Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
The first external hardware connection
Now that you are aware of all of the GPIO capabilities, you can start putting them to work.
In order to do this, it is best to purchase a small breadboard and some jumper wires; this
will make connecting to the outside world easier.
They are easy to find. You can purchase one at almost any electronics store or on any on-
line electronics site. The jumper wires you want are male-to-male solderless jumper wires.
Tip
These jumper cables plug easily into the header pins on the Arduino Uno or Mega and the
breadboard. If you are working with FLORA, you will want to purchase some alligator clip
style wires. These will make connecting to FLORA easy.
There are also many starter kits which come with breadboards and jumper cables, along
with additional sensors and HW capabilities that you can use with your Arduino board.
There are too many to list here; simply search Arduino starter kits on the Internet and you'll
get an idea of the many choices. Just make sure they come with a breadboard and male-to-
male solderless jumper wires.
Your first project will use the digital I/O pins to light up an LED. To do this, you'll need to
gather two more hardware pieces. The first is a
light emitting diode
(
LED
). This is a small
part with two leads that lights up when voltage is applied to it. They come in a wide variety
of colors. If you want to buy them online, search for a 3 mm LED. You can also get them at
most electronics shops.
You'll also need a resistor to limit the current to the LED; a 220 ohm resister would be the
right size. Again, you can get them online or at most electronics shops.
If you get three LEDs and three resistors, you can exercise several of the digital I/O pins.
Now that you have all the bits and bobs, let's build our first hardware project. Before you
plug anything in, let's look at the breadboard for a moment so that you can understand how
you are going to use it to make connections. You'll be plugging your wires into the holes on
the breadboard. The holes on the breadboard are connected in a unique way to make the
connections you desire.
