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Sometimes it might be useful to write a text which should be displayed on a LCD display without any cabling, that is possible to do over your own Wi-Fi network and a NodeMCU ESP8266 module. And the project uses ONLY 4 wires as the LCD1602 gets addressed over the I2C bus. Let us remember WHAT the I2C bus is in our previous tutorial:
Let us have a look on the video below who shows how it works:
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SO, knowing now how it works, let us have a look on the Sketch (Code). I changed a bit the code, as I am using an I2C LCD1602 and I added as well some more text displayed on the LCD1602 display. Check below, please, the original code. I will explain WHAT could (should) GET changed later with a screenshot of the changes and/or a download…
The Arduino code and the library for this project can be found at the links below. The library has to be saved in the Arduino libraries folder of the same name:
The download is a text file created with OpenOffice, copy the content and place it into a new Sketch on the Arduino IDE. ALL you have to do now is to change some lines, e.g.:
in line 47: Enter your SSID
in line 48 Enter your Wi-Fi Network Password
See PIC below, please:
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Click image, please, to enlarge.
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This should work for you now; in case of that you wouldn’t see the display working find here the trouble-shooting:
Mostly it is that your LCD1602 uses a different I2C-Address and/or that the ESP8266 isn’t allowed in your network for security reasons, to make sure check my blog post here, please:
Here below a working Sketch which shows how it is working: for security reasons you won’t see my SSID, nor my real IP-Address! 😉
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”.
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Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉.. .
Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: NodeMCU, ESP8266, Web Server, I2C, LCD1602, Coding, Maker, MakerED, MakerSpaces…
We will follow the above mentioned tutorial step by step and we will ALSO use the slide show for “Personal Branding“! We will ALSO use cardboard for the housing (case) to help for recycling. WHY “Personal Branding”? Well, lots or most students, learners, educators, teachers have already a website, blog, twitter account, Facebook page etc. SO WHY NOT showing these information to others and make some new friends while showing with pride your “Personalized Badge”!As cardboard housing (case) we will use the box from the delivered 2.8 inch TFT display as it fits perfectly for our project.
Concerning cutting cardboard, it isn’t actually that easy as one might think; my own experience… It needs some PracTICE as well as the appropriate tools. I suggest that you try it out first on cardboard boxes which are ready already for the recycling, e.g. take the measures of the 2.8 inch TFT display and try to cut it out two or three times before you are cutting out on the cardboard housing!! The exact measures for the 2.8 TFT display are 50 x 68 mm. Use appropriate tools for the cutting out; I used a set, please check the photo below with link for ordering it.
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I used the cutting tool with the red shaft which fitted best for me…
Let us have a look how it looks without a housing (case) first, check photo below please.
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The 2.8 inch TFT display has actually a GREAT resolution, it looks great.
NOW, take the cardboard box, open it and bend it so that the front side will be flat on your “Cutting Mat“. Take your aluminium ruler and center the 50 x 68 mm rectangle. Cut it out. Check if it fits, else make some cutting adjustments. Everything fits? OK, take now some self-adhesive paper, put it over front side and cut out to fit. It will look similar to this one, check photo, please.
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It looks nice, isn’t it? All we have to do now is to solder an ON/OFF switch to it and a “Reset-Button” as well as to fix it with a “Badge-Holder” and that’s it! The “Reset-Button” will be soldered in parallel to to the “Reset” of the Arduino board.
L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”.
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Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉...
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Coding, Arduino, 2.8 inch TFT display, badges, Makerfest, Luxembourg, Maker, MakerED, MakerSpaces, Bitmap, Cardboard, Slide-show, Personal Branding, tools,
ESP8266 WiFi Weather Station with Color TFT Display
We were playing around already with LED MATRIX’s, devices to visualize measured values and/or texts. In this blog post (Tutorial) we will use a TFT Display (Thin-film-transistor liquid-crystal display) with touch screen to display a three (3) days weather forecast with moon phases. This little weather station acquires its data over a Wi-Fi connection from an online weather server, Wunderground.
What is GREAT with this project, there ISN’T any wiring, no cables to connect; apart from plugging in the accumulator! 😉 BUT, please check the video below who explains in detail:
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Detailed parts list, supplier and prices
Please find below the detailed parts list as well as the supplier and the prices.
As you can see the price is reasonable for this project, ONLY 62.40$and easy to realize! ALL what YOU need is a bit time, passion and here we GO! 😉 Have FUN!
There is some preparation needed before we can test our code for the weather station: I suggest that you read and that you follow each step as shown in this tutorial by ADAFRUIT (very important, otherwise it won’t work!!):
It isn’t difficult, but it needs some time and you must be careful to follow each step!
We need ALSO an account on the weather server Wunderground to create our “API” (Application Programming Interface) which we need to implement in our code settings! THIS is also well explained here:
Same procedure as explained already above, follow very carefully each action step by step!
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Are there some pit falls?
YES, this could be!
It ONLY works with the ADAFRUIT Feather HUZZAH!!! It’s an ESP8266 but it has a different PINOUT as the normal ESP8266!!
When it doesn’t work, you won’t GET an internet connection, thus meaning that you see on the screen “Internet Connection” for a loooong time, without that the weather data gets shown, you didn’t follow step by step the instructions!! Check our previous blog post (Tutorial) on How-To let the NEW device GET access to your Network:
Well, you haven’t encounter any problem or the problems are solved, this is WHAT you will see appearing on the TFT:
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As you can see in “Picture 6“, that is what shows up on the first start! Is it the right time which is displayed? Is it the right measure unit which is displayed (°C OR °F)? If SO, it is OK then, if NOT, then we have to look on the code and change some settings!!
Here below the How-To:
Open the Arduino IDE and click on the “Settings.h” tab, check below where and how to change (adapt) the settings to your country and time zone.
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Click the image, please, to enlarge
Once done, save the code and upload it again. You will GET the right data displayed then as shown below:
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”.
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Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉.. .
Keywords necessary for me to create this project: Adafruit Feather HUZZAH, ESP8266, Adafruit Feather TFT Display, 3 days weather station, weather forecast, moon phases, Wunderground, Wi-Fi module, ESP8266 and Adafruit Feather HUZZAH NOT the same pinout!!, where to buy?, time zone, metric, imperial, °C, °F, Arduino IDE, web server, weather server,
We were already playing around with LED MATRIX for time and temperature display with a Wi-Fi connection on an ESP8266, but we didn’t create yet a project with an RTC (Real Time Clock) module and an 1.8 inch TFT display; here we go. We will use again a ready to go code, but we will change it a bit for better looking. SO, we will learn How-To code rectangles and lines for a TFT screen, very easy… It is GOOD to try out different components to get used with coding, Maker, MakerED… Especially when we use displays, which ever ones, as one sees directly the results; sensation of direct success!!
The tutorial in the video shows an Arduino UNO, but we will use in this tutorial an Arduino NANO as it is less expensive (+/- 1/3 of the price of an Arduino UNO) and also it takes less place when integrating the components into a box.
Below you see how to connect the TFT-Display to the Arduino.
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Click image, please, to enlarge.
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Check the video below, please:
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Detailed parts list, supplier and prices
Please find below the detailed parts list as well as the supplier and the prices.
As you can see it is a very cheap project, ONLY 22,98 €and easy to realize! ALL what YOU need is a bit time, passion and here we GO! 😉 Have FUN! I order my stuff on AMAZON.DE, but you can chose any other supplier as the parts are very popular…
Please follow the whole tutorial with connections (Wiring Diagram) and Code (Sketch) here:
When copying the code on the mentioned website <===> http://educ8s.tv/arduino-real-time-clock/ <===> you must be aware of some TYPOS in it!!! Check below please where they are and how to correct them. Once corrected save the code in the Arduino IDE and upload it. Here are the errors, check below please.
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As you can see above the “Arduino IDE” shows an error and highlighted it in Line 1. The sign “<” is too much, delete it and save your sketch, then upload it again to the Arduino NANO. You might get a second error message again, check below please.
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In above image you will see a new error message in Line 100. Check below please on how-to correct it.
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Same procedure as above, save it in the Arduino IDE and upload it again to the Arduino NANO (UNO). Here what will show up now.
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There are some problems with the time and day still… I didn’t follow step-by-step instructions on the video, OK let’s have a look in deep now!! Please check the video tutorial @ 03:15 for the settings and follow them strictly, otherwise your clock setting will NOT working!! Done so, it will be working great. I did some more changes in the coding such as changing the text colors and ALSO to draw a rectangle and some lines to make it look BETTER, please check below.
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As you can see, I added some new code snippet from lines 142 to 151, this will draw a rectangle around the TFT screen and it will draw white lines under the measured values. It will look BETTER, well that’s what I think and my wife as well; you just do the way as you want, up to you 😉 Here below the result…
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Here below the version with the Arduino NANO.
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SO, that’s it folks, enjoy it and have fun 😉
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”.
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Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉.. .
Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Arduino UNO R3, Arduino NANO, TFT DISPLAY, Coding, Maker, MakerED, MakerSpaces, #RTC, Real Time Clock, Temperature, DS3231,…
Scrolling Text with 8×8 LED MATRIX (4 Modules in One)
Click image, please, to access the article on Amazon
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As we were playing around already with LED’s in previous blog posts let us NOW try out a LED Matrix “4 in one”; its four (4) singular displays soldered on one piece of a single printed circuit board (PCB). I ordered the stuff at Amazon (DE) https://www.amazon.de/AZDelivery-MAX7219-Matrix-Anzeigemodul-Arduino/dp/B079HVW652 which is supplied by AZ-Delivery.
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I like their products as they provide ALSO eBooks in PDF format for their products with quality explications (in German) as also tips; the eBooks can be downloaded here (registration first required):
The Matrix costs also only 12,99€ and therefore worth a try… BTW: I am very satisfied with the product and I ordered two more to make the display longer for my home project. SO, let us start with the wiring scheme, please check below:
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Click the image, please, to enlarge.
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As you can see in above wiring scheme, there are ONLY 5 wires necessary and we use an Arduino NANO (works also with the UNO). Connect those wires as shown above, connect the USB cable to the Arduino NANO and the computer. Now we are ready to load the code, but first we need to install the necessary libraries for the MAX7219-Display. Check below please for the How-To:
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Click image, please, to enlarge.
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Open the Arduino IDE, click on “Sketch“, followed by “Include Library” as shown in above image.
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Click image, please, to enlarge.
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Click on “Manage Libraries…“, a new window will open, the “Library Manager“, as shown below.
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Click image, please, to enlarge.
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In the Search-field enter„MAX72xx“ and chose MD_MAX72xx from majicDesigns and install it. SO, the libraries (the code for specific Hardware…) are installed, let us GO for uploading the “Sketch” (the code)… We will use a ready example to make us life easy, please follow the instructions in below picture:
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SO, this done close the Arduino IDE and open it again to chose now: GO to “File“, click on “Examples” followed by “MD_Parola” and chose on of the ready examples, WE will use as example “Parola_Scrolling” as it is expressive for results…
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A new Arduino IDE with the chosen Sketch will open…
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Click image, please, to enlarge.
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In the above image you see WHERE you can have a look for changing the variables, your own text and scrolling-pause. When you use “Notepad++” to open the code (it is more easy to detect the lines to change…) you will find them in lines 66-74…
THE values which you see in the above image (screen shot) are mine which I changed already, to me “Scroll-Speed = 150” is the optimum value; but chose your own…
NOW, as we finished everything, let us upload the code to the Arduino UNO, or Arduino NANO.
Have FUN with your “LEARNing-By-Doing project” and try out ALSO the other examples 😉
L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”.
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Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉.. .
Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Arduino UNO R3, Arduino NANO, MAX7219 LRD DISPLAY, Coding, Maker, MakerED, MakerSpaces…
I was very happy when I got delivered that nice looking 2.8 inches TFT with incorporated SDCard. I ordered it on Amazon and it is from ELEGOO. It was delivered with a small CD where a lot of coding examples are integrated and a well done manual. SO, I started as soon as I unpacked it…
First step to do is opening the CD and reading the manual which is in PDF format… After that, chose the examples to see what is possible to do with TFT Display and the Arduino.
ALL the examples worked well…
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Here, below what is on the CD…
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To use the SDCard to create a Slide-Show, click on “Example05-ShowBMP“, the following window will open, see below…
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Click the “ShowBMP“, the following window will open, see below…
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The used TFT uses an ILI9341 controller and the code could get downloaded from the website of ELEGOO.
Double-click the “ShowBMP.ino” and the Arduino-IDE will open with the inserted code…
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As I wanted to use the SDCard to create a Slide-Show, so I remixed a bit the code in the sketch and I uploaded different images to the SDCard. BUT, it didn’t work :(((
I checked the manual which says:
The SDCard MUST be formatted first (use a NEW one as everything will get erased!!!)
TIP: DON’T format on quick way, it DIDN’T work for me; use the full format way!!
Images MUST be in 320 x 240 pix
Images MUST be in Bitmap format
Images MUST be saved as 28-bit Bitmaps
Images name MUST be less than 20 characters
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Check the above mentioned in the sketch below also, please.
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SO, I tried out a lot of different online image converters, I was struggling around for nearly a week as I didn’t get it working, frustration… BUT as I NEVER give up before I am on the winning side, so I was looking much more around on the internet to find the perfect solution, and I found it.
And that program is actually present on my PC, it is “Paint“: it converts (nearly) any image to the desired format so also Bitmap and THIS ALSO in 28-bit Bitmaps!! Check he PIC below, please.
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Click image please to enlarge it
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After saving my images with “Paint” into 28-bit Bitmaps everything worked perfect, actually with unexpected GREAT quality!
SO, for that YOU, dear readers, and Newbies on “Coding“, don’t have to struggle around like me, I created this tutorial.
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For the assembling, wiring and explication of the code, I suggest to watch this video tutorial, check below, please.
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As I wanted to use the TFT display as a digital badge with slide show, I created my own images by:
Creating a picture with exactly 320 x 240 pix and a black background
Using PhotoScape (image editor) to insert text and photos
Opening that created sample in Paint and saving it into 28-bit Bitmap
Saving that sample to the SDCard and inserting it into the SDCard reader of the TFT
Uploading the code to Arduino
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BUT, surprise, it didn’t work!??? The photo was mirrored, funny isn’t it? OK, so back again to the Photo-Editor and “Flip Horizontal“, delete the image on the SDCard and upload the new one…
Now everything is working perfectly 😉 I learned a lot with this project, especially being patient and not giving up, as well as learning more about the “Paint” program!
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Here below how it looks on the TFT:
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Let us repeat the steps:
First prepare the images (photos)
Images MUST be in 320 x 240 pix
Images MUST be in Bitmap format
Images MUST be saved as 28-bit Bitmaps
The SDCard MUST be formatted first (use a NEW one as everything will get erased!!!)
TIP: DON’T format on quick way, it DIDN’T work for me; use the full format way!!
Save the images (photos) to the SDCard
Images name MUST be less than 20 characters
Double-click the “ShowBMP.ino” from the demo examples and the Arduino-IDE will open with the inserted code…
Delete the images shown in the code and replace them by your own (must be the exactly name as the saved, check on the SDCard…)
Insert the SDCard to the TFT and upload the code.
The slideshow will run, have fun 😉
The next step will be to put everything into a housing, I ordered some stuff and after I get it delivered and finished it I will update this blog to show you the result, stay tuned 😉 BTW: I will use the shown example as an electronic BADGE…
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”.
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Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉.. .
Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: TFT Displays, video tutorials, Arduino UNO, Arduino Mega, Bitmaps, TFT size, Bitmaps size, 24-bit Bitmaps, Sketch, Coding, Slide-Show, SDCard, badge, Paint, image editor, photo editor,
In one of my previous blog posts I used Arduino-UNO Starter Kit, which I ordered at Conrad (English version)and I wasn’t really impressed by the manual, it didn’t satisfy to my expectations and needs. SO, I was looking around to find some distributors for a BETTER version… At “Amazon US” I found Elegoo UNO Project Super Starter Kit with Tutorial for Arduino. First of all, the kit is delivered in a plastic box and its price is also attractive, $34.99.
The manual with the code, libraries and tutorials is on a DVD. So, I was looking first on the DVD and reading the Manual in PDF format to see the quality of the tutorials and the tutorials in PDF are very well documented. Once knowing WHAT is possible to do I made my choice for the “LCD-Tutorial“…
Below is the “Wiring diagram“, the How-To to connect the wires to make it work.
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As yo can see, it isn’t that much to do. Once the wiring ready, it is time to upload the code to the IDE and make it run to the success 😉 With the delivered code you will see the message “Hello World” on the LCD-Display.
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Here below the code where the message “Hello World” is in.
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SO, why not playing around a bit to understand the code and changing the text message in <===> lcd.print(“Hello, World!”); <===> into something different, something more personal!? That’s WHAT I did, here my code change:
lcd.begin(16, 2);
// Print a message to the LCD.
lcd.print(“Gust MEES – LCD”);
which shows up as, see image below please.
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The LCD-Display shows now my name as well (photo was taken when the counter was at 62) as my age, yes I am 62 years old (actually young, LOL); meaning that WHEN I can do this you for sure are able to do it! SO, WHAT are you waiting for to START learning about coding!!?
Reflecting for ideas:
SO, WHY not assembling everything into a box and use it as your personal “Door Name Display“, play around with some text and find out…
Ready, START, GO… Have fun by LEARNing-By-Doing 😉
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You may have a look on my other blog posts about Arduino below:
L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”.
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Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉.. .
Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Arduino Starterkit, Arduino UNO R3, Elegoo, quality kits, LCD, LCD Display, coding, Maker, MakerED, MakerSpaces, Electronics, Amazon US,
First Steps with the Arduino-UNO | Maker, MakerED, Coding | Sensor-Kit SKA-36
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Got my package delivered with my ordered ArduinoSensor-Kit today (2 days later than expected…). First impressions: nice plastic suitcase (helps me to keep order…), 60 pins quality breadboard and cable-set, 40 sensors and a downloadlink (www.joy-it.net/sensorkit/) for the code and description in German. The mentioned link isn’t up-to-date anymore and one gets redirected to another website http://sensorkit.joy-it.net/index.php?title=Hauptseite in German.
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Some basic knowledge is necessary to get started with the sensors:
We need to know that for some project with sensors there is a special library which needs to get included into the sketch and that the results (measures) will get shown in the “Serial Monitor” as the “Sensor-Kit” doesn’t include a LCD-Display.
Find out more yourself with the links below, please:
TIP for beginners: first copy&paste the code and let it run; check where are variables in the code, change them and see WHAT happens. You will understand the about how the code works 😉
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KY-050 with Ultrasonic Sensor HC-SR04 and Arduino Tutorial
Well, I didn’t like much the German description, so I was searching on the internet and I found some tutorials in English with a video tutorial, one simple sketch and one sketch with an LCD as well, very interesting <===> Ultrasonic Sensor HC-SR04 and Arduino Tutorial
Please check the videos below who explains very well how the code works:
Here below some values measured shown in the “Serial Monitor“:
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The Temperature/Humidity Sensor KY-015
In the original IDE this sensor isn’t included yet, WE need to install it on the IDE. By checking the description website of the Sensorkit-SK36-KY-015, WE get told that the module needs a library to get included in the sketch and it’s also mentioning some download links. Actually the description (in German) is poor and I got worried! So I decided to look around on the internet and I found a BETTER description (in English) on the official Arduino website <===> Installing Additional Arduino Libraries <===>
BUT the BEST tutorial I have found is on the Arduino website itself <===>DHT11 Temperature/Humidity Sensor <===> with a lot of screenshots and a step by step instruction from where to get the code of the library, how to install it, and an example sketch.
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Here below some values measured shown in the “Serial Monitor“:
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Find below some addresses where you can GET different stuff to play around with:
L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”).
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post:Arduino, coding, Maker, MakerED, sensors, learning by doing, autodidact, self-directed learning, Sensor-Kit SKA-36, ultrasonic kit, temperature-humidity-kit, electronics,
Easy to build mini car with Battery-Holder case and motor, as also self-made propeller
Battery Holder 2 x AA
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In our last projects WE were using electronics, which is a bit more for teens up from 10 years. WE will now also create some projects where the younger ones can tinker around as well under the surveillance and guidance of coaches. Boys as well as girls like motors and cars, so WHY NOT trying to tinker a bit around with small motors. WE will use this time a battery-holder for 3 Volts (2 x 1.5 Volts AA batteries, or accumulators [BETTER]) where we fix the motor and the wheels of OUR car on it.
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To make the propeller WE will use the top of a plastic bottle as it is very easy to tinker with plastic, as well as the propeller could get unscrewed and replaced by another one because of the cap. The cap will get mounted on the motor shaft and fixed with hot glue..
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Check the video below please, We will use TYPE-3:
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TYP: I used a hair dryer to heat the plastic and whiles heating I pushed down the propeller till it was (nearly) flat-bottomed. WHEN NOT flat-bottomed the propeller will be more as an unbalance as doing its affect as air propulsion! The mini car will jump as crazy then around; believe me I made the experience 😉
First step is to prepare the wheels: the 8 caps on the right-hand side in above photo must get drilled in the middle with the same diameter as the wooden sticks you use; OR as I did by using the solder iron. Next step is to glue together 2 caps with hot glue as shown in photo below.
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Cut now the drinking straws and the wooden sticks to the measure as indicated in photo below and fix the drinking straws with hot glue.
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Pass the wooden shafts through the drinking straws and the drilled holes in the caps and fix them with hot glue.
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Prepare a piece of drinking straw from 3,5 cm and glue it on the upper side of the battery holder with hot glue, as shown in above photo. Pass through the cables of the battery holder and fix the motor with hot glue, as shown in above photo. Cut the cables to the right length and solder them on the motor.
That’s it, ONLY a bit work and a lot of fun once running; check the video below to see it in action please 😉 AWARENESS: the propeller is turning with high speed and there are sharp ends!!! DON’T touch the propeller whiles in action!!! DON’T let run the mini car WHERE persons, children and pets are around as they could get hurt by the propeller, as you can’t control the direction of the mini car!!!
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Detailed parts list, supplier and prices
Please find below the detailed parts list as well as the supplier and the prices.
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Item and quantity
Supplier and order number
Price
1 x drinking straw
0,10€
1 x Sourcingmap Propeller mit Motor mit hohem Drehmoment
für Modellflugzeug, 1500–10000 RPM, 3–12 V Gleichstrom
As you can see it is a very cheap project, ONLY 13, 01 €and easy to realize! ALL what YOU need is a bit time, passion and here we GO! 😉 Have FUN!
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The tools needed
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The video of our project
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”).
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Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉..
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: drinking straw, hot glue, motor, battery holder 2 x AA, empty FANTA plastic bottle, screwable caps from plastic bottles (CONTREX),
Light guided rotating and moving plastic container
In previous Maker tutorials WE were using LEDs and vibration motors, WE will continue with it and adding some NEW components: a transistor and a LDR (Light-Dependent Resistor). WE will use ALSO AGAIN a plastic container, this time a transparent one so that persons could see WHAT’S inside (for the curious ones) 😉 This will ALSO push the makers WHO are building this project to work neatly as everyone could see the quality of THEIR work!!
Thus said, let me tell YOU that I first tried to fix the battery holder and the switch with instant glue; it didn’t work well!!
Example with instant glue to fix the battery holder and the switch: BAD solution as the glue reacts with the plastic and makes a BAD looking, NOR are they real well fixed on the plastic!!
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BETTER solution is to fix (solder) the battery holder and the switch on a small part of stripboard and to make the connection to the main stripboard (where all the components are) through a flat cable. Therefore we need to drill some holes with a 1 mm drill exactly there where the pins of the switch and the battery holder are. Now measure the length of the stripboard and once the holes are drilled, place the switch and the battery holder and solder them on the stripboard.
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NEW components are used in this project as a transistor, an LDR and a trimmer (adjustable resistor)
WE are using a transistor is this project; a transistor is a semiconductor who basically works as a switch or an amplifier. WE will NOT GO to much into theory, YOU can discover more in the “Learn more section below”.
Light dependent resistor or photoresistor is a device whose resistance is dependent on the strength of the light as they are composed of high resistance semiconductor material. When light hits the device, the photons give electrons energy. Higher the power of light, lower the strength of resistance. This particular action makes the electron jump into the conductive band and thus conduct electricity. Taking a cue from this concept, Øyvind Nydal Dahl, in this tutorial, has dealt in a circuit for LDR or Light Dependent Resistor to make a light detector.
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The above LDR Circuit Diagram works on the amount of light penetration. Hence, when it is completely dark, the LDR occupies high resistance. As a result, the voltage at the base of the transistor becomes too low to turn the transistor ON. At this stage, the current doesn’t flow from the collector to the emitter of the transistor, instead, it passes through the LDR and the potentiometer.
When the light is provided at comparatively low density, the LDR has low resistance. But it is sufficient enough to bring the voltage at the base of the transistor higher and also to turn the transistor ON. Once the transistor is turned on, current starts flowing through it from the positive battery terminal to the negative battery terminal covering R1 and the LED (IN OUR CASE, through the vibration motor). With this, the LED, lights up (IN OUR CASE, the motors go on vibration). [END Text from http://www.build-electronic-circuits.com/ldr-circuit-diagram/]
WE use the same schema as in above tutorial, BUT WE replace the LED by two (2) vibration motors. Check the schematics below, please.
I used the upper cup of a yogurt (0,89€) which is transparent and BTW is delicious 😉.
The tools needed
Check below please WHAT the tools are that you will need for this project. The small saw is needed to cut the stripboard.
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WE need also a mini drill to drill the wholes for the switch, the battery holder and the whole for adjusting the variable trimmer resistor.
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Details of the LED in the drinking straw
WE are using a multi color LED from ADAFRUIT (ID 680), a Diffused 5mm Fast Flashing RGB LED, which works with a voltage of 3 Volts; so we don’t need any resistor in series. To make a neatly connection we will use a flat cable and to avoid a shortcut we will fix our soldering with heat shrinking tube. Please follow the steps below.
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The LED will get soldered on the Plus and Minus of the second stripboard; it will flash permanently as far as the switch is on “ON position”.
Practical Tip: LEDs are transparent, so the Cathode (Minus) looks always a bit larger as the Anode (Plus).
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The MAIN stripboard with the components
Below YOU can see the work in progress.
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In above photo you can see the soldering on the stripboard as well as the fixing with hot glue on the bottom.
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Some adjustments are needed
Do YOU remember that WE drilled a hole just in the height of the axis of the trimmer (adjustable resistor)? Check photo below, please.
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For this WE will need a 1 mm screwdriver and a torch. I used a mini LED torch from CONRAD (Item no.: 868885-62 for 6,99€).
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How-To make the adjustments: put the light source in front of the LDR and trim with the 1 mm screwdriver until the motors are vibrating, if the motors are already vibrating trim back (turn the reverse direction…). This might take some time until you got it to the right point; the motors should only vibrate WHEN the light source is on!!
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The video of our project
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Check out this video, which explains very well how it works.
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L’auteur Gust MEES est Formateur andragogique / pédagogique TIC, membre du “Comité Conseil” de “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), appelé maintenant BEESECURE, partenaire officiel (consultant) du Ministère de l’éducation au Luxembourg du projet ”MySecureIT“, partenaire officiel du Ministère du Commerce au Luxembourg du projet ”CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness andSecurityEnhancementStructure). L’auteur était aussi gagnant d’un concours en électronique en 1979 ( Pays germaniques ) et voyait son projet publié dans le magazine électronique “ELO”.
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure).
The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”).
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Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉
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Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: LDR, Light Depending resistor, resistors, vibrating motors, LEDs, transparent plastic container (yogurt), strip board, flat cable, drinking straw, drilling, adjustable resistor, trimmer, transistor, drilling, hot glue,
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