Looking for good beginner tutorial for Elegoo kits

[adauphin]

I picked up an Elegoo Uno R3 kit with sensors for the kids since they are showing an interest when I break out the soldering gun. They seem very interested in electronics so I thought I would try to entertain their interests.

This is the kit I bought as well as the extra sensors. I also picked up a good size breadboard so they had room to set some circuits up.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01D8KOZF4?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title


https://www.amazon.com/your-orders/pop/ref=ppx_yo_mob_b_pop?_encoding=UTF8&gen=canonical&lineItemId=kiniswinkjmnony&orderId=112-6870371-1067449&packageId=1&returnSummaryId=&returnUnitIndices=&shipmentId=DtPZ4mxFP

Elenco Breadboard | 3742 Total Contact Points | Make DIY - College - High School - Prototyping Projects Easier | 9440C https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002H4W0K/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_FFwQDbXA4ZWWP


Maybe it's not the right setup for beginners, but seems somewhat  basic with some advanced features and hookups.

The CD that came with it seems a bit over their head, I'm curious if anyone can point me to a more basic tutorial if one exists that they can check out.

If I need to start over or add another component I'm all ears.

I appreciate any input.

[rstofer]

Revised to straighten out pins that have PWM capability

EVERY new microcontroller project starts with a blinking LED.  I have a 4 bit counter with 4 blinking LEDs connected to a CPLD sitting against my keyboard as I type.  The universal "Hello World".

In the Arduino IDE, set up the board (with the board plugged in):
Tools->Board->Arduino/Genuine Uno  While you are there, note the COM port

Now go to File -> Examples -> 01 Basic -> Blink.  Compile and upload the file by pushing the round icon in the upper left corner with the Right Arrow (upload).

You should have a blinking LED.  If this works, you have proven that a lot of things work.  You have the right board, communications works, the board works, programs can be uploaded and, finally, the LED works.  This LED will be a universal debugging tool!

At this point, you can try the Fade example for the LED, again in 01 Basic.  You will need to hook up a resistor and LED as in the experiment linked below to pin 9

https://www.allaboutcircuits.com/projects/using-the-arduinos-analog-io/

File -> Examples -> 03 Analog -> AnalogInOutSerial.  This requires wiring up a potentiometer.  Before you connect the center pin to the Arduino, connect the Vcc and Gnd pins and measure the voltage change relative to ground as the shaft is moved.  It should move from +5 to 0V, etc.  Use a digital voltmeter.  If you don't have one, the Aneng AN8008 is a good entry point if you don't plan to use it on mains.  It's perfect for kids.  Anyway, connect the potentiometer, upload and watch the LED intensity change with the potentiometer rotation.  The LED and resistor should be on pin 9 as given in the code.

Switch to the monitor Tools -> Serial Monitor.  Make sure you have the proper COM port and baud rate (set baud rate at the bottom of the terminal window).  You should get output data from the program.

The pins that will do AnalogWrite (fading) are: 3,5,6,9,10,11
https://www.arduino.cc/reference/en/language/functions/analog-io/analogwrite/

At this point, you have a LOT of stuff working.  Maybe it's time to follow along in the PDF file on the CD.  The first experiment is a temperature/humidity sensor.  Pretty simple!  In fact, it's a lot like the AnalogInOutSerial example.

Here's the meter mentioned above:
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=an8008&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
Instant delivery costs a little more...

I concede that the kit is a little advanced for an absolute beginner but the IDE has lots of Examples and there are projects all over the Internet.  In fact, if you need help with any of the Examples, I wouldn't be surprised to find a YouTube video out there somewhere.  The CD has complete instructions for installing the libraries and kit examples.

The Arduino is EXACTLY the right kit for beginners.  They don't need a lot of electronics experience and most of the code is given.  They WILL have to learn the C programming language when they branch out to their own projects; ''copy and paste' works well here!  In a perfect world, they might have printed copies of the code they have already used in a binder.  That way they can refer to it without jumping around in the IDE.  The IDE does a lousy job of printing so copy and paste the code into a text editor and print from there.

Down the road, if the kids get interested in robotics, I highly recommend this robot:
https://www.adafruit.com/product/1639

It is very FAST.  Take a piece of white board about 3 feet square and use electrical tape to lay out a dog-bone shape in black.  The robot will scream over the course!

https://www.homedepot.com/p/1-8-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-Eucalyptus-White-Hardboard-447562/204727075

Most important:  Have fun!

ETA:  Don't be surprised if Sensors is less stimulating than something that moves.  The DC motor, stepper motor and particularly the servo will probably be the most attractive experiments.  Adding sensor (like object detection) to a robot will be a more interesting because it is an application, not a static demonstration.

 

[PerranOak]

Slightly "left-field" but does anyone use these together with microcontrollers "proper" (i.e. without an actual Arduino)?

I was given an Elegoo 37 sensor kit v1.0 (unwanted pressie) and am wondering what to do with it: I don't use Arduinos, etc.

[jackthomson41]

If you want to get these sensors work, you have to use any microcontroller like Arduino Pro Mini and in your case its Elegoo UNO R3.

It's not that difficult to operate, you can find a lot of youtube video tutorials where you can understand how to program it.

You will need to connect sensors with Arduino Mega using jumper wires and then need to upload the code to get sensor data. No extra component needed except microcontroller.

[rstofer]

Using the sensors without an Arduino is complicated by the fact that there are no actual datasheets in the PDF document.  All you get is Arduino wiring diagrams and references to the library code installed in the first few lessons.

So, it might be possible to use them with other uCs but it's going to take a bit of work to reverse engineer the driver.  I haven't looked to see if the driver is shipped as source code or just a compiled binary.  If the source is given, it might be possible to port it to a different uC.

There's a reason that these kits target the Raspberry Pi or the Arduino (of whatever flavor) and that's because they provide a fairly standardized platform with an enormous code base (as well as a huge user base).  Note that there is a library for the Teensy 4.0 (a high end ARM chip) that is identical in function to the library for the ATmega328.  Code can port between a very slow ATmega chip and a 600 MHz ARM with very few bumps in the road and the Teensy is 24 times faster than the ATmega!  But it uses the same IDE, the same library functions and the same high level code.

[PerranOak]

Darn! Thanks both.

I guess I could de-solder the sensors and use them "as is".