Arduino is one of the most popular micro-controllers out there, but before getting into more details about it we need to know first what is a micro-controller.
What is a micro-controller?
A microcontroller or MCU ( u stands for unit ) is a small computer on an integrated circuit it contains one or more processor cores ( CPUs )along with memory and programmable input/output peripherals, as well as a small amount of RAM. In contrast to the microprocessors which are used in personal computers, Microcontrollers are designed for embedded applications, they are used in automatically controlled products and devices, such as automobile engine control systems, implantable medical devices, remote controls, office machines, appliances, power tools, toys and many other embedded systems.
now we can move to our main topic which is the famous Arduino.
Introduction to Aruino
Arduino in in open-source hardware and software company and user community that designs and manufactures single-board microcontrollers (known as Arduino boards) and microcontroller kits. There are a variety of arduino boards that have been designed and manufactured by this company like :Arduino RS232 , Arduino Diecimila , Arduino Duemilanove , Arduino Uno R2 , Arduino Uno SMD R3 , Arduino Leonardo , Arduino Pro , Arduino Mega , Arduino Nano and many others, in addition to some non official ones that are made by different individuals (since it is an open-source project). Each of these boards is made to be used in some specific projects, for example; if you want to build a small project and you don’t have too much space you can use arduino nano due to its minimal size. Some arduino boards have more functionalities than other like more pins or better CPU and so on…
Arduino uno is one of the well-known boards as it is inexpensive and very easy to use.
Hardware
As is seen in the pictures these boards have many components, the major ones are:
- Flash Memory: 13KB (to store instructions in code form)
- SRAM of 2 KB
- 1 KB EPROM
- 8 Bit micro-controller (ATmega328).
- Digital & Analog Pins for Input/Output.
- A voltage regulator
- A power LED & Reset Button.
Software
Arduino boards are programmed in C and C++ programming languages, these two languages are very powerful. Arduino website provides a detailed documentation on how to program their boards using these languages, in addition to a full documentation of the default libraries.
References: https://www.arduino.cc/reference/en/
Tutorials: https://www.arduino.cc/en/Tutorial/HomePage
Applications of Arduino boards
Arduino is designed for embedded applications and there are many Real-Time Application Projects that are very inspiring like : robotic arms, home automation projects, quadcopters, DC motor control ,Parking lot counter , products quality testing and many more..
You can check many inspiring projects powered by arduino boards in the arduino project hub : https://create.arduino.cc/projecthub
Conclusion
Arduino is a powerful development board that allows interaction with the real world by uploading programs on it. and what makes it more powerful is the fact that it is an open source project , and that allows many other manufacturers to produce different compatible components that makes many difficult projects easy to do and it allows more innovation.
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