This is an old revision of the document!
Global Instructor : Becky Stewart
More about Becky on her Queen Mary University of London page and theleadingzero.com. Slides from other presentations and workshops on similar topics can be found on speakerdeck.
This second class on the topic of wearables and e-textiles will focus on incorporating computation into soft circuits by using microcontrollers and single-board computers.
Prep for Class
Install the Arduino software (IDE) on your computer or test that you can use the new Web Editor for Arduino. Upload the Blink sketch. See this tutorial for guidance on installing the IDE or this page for info about both the IDE and Web Editor. Doesn’t matter whether an Uno, Lilypad or some other Arduino board.
Prepare a pressure or stretch sensor.
Have a multimeter handy.
Class Outline
- Introduction to microcontrollers and single-board computers
- Sensor circuits for microcontrollers (voltage dividers and pull up/down resistors)
- Actuator circuits for microcontrollers
- Hard-soft connections to a microcontroller
- Code reading Arduino examples (how to figure out what to copy and paste)
Here are the videos that go with the Arduino Starter Kit examples included in the Arduino examples.
Assignment
Create an interactive object; if you are already experienced with coding, focus on fully integrating a microcontoller into a textile circuit. If you are new to coding, choose an example and get it working using your own sensors and actuators.