button is low
      digitalWrite(ledPin1, HIGH);  // Turn LED 1 on
      delay(250);                   // Wait quarter of a second
      digitalWrite(ledPin1, LOW);   // Turn LED 1 off
     
     
    }
  }
 
  lastButtonState1 = buttonState1;    // Save the current state of button 1 as the last state 1
 
    buttonState2 = digitalRead(buttonPin2);  //Read the pushbutton input pin

  // Compare the buttonState to its previous state
  if (buttonState2 != lastButtonState2) {  // if the state has changed,
     
   
    if (buttonState2 == HIGH) {      // If the button is high
      digitalWrite(ledPin2, HIGH);  // Turn LED 2 on
      delay(250);                   // Wait quarter of a second
      digitalWrite(ledPin2, LOW);   // Turn LED 2 off
    }
    else {                          // If the button is low
      digitalWrite(ledPin2, HIGH);  // Turn LED 2 on
      delay(250);                   // Wait quarter of a second
      digitalWrite(ledPin2, LOW);   // Turn LED 2 off
     
     
    }
  }
 
  lastButtonState2 = buttonState2;    // Save the current state of button 2 as the last state 2
}

I put LEDs on the outputs for testing and it seems to work just how I want it to.

Thanks again for the help.

Paul

Hi, I hope someone can help me please.

Please bear with me as this is quite difficult to explain.

I'm making a flight simulator control panel.
I need to use toggle switches to make the panel look realistic. But the electrical output from the toggle switch is different to what I need.

When I turn on one side of the toggle switch, I need to send a short signal to another board.
Then when I turn the toggle switch off again, I need it to send the same signal again.

Is that possible?

I hope that makes sense.

Thanks in advance.

Paul

Thanks again guys, much appreciated I can assure you.

Seems like I have plenty of options going forward.

Being on a budget isn't always fun but, at least you use up the things around you.

Thanks again
Paul