Arduino Projects For Dummies

Chapter 3

Understanding the Basics

In This Chapter

Understanding key Arduino concepts

Reviewing basic electronics and components

Understanding sensors and actuators

Learning soldering basics

You’ve probably already connected your Arduino and tried out some of the example sketches that come with it, but you might not know about all the useful features in the Arduino programming environment. Also, there are a few things to keep in mind when connecting your Arduino to electronic circuits and putting everything into a protective enclosure.

This chapter covers how to get started with Arduino and the basic programming concepts you use to make your project work. Because you are working with electricity, you need to know some of the basics of how electronic circuits work. I also describe how to identify electronic components and how to read the circuit diagrams you find in each chapter.

Building your project sometimes requires a little light soldering. If you haven’t done any soldering before, these projects are easy enough to give you a good start. After you hone your skills, you can ...