cs160 Real-Time and Embedded Software Reiss

Lab 1: Arduinos
September 19, 2016

Contents
1 Objectives 1

2 Pre-Lab: Connecting your Arduino 1

3 Blinking an LED 2

4 Switch 3

5 Fading an LED with analog output 5

6 Rainbow fade 6

1 Objectives
By the end of this lab, you will:

• Connect your arduino to your computer

• Connect and control an LED
• Create analog outputs

We will be providing the parts necessary for this lab (other than the Arduino).

2 Pre-Lab: Connecting your Arduino

1. Download the software specific to your OS at [Link]
Software
2. Install the software:
• OSX: The .dmg should mount automatically, if not, double-click it. Simply
drag the Arduino app to your Applications folder
• Windows (using the .exe installer): Follow the prompted installation, making
sure to leave ”Install USB driver” checked. For more detailed instructions,
use [Link]
cs019 Lab 1: Arduinos September 19, 2016

• Linux:
– Extract the compressed TAR into a suitable folder.
– Open a terminal and CD into the directory you just extracted into and
run:
root@dev : ~ $ ./ install . sh

3. Launch the Arduino application

4. Connect your Arduino with the USB cable

5. Select your board using the software by going to Tools > Board.

6. Check the connection port by going to Tools > Serial Port

• OSX and Linux: This should be ’/dev/[Link]’ or something similar

• Windows: This will likely be COM3 or higher

7. Test the board connection by loading up the blink test sketch: File > Examples
> [Link] > Blink.

8. You should see the code of the sketch. Don’t worry about what the code does
yet, we just want to test that it will upload

9. Click the upload button. After a few seconds, the Arduino app should say ”Done
uploading”. If it has an error, call over a TA.

3 Blinking an LED
Now we are going to make the physical connections to make an LED blink using. You
will need:

1. A resistor between 200Ω and 1.5KΩ

2. Either a single color or RGB LED.

Hookup your circuit to match this cirtuit diagram:

Figure 1: Basic LED circuit

With your arduino and patch board, it should look something like this:
cs019 Lab 1: Arduinos September 19, 2016

Figure 2: source: [Link]

Note: an RGB LED is a little more complex. Use this schematic to hookup your RGB
LED to use just one color (as if it were a single color LED):

Figure 3: source: [Link]

Your LED should blink using the example Blink sketch. Make you understand why the
sketch is making the LED blink and call over a TA for any clarifying questions.
Task: Create your own sketch to blink the LED in any non-symmetric on/off timing.
For example, having the led off for a second and then on for two seconds.

4 Switch
You will need:

1. 1 LED.

2. 1 pushbutton switch
cs019 Lab 1: Arduinos September 19, 2016

Create the following switch circuit:

Figure 4: switch circuit

Figure 5: source: [Link]

Note that direction of this switch is not obvious based on its 4 pins. Here, the two right
pins of the pushbutton are internally connected as well as the left two. Pushing the
button (closing the circuit) bridges the right and left sides
When the button is unpressed (open), the input pin is connected to ground through
the resistor. When the button is pressed (closed), the input pin is connected to 5V
cs019 Lab 1: Arduinos September 19, 2016

and reads HIGH. Note the concept of the pull-down resistor. If we did not include it,
we would get inconsistent and unpredictable results since the input pin is essentially
dangling and the slightest ambient noise could cause it to read HIGH or LOW. By
grounding the input pin with the 10KΩ resistor, we ensure it reads LOW when open.
In order to read the button, add this to your sketch:

1. In the sketch setup, setup the input pin using pinMode() ( [Link]
cc/en/Reference/pinMode)

2. In the main loop, read the state of the button using digitalRead() ( https:
//[Link]/en/Reference/DigitalRead)

Task: Make a state change for your switch (like pressing it) trigger some task, like
turning on an LED.

5 Fading an LED with analog output

This section will use the same circuit as the previous section.
The arduino can only output digital values: high or low. If we want to create values inbe-
tween, we need to use Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) [Link]
wiki/Pulse-width_modulation. PWM essentially creates an output that is rapidly
changing between high and low. When connected to an LED, this rate is rapid enough
that our eyes cannot detect it. Instead, the period of on and off blend together to make
the LED appear dimmer versus being constantly on. We are going to use this method
to create a fade effect with the LED. Consider the following PWM diagram:

Figure 6: source: [Link]

By using these various PWMs, we can create three distinct brighness levels. Note that
the term ”Duty Cycle” which is the proportion of high to low.
cs019 Lab 1: Arduinos September 19, 2016

The arduino has build in PWM functionality on several of its pins which vary by board
type. If your current circuit is using a PWM capable pin, you do not need to change
it. Otherwise, rewire your circuit to use a PWM pin.
Task: using the analogWrite() function ([Link]
AnalogWrite), create a sketch to fade an LED between off and on.

6 Rainbow fade
You will need:

1. 3 resistors between 200Ω and 1.5KΩ

2. 1 RGB LED.

Modify your circuit to connect the R, G, and B LED pins by performing the same
wiring steps previously in the lab for the two remaining LED pins. You will now have
three output pins from your arduino going into your LED.
To create a RGB rainbow effect, you will use 3 sine waves in different phases:

Figure 7: source: [Link]

The peak of these waves correspond to 255, the maximum brightness output.
Task: Using the sine curve, create a sketch to fade the LED through the rainbow.
Note: The Arduino sin function can be slow. We can speed this up by trading some
precision by creating a lookup table. While this is not necessary for this lab, keep it
in mind for future projects. Additionally, a linear approximation of the sine wave is
acceptable. Consider parametizing the rate as a constant.