Starting my first project. Ended up here from raspberry pi.
I want to gut a grandfather clock.
Add motors to control both hand separately as well as pendulum (so 3 motors)
Also speakers.
Also fog machine.
Also led lights.
Then make routine to run them together or separate in whatever combo I wish.
I’ve been pointed to the r1 gigs wireless board and the motor shields which I will need 2 of since they can do 2 motors each.
Question is, since arduino has no direct way to control sound or fog or lights, how do I achieve this?
To put into perspective I run games of blood on the clock tower a social deduction game I’m going to need this clock to use hands to function as a timer where hands make timer for anywhere from 5 to 4 to 3 minutes also to make the hands spin wildly while also expelling fog and playing sound with the press another button the fog stops it plays a chime and starts a timer that LED lights for affect as adjustable would be great. Ambitious first attempt but since no one makes it, I have to
what programming language did you use on the RPi - what language do you intend to use for the new project?
any reason not to use a RPi for this project?
you appear to be starting with hardware and attempting to fit your requirements to it
start by drawing up a requirements-specification, i.e. what is the project to do
this should give you a list of hardware requirements and some idea of the microcontroller IO requirements, e.g. GPIO pins, ADC, DAC, I2C, SPI, WiFi, BLE, Canbus, etc
you then select a microcontroller too meet these requirements
how are you planning to prototype the system? e.g. breadboard
There are assorted sounds boards that can be connected to Arduinos as well, both MP3 player modules that can play pre-recorded files from a uSD card, as well as Digital to Analog converters that can play arbitrary waveforms (including .WAV files from "somewhere.")
Fog machine probably requires an AC relay controller.
"LED Lights" is too broad a category to make a specific recommendation. Arduinos can drive "smart LEDs", or talk to controllers that will do so on their behalf. And drive dumb LEDs via driver boards.
Your project is similar to a "robot" in its requirements; you should look at some of the products and vendors aimed at the robotics community.
(Sparkfun, Adafruit, DFRobot, etc.)
That sounds like an interesting project that could be a lot of fun! However, please keep in mind that we are not a free design or code-writing service. We’re more than happy to help with your design or code, but we need you to make an initial attempt. Please design and write your code, then post it along with an explanation of what’s not working properly.
Show Your Work First: Before asking for assistance, make an attempt to design or write the code yourself. Share your work along with details about what isn’t working.
Provide Clear Documentation: Since we can’t see your project, share an annotated schematic (best) or a clear drawing of your setup. Pictures are welcome, but avoid using Fritzing diagrams as they are wiring diagrams, not schematics, and are not ideal for troubleshooting.
Include Technical Details: If there is specific hardware involved, include links to technical information. There are often many versions of similar components, so precise details are essential.
Be aware that shields might use the same pins. So a shield for a motor driver that uses e.g pin X and Y can not be combined with another shield that uses one (or both) of those two pins if you want to achieve the functionality of each shield.
I’m not looking for free coding, every response prior to this one at least, has added to my knowledge, since ihave none. I have never attempted anything like this. I am a monkey banging a rock on electronics like 2001 a space odyssey. But no one makes this device I want, so I am gonna figure it out. I may spend 5x what it should cost and fry 10 boards, but again, if I don’t make it, it doesn’t exist so…. just trying to figure out physical components at least and go from there. I went to Arduino over pi on the advice of people in a pi forum. A theatre production forum all said arduino for this as well. So here I am. I have no doubt I will beat my head against wall for months before I get this right. But if someone wants to say, get these stepper motors, this relay for fog, these speakers and this board to interface well shucks that would be swell. I for all intents and purposes am a newborn. I am proficient in computers and can solder but designing circuits and designing software from scratch? Negative. I am watching videos but obviously
No one has made exactly what I want to make so hard to directly apply. I don’t expect someone to write code for me, but if I can get help figuring what all I need to make this a reality, I will gladly spend the next six months puzzling it out but I’m starting at the Stone Age here. Sorry if thst isn’t what this forum is for, Arduinos seemed for beginners so figured I’d ask
You are correct. Imagine a toddler, learning to put shaped blocks in the right holes. That’s me! No one makes this device I want, so i need to make it. It’s ambitious to say the least. The boards etc were what arduino company recommended. A theatre production forum recommended it over pi for what I need. Could be wrong, I have no idea
I’ve used nothing. I’ve arrived here after asking advice on many forums for how to achieve what I want. The products arduino suggested may not be best, but I’m starting at ground zero. For all intents and purposes, approaching this as having never done anything like this before, I’m a caveman smashing a rock into another
if you do use the Arduino GIGA R1 WiFi dev board you referenced in post 1 note that the Circuit operating voltage is 3.3V - if you input 5V logic signals use level converters or potential dividers or you may well damage the dev board
never used a Giga R1so cannot advise further - I tend to prefer ESP32 dev boards which are a lot cheaper (on EBAY in UK about £7 against £90 for a Giga R1) and have onboard WiFi, Bluetooth Classic and BLE - again the ESP32 uses 3.3V logic
By whom? Someone trying to sell you a very expensive Arduino board.... Seems totally overkill for your project, from what you have described so far.
Can you stack 2 motor shields? Better check that.
The advice I usually give is: if you know of, or can find, a shield or set of compatible shields that do everything you want your circuit to do, then great, go for it. Get those shields and an Arduino model that is compatible with shields. But if not, then shields, and Arduino models compatible with shields, can be more of a hindrance than a help.
I would recommend you start by building a prototype. The quickest way to do this is by using solderless breadboards. Buy a couple of good sized ones, so you can clip them together when your circuit outgrows a single breadboard.
Also get a basic Arduino that is compatible with breadboards. I suggest a classic Nano V3.
When your prototype is built, tested and working, you can solder the components up to a circuit board for permanent installation. Veroboard/stripboard would be suitable. You can even get bare boards that have the same connections as a solderless breadboard, which can make things even easier.
Without the limitation of shields, you have a much wider choice of modules for motor drivers etc.
In that case I’d recommend you start with basic stuff such as working your way methodically through the Arduino examples built into the IDE. Ask about those as you go.
Then turn to your interesting but fairly ambitious project for a beginner. It’s all doable, with the three elements summed up by the succinct post #5.
It means I can run a computer well, ie install and run most major apps, format drives, set up and manage wireless networks, and have dabbled in some light coding so I’m not an 80 yr old who pecks at the keys and doesn’t know how to restart router . So not completely helpless on that front. But I have never written an entire program etc. that’s why I was leaning Arduino as from what I’ve been told it’s easier to tell it what to do and less legwork there than a raspberry pi as it’s more for just driving device vs an entire computer like the pi:man_shrugging:. Again though I’ve never built an electronic device from scratch. I mean, I’ve pieced together a pc from components before, but like buying control boards and motors and relays and trying to build out a functioning system all controlled by a board that I then programmed….yea never done anything like that so this is a big leap for me
You think I should just get like the Arduino starter kit and fiddle with that a bit? Probly good advice since I’ve no clue what I’m doing. Thanks for the reply!
Thank you! Appreciate the pointers, it’s good to just have a little direction. I know this isn’t gonna be a quick weekend project. More likely months of tinkering and frustration but that’s ok! Appreciate your reply! I’ll grab some basics and start the trial and error and learning!
Motors can draw high currents. Especially when they start up from stationary, or you throw them into reverse.
Breadboards are not built for high currents. You don't want anything more than about 1 Amp flowing through a breadboard, even from one hole to an adjacent hole, or the breadboard will overheat and begin to melt and deform.
So keep high currents off the breadboard. Use appropriate gauge wires and use screw terminals/plug blocks to hook them up.
Stripboard/veroboard can take high currents, but only after you have put a thick layer of solder along the portion of the strip that will carry the high current. Thick enough to cover the holes.
A good place to start before getting to far into a project is get a copy of the Arduino Cookbook and read the complete thing trying any of the projects that interest you.
just trying to figure out physical components at least and go from there. I went to Arduino over pi on the advice of people in a pi forum. A theatre production forum all said arduino for this as well. So here I am. I have no doubt I will beat my head against wall for months before I get this right. But if someone wants to say, get these stepper motors, this relay for fog, these speakers and this board to interface well shucks that would be swell. I for all intents and purposes am a newborn. I am proficient in computers and can solder but designing circuits and designing software from scratch? Negative. I am watching videos but obviously