The Arduino revoluTion

The Arduino revoluTion

In simple terms, the Arduino is a small computer that can be programmed to connect and control various electronic parts. The
Arduino has a number of pins that can be set as either input, which
means they can receive data from items such as switches, buttons,
and sensors, or output, which means they send data to control items
such as motors, lights, and buzzers. This type of programmable
development board is better known as a microcontroller.
The Arduino project began in Ivrea, Italy, in 2005 with the goal of
creating a device to control student-built interactive design projects
that would be less expensive than other prototyping systems available at the time. Founders Massimo Banzi and David Cuartielles
named the project after a local bar called Arduino (an Italian masculine frst name meaning “strong friend”).
The Arduino board is composed of two main elements: the
hardware, or microcontroller, which is the brain of the board, and the
software that you’ll use to send your program to the brain. The software, called the Arduino integrated development environment (IDE),
is available free for download.
The IDE is a simple interface that runs on a computer running
Windows, OS X, or Linux. You use the IDE to create a sketch (an
Arduino program) that you then upload to the Arduino board using a
PC and USB cable. The sketch tells the hardware what to do. I’ll go
into both the hardware and software in more detail in the next couple
of chapters.
The Arduino can be powered by batteries, USB, or an external
power supply. Once the Arduino is programmed, it can be disconnected from your computer and will run independently using a power
supply or batteries

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