RGB LEDs project help needed

Using Arduino Project Guidance
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Hi,
I'm planning to make a cool light fixture using an IR receiver, 2 RGB LEDs (20mA for each color, 2V for red, 3.2V for green & blue) and an Arduino Uno.
Now, I have a piece of perf board and a 9V power supply, but I may also use a 9V battery and I have a regulator kit (LM317-based) on the way.
I'm planning to buy an ATMega328 programmed with the Arduino Uno bootloader and a 28-pin ZIF socket to solder on to the perf board, while programming it on my recently purchased Uno.

Now, my questions are the following:

  1. Do I need to use transistors to power the LEDs, or can I use the Arduino's PWM outputs? If so, would NPN 2N2222 transistors (one for each RGB LED input) do the job?
  2. If I use a ceramic resonator of 16Mhz, can I simply connect it to pins 9 and 10 on the chip (PB6 and PB7)?
  3. Can I take out the chip on the Arduino Uno without a special tool? If so, how?
  4. Would 150 Ohm (for the red LEDs) and 100 Ohm (for the other LEDs) resistors work in this situation?
  5. Is there a schematic better than the pin map (http://www.arduino.cc/en/Hacking/PinMapping168) for use in a perf board?

Thanks in advance.

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  1. Do I need to use transistors to power the LEDs, or can I use the Arduino's PWM outputs? If so, would NPN 2N2222 transistors (one for each RGB LED input) do the job?

No transistor required, just a series resistor from a arduino output pin to each color led input. So three output pins and three resistors will work fine. You didn't say if the led is common anode or common cathode. If common anode then it wires to +5vdc and a digital output low will light the led, if common cathode then it wires to ground and a digital output high will light the led.

  1. If I use a ceramic resonator of 16Mhz, can I simply connect it to pins 9 and 10 on the chip (PB6 and PB7)?

The ones I have see have three terminals, the middle terminal wires to ground and the outer two terminals wire to the two clock pin inputs.

  1. Can I take out the chip on the Arduino Uno without a special tool? If so, how?

I use a small jewelers flat screwdriver or an exacto knife. Just insert between end of the chip and it's socket and pry up just a little, move to other end and pry up a little, do that several times till the chip leads are almost completely out of the socket, then you can usually just lift it out from there with your fingers. Work slow and gentle.

  1. Would 150 Ohm (for the red LEDs) and 100 Ohm (for the other LEDs) resistors work in this situation?

Yes those values will work fine.

  1. Is there a schematic better than the pin map (http://www.arduino.cc/en/Hacking/PinMapping168) for use in a perf board?

I'm sure there are. So many have been posted around here I can't keep up with them all. Search on arduino standalone and I'm sure you will find many examples.

Lefty

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