Embedded Programming

Embedded programming is the programming of a microprocessor or microcontroller to perform a dedicated function.

For this topic we are using Arduino Nano. A small and Compelete board based on ATmega328. It has the same functionality of Arduino UNO but with a smaller size.
So, in this week the important things to learn are:

  1. Introduction to Arduino Nano and its components.
  2. Download Arduino IDE to start programming.

Introduction to Arduino Nano

As I mentioned before, Arduino Nano is based on ATmega328P Microcontroller.
The figure illustrated below explains the important components of the Arduino Nano Board.



The figure and table below are explaining Arduino Nano Pinouts, name, type and description.



Pin No. Name Type Description
1-2, 5-16 D0-D13 Input/Output Digital Input/Output Pins
3, 28 RESET Input Reset (Active low)
4, 29 GND PWR Supply Ground
17 3V3 Output +3.3V Output
18 AREF Input ADC Reference
19-26 A7-A0 Input Analop Input Pins
27 +5V Output or Input +5V Output (from on-board regulator)
+5V Input (from external power supply)
30 VIN PWR Supply Voltage

This YouTube video is important to understant the basics of Arduino.

Connecting Aruino Nano

  • The first thing to do is installing Arduino IDE to your device.
  • Install CH340 Driver, as written under the board, so that th computer will recognize Arduino nano once it is connected. I downloaded CH341SER.ZIP Windows Driver.
  • Open Arduino IDE to have the starting code looking like this:



  • Go to tools/Processor and make sure ATmega328P is selected.



  • Go to tools/Board and make sure Arduino Nano is selected.



  • Go to tools/Port to make sure your Arduino Nano is selected.
    • * Here I faced a problem of having three Ports and confused which one is the Arduino Nano.



    *An easy solution to this, open Device Manager on your device, expand Ports(COM & LPT) to figure out which one is Arduino Nano.



    *As shown in this figure CH340 which is COM5 is Arduino Nano.

    Getting Started
    Blink LED Light

  • After connecting the Arduino IDE Board, I am ready to program it.
  • To start with Arduino IDE and understand its codes, I followed Built-In Blink Example. Which is a simple example just to blink the LED light on the board.
    • Go to Files/Examples/01.Basics/Blink
    This is the Default code to do a simple Blink. *I did some changes in the code to make it blink faster, this is done easly by changing the delay time to 100 milli-seconds. I also changed LED_BIULTIN to 13, and this is because the Built in Led on the board is connected to D13.



    * After uploading the code to my Arduino Board the LED Light was blinking faster.

    Morse Code Challenge

    Our instructor shared a challenge to practice programming the Arduino Nano using the Built-In LED light:
    Challenge: Pre code your microcontroller to send a Morse code 1 word message and challenge a friend, family member, your colleagues or your instructor to figure it out.Where:

    time (sec) LED Mode
    dot 0.5 s LED ON
    dash 1 s LED ON
    gap between dots and dashes 0.5 s LED OFF
    gap between letters 2 s LED OFF

    This figure is showing English letters presented by Morse Code, where I will be presenting them by blinking LED light according to the table above.



    To do this I used TinkerCad, a programming language that uses blocks, where I found it easier to use it for Morse Code.
    *Press on Start simulation to see how the code works.
    *Press on Code to see the blocks used, note that these blocks can be downloaded and automatically written as Arduino IDE Code.
    *Download Code/Open in Arduino IDE/Connect Arduino Board/Upload the code to the Arduino

    How I Used TinkerCad

  • As I mentioned before, TinkerCad is a simple programming languages that uses either blocks or text coding. It has a cicuits feature that enables you to use built-in Arduinos, Output and Input Devices and simulate them.

    1. After creating an account, select the Circuits option from the menu on the left, and then start building your circuit.
    2. First search for the components you want, for example Arduino, Piezo Buzzer, Motor, etc.
      3. *you are also able to see the discription of each component as the following.
    1. Now, open the Code window and choose either blocks or text. Different operations can be done using TinkerCad, Output, Loop, statements, etc.

      2. *For example, the block appearing in the figure, set pin 0 to HIGH, can be used to blink the Built-In LED. But firt the code should be changed to set pin 13 to High. High can also be changed to LOW to close the LED as the following.

    *Repeat function can be used in the Control section and it is useful to be used as a for loop.

    *Change the repeat time from to 10 to any other number depending on the required output.

    *Wait Function act as delay in Arduino IDE, but in TinkerCad you can set the time changing to either seconds or millisecond.
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