Arduino is an open-source electronic platform based on easy-to-use hardware and software
Arduino boards are able to read inputs such as light on a sensor, a finger on a button, or a text message
and turn it into an output, like activating a motor, turning on an LED, or displaying dials based on a liquid crystal display
You can tell the Arduino board what to do by sending a set of instructions to the microcontroller on the board
This code unifies the Arduino programming language and the Arduino software, or the IDE
According to the official Arduino website, using Arduino has many advantages. First is it's inexpensive
Arduino boards are relatively inexpensive compared to other microcontroller platforms. The least expensive version of the Arduino module can be assembled by hand
Second, it is a cloud platform. The Arduino software, or IDE, runs on Windows, Mac OS, and Linux operating systems
Most microcontroller systems are limited to Windows. Third, it has a simple, clear programming environment
The Arduino software is easy to use for beginners, yet flexible enough for advanced users
Fourth, the software is open source. The Arduino software is published as open source tools available for expansion by experienced programmers
The language can be expanded to C++ libraries, and people wanting to understand the technical details can make the leap from Arduino to a VRC programming language on a PC screen
And fifth, the hardware is open source. The plans of the Arduino boards are published under a Creative Commons license
So experienced technical designers can make their own version of the module, expanding it and improving it
Even relatively inexperienced users can build their own version of the module in order to understand how it works and save money
Being open source means that the code, schematics, and design can be taken freely by anyone to do what they like with it
Hence, there are many Chrome boards and other Arduino-based boards available to purchase or to make from a schematic
Arduino is composed of two major parts. The Arduino board, which is the piece of hardware you work on in your VR objects or your projects
and the Arduino Integrated Development Environment, or IDE, which is the piece of software you run on your computer
You use the IDE to create a set or a little computer program that you upload to the Arduino board
The set tells the board what to do. Looking closely at the Arduino board, you will see that Arduino has a row of chips attached at the top and the bottom with lots of labels
The chips are the connectors which are used to attach the sensors and activators
An activator is the opposite of a sensor. A sensor senses something in the physical world and converts it into a signal, a computer sense, and a sense
while an activator converts a signal from a computer into an action in the physical world
These things can either be inputs or outputs. Inputs are used to read information from sensors, while outputs are used to control activators
You will specify the direction you're at in the step you create in the IDE
Physical inputs can only read one of two values, and digital outputs can only output one of two values, which can either be high or low
The Arduino Uno also has six analog input pins. These are the pin 0 to 5
The analog input pins are used for reading voltage measurements from analog sensors
In contrast to digital inputs, which can distinguish between only two different levels, high and low
analog inputs can measure 1024 different levels of voltage. There are also six analog output pins, or PWM pins
PWM stands for full-width modulation, and these are in 3, 5, 6, 9, 10, and 11
These are actually six of the digital pins that can perform a third process
They can provide analog output. As with digital input-output pins, you specify what the pins should do in your test
The board can be powered by your computer's USB port, both with the charger or a 9V power-positive AC adapter with a 2.1mm bottle tip is recommended
Whenever power is provided at the power socket, Arduino will use that
and if there's no power at the power socket, Arduino will use power from the USB socket
It's safe to have power at both the power socket and the USB socket
Now let's go to the Arduino software. The Arduino Integrated Developer Environment, or IDE, contains a text editor for writing code
a message area, a text console, a toolbar with buttons for its common functions, and a series of menus
It connects to the Arduino hardware to upload programs and communicate real-time
Programs you can use in Arduino software are called Chesses. The Chesses are written in the text editor and are saved with a file strengthened.ino
The editor has features for copying, pasting, and for searching and pasting text
The message area gives feedback while pasting and quoting, and also displays the errors
The console displays text output by the Arduino software, including the topic, error messages, and other information
The bottom right-hand corner of the window displays the computer board and similar ports
The toolbar buttons allow you to verify and upload programs, create, open, and save sketches
And you can also open the similar monitor. The buttons you would probably use more often are the Verify and Upload buttons
The Verify button checks your code forever when you compile it, while the Upload button compiles your code and uploads it to the computer board
Now let's talk about how to install the Arduino IDE. You have two options in using the Arduino IDE
If you have a reliable internet connection, you can use the online IDE or the Arduino Web Editor
It will allow you to change your sketches in the cloud. And then you can always back them up
You'll always have the most up-to-date version of the IDE without the need to install updates or community-generated libraries
If you would rather work offline, you should use the latest version of the desktop IDE
To install the Arduino software or IDE on Windows PCs, first you must get the latest version from the download page on www.arduino.cp website
You can choose between the installer and the zip package. The Arduino website suggests that you use the first one
then you follow through roughly everything you need to use the Arduino software, including the drivers
With the zip package, you need to install the drivers manually. The zip file is also useful if you want to create a portable installation
When the download finishes, proceed with installation, and please allow the driver installation process when you get a warning from the operating system
Next, you should choose the components to install. Normally, you should just set all the components
After that, choose the installation directory. I suggest keeping the default one
And that's it. The process will start and stop all the required files to execute properly the Arduino software
Now after writing a step in the Arduino IDE, it's time to upload it to the Arduino board
Before uploading those steps, you need to select the correct items on the tool board and then the tool support menu
On the Mac, the serial port is probably something like dev slash cpy-desk-usb-modem-241 for an UNO or MEGA2562 or UNO-DEVOLUTE
Or you could have slash dev slash cpy-usb-serial-desk-1d1 for a DWEN-Lenovo or a NVIDIA keyboard
On Windows, it's probably COM4, COM5, COM7, or HADES. To find out, you look for the USB serial device in the ports section of the Windows device manager
Make sure to select the correct Arduino board in the tool board menu
There are many variants of the Arduino board, but the most common one is probably the Arduino UNO
Don't forget to connect your Arduino board to your computer using a USB cable
Once you've selected the correct serial port and board, press the upload button in the tool board or select the upload item from the search menu
On most boards, you'll see the RX and the X values blink as the test is uploaded
The Arduino software will display a message when the upload is complete or to show an error
Arduino has come a long way since it was used as an easy tool for fast prototyping and for students without a background in electronics and programming
Now, with a much wider community, you can see many projects created for various needs and challenges