Windows GUI for Arduino

Projects General Guidance
1

Hello folks, I want to build a Windows UI for my Arduino project, that reads data and gives commands to Arduino using the serial port. I came across Megunolink, although I am not sure if it is capable of creating a Windows application for my project. Can you guys suggest what is the easiest way to achieve this?

2

you could implement the GUI using Visual Studo (C#, C++, VB ), NetBeans (java), Python, etc
all have libraries which support serial ports suitable for communication with an Arduino
what is your programming experience?

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3

I have minimal experience, That is the reason I am checking options like Megunolink.

4

try a web search for arduino gui builder, e.g. make-a-pc-graphical-interface-for-arduino-any-easy-software
if you know C/C++ Visual Studio C# may be suitable
have a look at Visual Studio Comunity - there are plenty of tutorials on building GUIs and programming

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5

Do you have to use a serial link or could you consider running a webserver on the Arduino (or an alternative such as an ESP32) and controlling it using a web browser on the PC ?

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6

I will have to use a serial link

7

For a basic dashboard interface using NodeRed is possibly the quickest way of building something presentable.

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8

All the GUI will see is a COM port - it neither knows nor cares what's connected on the other side of that COM port.

Therefore any Windows GUI tool/framework that can access a COM port can be used - the fact that you have an Arduino is irrelevant.

9

I found "Processing" quite nice. It comes with an Arduino library that allows to access Arduino pins and more from your Processing application.

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10

@abisat So is the real question, "How to communicate from a Windows GUI to an Arduino via COM port?"

For that, you might look at Firmata:

There's also a FirmataExpress - adds some "higher level" facilities; higher speed:

and a derivative called Telemetrix - "A user-extensible replacement for Standard Firmata without the complexity of Firmata":

https://mryslab.github.io/telemetrix/

11

I was too slow in fixing my description of Processing. Processing is a Windows GUI application development package that comes with an Arduino communication library.

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12

Megunolink is not free.
Are you looking for free software?

14

Blockquote

Yes, I am.

15

So which part is it that you're looking for:

  1. the GUI builder/toolkit/framework?
  2. the comms?

Or both?

16

I am looking for developing a Windows GUI application. Which will in turn use Serial communication as protocol.

17

Both!

18

So, again, the fact that you have an Arduino is completely irrelevant to the GUI part.

Also, "Serial communication" is not a complete protocol - just the basic, physical transport.

You are going to have to define

  1. what commands/requests your Arduino will accept over the serial link;
  2. what replies/responses your Arduino will give over the serial link;
  3. the formats of all those messages.
  4. Implement handling all those messages in both the Arduino and the GUI.
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19

As always, the easiest way is generally to break that down into separate steps.

I would suggest that you first define your protocol (commands/responses), and get that working, and then build the GUI.

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20

Please read my fixed description of Processing in #9. It is just what you are looking for.

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21

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