Arduino

Difference between Programming and Native Ports

difference between programming and native ports due and zero

When you hear the name “Arduino,” does a picture of the Uno come to mind? While the most popular, this 8-bit based board isn’t the only Arduino available today. There are some other boards available like the Due and recently introduced Zero, which are far more advanced than the humble Uno.

These are 32-bit microcontroller boards that have a very different architecture compared to the relatively straightforward Uno. In fact, one of the most striking differences is that the Due and Zero have two USB ports.

What is the difference between the Programming and Native ports on these more powerful Arduino boards?

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Blog

Build a proper R-2R DAC

Creating real analog outputs from a digital pin is possible when you use an R-2R DAC. What is a DAC? The letters stand for Digital to Analog Converter. This simple DAC is built using resistor. The principle works on voltage dividers. By enabling different combinations of resistors, it is possible to get various voltage levels.

Obviously, such a simple design will have some trade-offs.

The resolution depends on how many resistor steps you include. That is why discrete R-2R networks built on a breadboard have a staggered look. You could add more levels to smooth it out, or there are other options.

This R-2R Logic Noise Post talks about how they work in detail and even includes a section on filtering the output to be less “stepped.”

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Blog

FleaFPGA Introduction

Can’t find the digital chip you need on Mouser or just wish you could make it yourself? With the FleaFPGA board, you can! As a college freshman, we heard rumors of a custom Integrated Circuit (IC) class. Surely what had to be a senior level class, I couldn’t wait until I understood electrical engineering enough that I got to make my own IC!

Two years passed, I was learning Verilog and VHDL in a class titled “Complex Programmable Logic Devices.” In short, CPLD. Those devices were the precursors to today’s modern FPGA devices.

In short, FPGAs, allow you to create your own IC with “software.” The best part? You can quickly reprogram that to fix bugs, add features, or operate completely differently just as fast as you can flash a new sketch into an Arduino Uno.

Introducing the FleaFPGA, a fully functional FPGA board perfect for beginners or veteran chip designers ready to create “chips” on their own.

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Around The Web

Learn the basics of Acrylic

One of the most popular materials to use with a laser cutter is acrylic. Head over to buy some acrylic from Inventables and you’ll see options for “extruded” or “cast” types. Not sure what that means?

This Make Skill Builder on Acrylic gives the basics on the material. You’ll understand the differences between the two: especially important if you plan to mill or laser cut it. Additionally, there are tips for bending, shaping, and gluing acrylic.

Check out the Acrylic Cheat Sheet on Make.

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A Whole New Engineer

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to join The Engineering Commons podcast to talk about capacitors on episode 93. I had been a listener of the podcast because I heard about it in this book. A Whole New Engineer looks at the changes are needed in engineering education. My personal interest was to see if there were elements I could apply to the AddOhms Electronics Tutorials I create. Like all aspects of our lives, evoluation is occuring and educaiton is no different. On top of that, traditional education techniques rarely prepare students for live after school.

The traditional weed-out lecture courses and stand-alone research projects are a thing of the past.

The stories about Olin College of Engineering were eye opening. Thinking back to my time at Purdue, I wished I could have been at the foundation of a new curriculum (though, I’m glad I had the one I did.) My eye opener with the Olin example is how it is analogous to the “real world.” Traditional engineering education silos instructor from the student, in much the same way large corporations silo work functions. The idea of breaking down those silos between Instructor (manager) and Student (employee) to achieve an overall goal is very progressive and based on the research provided, rewarding.

Whether you are involved in engineering education or, like me, just have passion for sharing it–I highly recommend this excellent book. Whether if you’re writing tutorials, creating a classroom, putting together a workshop, or even helping out with STEM, there are key tidbits you will pull from this book.

Check out A Whole New Engineer on Amazon.

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