Introduction: Educeeno With Project Book-learning Arduino Without Headache

Educeeno is an Arduino click-on-shield that has all the basic components mounted so no wiring is needed during the learning process. It comes with a project book that introduces the user to microcontroller programming and embedded systems with step-by-step project descriptions from the basic ones such as blinking LED's to more complex ones like displaying sensor readings on either the 16 by 2 character LCD or the 128x64 pixel OLED screen, or connecting an Educeeno board to a smartphone via Bluetooth (not compatible with Apple phones).

Supplies

The Educeeno with its project book will be available on the Kickstarter website from September 2020, check out: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/educeeno/educ...

Step 1: Playing With Educeeno the Ultimate Arduino Shield

The mounted components on Educeeno are:

  • LEDs (3 of them)
  • Buttons (also 3)
  • passive Buzzer
  • 16 by 2-character LCD screen
  • 128x64 pixel OLED screen
  • Photoresistor
  • Potentiometer
  • TMP36 temperature sensor
  • HC05 Bluetooth module (not compatible with Apple phones)

Step 2: Mounting Your Educeeno Board on Either an Arduino Uno or Mega Board

Once you received your Educeeno You'll need to mount it on either an Arduino Uno or Mega board, making sure the orientation is that the 16 by 2 character LCD is above the digital pins as seen on picture.

Step 3: Let the Fun Begin!

The project book first explains all the basics like how to install the Arduino IDE on the computer and later progresses into the projects. The whole point of Educeeno is that the user does not have to bother with wiring up different components on a solder-less board, but can straight go to practising programming.

Let us now create a project on Educeeno. On page 37 of the Educeeno project book there is a heater controller simulation-project called 'Combination of analogue readings' in the Analogue reading chapter. In that section we can create a program that measures the actual temperature with the mounted TMP36 temperature sensor (in Fahrenheit), checks what is the set temperature by reading the position of the potentiometer and if the set temperature is above the actual one, turns an LED on, if it is below it turns another on.

Step 4: The Program

In the Educeeno project book there are similar projects (some simpler, some more complex) to get the user started.

The program in text:

const int temperaturePin = 1;
int heaterON=12;
int heaterOFF=13;
int pot=0;

void setup()
{
Serial.begin(9600);
pinMode(temperaturePin, INPUT);
pinMode(pot, INPUT);
pinMode(heaterON, OUTPUT);
pinMode(heaterOFF, OUTPUT);
}

void loop()
{
float set=(analogRead(pot));
float setTemp=map(set, 0, 1023, 60, 90);
float voltage, degreesC, degreesF;

voltage = getVoltage(temperaturePin);
degreesC = (voltage - 0.5) * 100.0;
degreesF = degreesC * (9.0/5.0) + 32.0;

Serial.print(" deg F: ");
Serial.println(degreesF);
Serial.print(" Set to: ");
Serial.println(setTemp);
Serial.println(" ");


if (setTemp>degreesF) {
digitalWrite(heaterON, HIGH);
digitalWrite(heaterOFF, LOW); }

else {

digitalWrite(heaterON, LOW);
digitalWrite(heaterOFF, HIGH); }
delay(1000); }

float getVoltage(int pin) {
return (analogRead(pin) * 0.004882814); }

Step 5: The Result

As seen on pictures when the actual temperature is below the set temperature the heater is on (LED connected to D12 is ON), and when the actual is above the set temperature the heater is off (LED connected to D13 is ON)

Step 6:

The Educeeno with its project book will be available on the Kickstarter website from September 2020, check out:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/educeeno/educ...