Hi I have recently been introduced to arduino through a conversation on site at work. I've watched some youtube videos and really like what I see and want to learn as much about it as possible.
Upon registering to this site I am finding it a lil difficult to navigate and was wondering if someone could help me?
I want to learn as much as possible myself so wont be asking someone to do all the hard work for me.
Is there a section here with projects I can copy like for like to learn? I honestly can't think of any other way of learning I have 2 books on Arduino as well.
I have searched the forum for fingerprint door entry system but can not find anything that I could make use of as they are people trouble shooting their own projects.
Once I have the skills I would like to make a fingerprint gate entry system that logs date, time and person entering and also takes a picture at time of entry.
I have the Arduino Uno starter kit, 37 sensor kit, 12v door striker latch, capacitive fingerprint scanner (R503) lots of cables n resistors etc and a few motors etc. I'm just buying stuff as I go along.
I want my children to be interested in electronics as they grow up that's one reason why I want to learn it too to give them a head start at a young age.
There are examples in the ide. That is where you start. Get a breadboard and a few LEDs and resistors. Learn about turning them on and off. Learn about blink without delay and state machines. If you can turn an led on and use a button then you are half way there. You are using inputs and outputs. If you can dodge a wrench you can dodge a ball.
Like anything it takes hours to get anywhere close to doing a real project otherwise it is cheaper and better to buy a finished product
Where is the IDE area? I'll start reading that section ASAP.
I did manage to blink an LED and I played around with the on and off times etc. Next I will be adding a switch to control the LED. It will take time to pick up but that is what I like about it, an interactive hobby and if I am good enough I can design projects personal to me.
Eventually I do want a fully automated home controlled via mobile phone. Blinds, Lights, door entry, cameras, garage door, garden watering, window opening etc. I can't wait
If you download arduino software from this site the thing you type your code into is the ide. When you open a new sketch you can choose an example code and use that to learn. The examples are there to teach basic principles.
Principles that are important.
The “loop” function loops. When you start you will use code such as delay because you are doing simple linear programs but this is not good in general. Loop should loop fast, faster is better. Delay means stop for a human-timescale and blocking code like this will prevent any significant responsiveness that is the purpose of a microcontroller.
You need to understand basic buttons including standard input pull-up with press to ground, debouncing and that brings us to
Millis timing. Using the internal clock to time things rather than delay etc
State machines allow you to run specific code when a condition is met so that you don’t just loop through the same code over and over.
Functions allow you to group stuff together and use it when you need. Examples are setup and loop but you can make your own
Encapsulation is an important concept that allows you to mix different bits of code without one messing with the other. Functions are the beginning of this and will introduce the concept of scope
A most important thing to learn is to develop code in a sensible manner. Save your code regularly with new names that represent where you are at. Things should be worked on in their simplest forms and made to work well before complicating it. So it working with buttons and LEDs for example start with LEDs and get them working then do buttons in a new sketch. Encapsulate in functions and then join together in another new sketch called eg buttons_leds
If you repeat a bit of code over and over again then there is a better way. Functions or arrays may be the answer but copy and paste is not a good solution in most cases
Thank you Sorry I was being stupid then for a moment yes I have used the IDE when uploaded the blinking LED sketch. I really appreciate your time taken to reply. I will continue to work my way through these books and look for maybe an online education course based on arduino.
I've tried to find a group or gathering near me in the North west of England but I can't find any. There was some but last posts are from years ago so they have since been abandoned.
Welcome new guy,
Here s the list
Led
AI/PWM/D
Blink led
Button with internal pull up
Button and Led
Buzzer/loudspeaker
Button and Buzzer/loudspeaker
7 segment led
7.S. with Button
Sensors
PWM
The Arduino have two main sections: Electronics section and the Software section. In order for any arduino project to work, the electronic section have to work properly, if that is not work properly, the code will not work.
As any computer system, you have --- inputs and outputs. Switches and Sensors are inputs. Motors, Leds and displays are your output.
Most kits have examples projects and example codes you can learn and you can try out.
And some sensors and displays use communication protocol like SPI , I2C and UART / RS232, so learn to use those protocol.
And ... use Google to find code examples and datasheets and schematics and get lots and lots of datasheets and try to understand those datasheets.
Different folks learn best in different ways - decide what suits you.
The tricky thing with an Arduino project is that it will definitely involve C++ and electronics. Higher power electrics and mechanicals are possible too, so a lot of knowledge is needed.
If you have the patience to read your books first, it should help, but I find that cementing the knowledge by doing little programs along the way works better.
One thing you really have to do is learn C++, at least to a small extent. Much of the heavier stuff you can ignore for now (or Indeed for ever). Again, if you are patient, you can work through the first few chapters of a C++ tutorial on your PC - it will be time well spent.
Read the forum too. It’ll show you a ton of other peoples mistakes that you may then avoid.
I'm an electrical mechanical engineer by trade so i do have an understanding of electrical circuits but electronics is totalling different.
I am doing the basic beginner projects and learning i just want to get to a stage where if i think of something in my head i can figure out what components i need without asking someone and be able to write the sketch without asking anybody.
I'm looking forward to doing the garden gate fingerprint entry because it will benefit my home, my kids, my family and friends in summer can all let themselves into my garden etc. Plus i won't need to carry a key or expect my kids to carry one around without losing it.
I would start with a button, then work up to the sensor you're hoping to use. Hide the button. Then try with a keypad perhaps. Both of these options are single user as opposed to having to program in multiple users. That is unless you have a thorough tutorial you're simply following.
That's just how I would approach it although I don't have an engineering background so you will likely have an easier go of learning this stuff than I did.
They have libraries that will include examples you can tweak to your needs. Remember that libraries you add do not go in the Arduino libraries folder. They go in a libraries folder that you make, which is INSIDE the sketchbook folder. To be sure that the Arduino IDE sees them, make sure your sketchbook path is correct under File>Preferences>Sketchbook location: and it should look like this (Windows): C:\Users\layton1985(or whatever your PC user is)\Documents\Arduino\sketchbook
There is also a check box under Preferences you'll want to use. "Show verbose output during: compilation" should be enabled. It will give you tons of helpful info about what the IDE thinks of your sketch when you verify it, even if it compiles.
That's a pretty heavy duty Arduino project. The entry sensor and date/time logger are fairly, well I won't say simple, but definitely within range of a self-described "beginner" (sensor, Arduino, Real Time Clock, 12V latch and relay with appropriate power solution all around).
As for the camera feature of taking a picture at time of entry, I'll say that I can't think of a non-complicated way to do that. What camera did you have in mind and what role in the image capture process do you foresee the Arduino playing?
I'm also an Arduino beginner with an electrical engineer (power systems) background but I'm looking to get into Arduino.
In order to establish accountability and get my own projects off the ground, I'm looking to connect with other beginners and learn together - like a book club but for Arduino projects.
Posting the same subject in multiple places on the forum is called cross posting. Cross posting is against the forum rules. Repeated cross posting can cause a time out. If you feel that this thread is in the wrong place, you can flag the thread for a moderator and ask that it be moved.
Was thinking just a very simple small camera that takes a picture when the fingerprint scanner is woken by someone using it. Imagine just looking online for a nice small one now like a pin hole canera suitable for use with arduino. The fingerprint reader i have is from the pi hut website
How do I find the sketch I need for the fingerprint sensor? I'm on the adafruit website but can't find it anywhere or I don't know what I'm looking at?
