Physical Computing at ITP | Labs / Analog In with an Arduino

Overview

In this lab, you'll learn how to connect a variable resistor to a microcontroller and read it as an analog input. You'll be able to read changing conditions from the physical world and convert them to changing variables in a program.

Table of Contents (hide)

1. Parts
2. Prepare the breadboard
3. Add a potentiometer and LED
4. Program the Module
5. Other variable resistors

1. Parts

For this lab you will need to have the following parts:

Solderless breadboard

22-AWG hookup wire

Arduino Microcontroller
module

Light Emiting Diodes, LED

560-ohm (anything from 220 to 1K) and 10Kohm resistors

10Kohm potentiometer

Variable resistors

Flex sensors
(or a different
form of variable resistor)

2. Prepare the breadboard

Conect power and ground on the breadboard to power and ground from the microcontroller. On the Arduino module, use the 5V and any of the ground connections:

(Diagram made with Fritzing)

3. Add a potentiometer and LED

Connect a potentiometer to analog in pin 0 of the module, and an LED to digital pin 9:

(Diagram made with Fritzing)

4. Program the Module

Program your Arduino as follows:

First, establish some global variables: One to hold the value returned by the potentiometer; Make a global constants to give the LED's pin number a name as well as the sensor.

const int ledPin = 9; // pin that the LED is attached to
const int potPin = 0; // pin that the potentiometer is attached to
int analogValue = 0; // value read from the pot

[Get Code]

In the setup() method, initialize serial communications at 9600 bits per second, and set the LED's pin to be an output.

void setup() {
// initialize serial communications at 9600 bps:
Serial.begin(9600);
// declare the led pin as an output:
pinMode(ledPin, OUTPUT);
}

[Get Code]

In the main loop, read the analog value using analogRead() and put the result into the variable that holds the analog value and print it out. Use the delay() command in conjunction with digitalWrite() to turn the LED on and off.

void loop() {
analogValue = analogRead(potPin); // read the pot value
Serial.println(analogValue); // print the value of the pot back to the serial monitor
digitalWrite(ledPin, HIGH); // turn the LED on
delay(analogValue); // delay for a bit
digitalWrite(ledPin, LOW); // turn the LED off
delay(analogValue); // delay for a bit
}

[Get Code]

When you run this code, the LED should blink faster and slower as you turn the pot, and the value should show up in the serial monitor.

5. Other variable resistors

You can use many different types of variable resistors for analog input. For example, the pink monkey in the photo below has his arms wired with flex sensors. These sensors change their resistance as they are flexed. When the monkey's arms move up and down, the values of the flex sensors change the number of LEDs that are turned on.

Note: Flex sensors and force-sensing resistors melt easily, so unless you are very quick with a soldering iron, it's risky to solder directly to their leads. Here are three better solutions:

use wire wrapping wire
and a wire wrapping tool

use screw terminals
(if you have a row of three, you can
attach the fixed resistor as well)

use female headers

Thanks to adafruit, who have a good FSR tutorial as well.

Here's an example circuit much like the pink monkey circuit above, but with a force-sensing resistor instead of a flex sensor.

(Diagram made with Fritzing)

The circuit above works for any variable resistor. It's called a voltage divider. There are two voltage dividers, one on analog in 0 and one on analog in 1. The fixed resistor in each circuit should have the same order of magnitude as the variable resistor's range. For example, if you're using a flex sensor with a range of 50 - 100 kilohms, you might use a 47Kohm or a 100Kohm fixed resistor. If you're using a force sensing resistor that goes from inifinity ohms to 10 ohms, but most of its range is between 10Kohms and 10 ohms, you might use a 10Kohm fixed resistor.

The code above assumed you were using a potentiometer, which always gives the full range of analog input, which is 0 to 1023. The voltage divider circuit, on the other hand, can't give you the full range. The fixed resistor in the circuit limits the range. You'll need to find your maximum and minimum values to determine the range for turning on the LEDs.

To find out your range, open the serial monitor and watch the printout as you press the FSR or flex the flex sensor. Note the maximum value and the minimum value. Then you can use the range that the sensor actually gives as input to the range that the LED needs as output.

You know that the maximum input range of any analog input is from 0 to 5 volts. So if you wanted to know the voltage on an analog input pin at any point, you use a little math to get it.

// read the sensor:
int analogValue = analogRead(A0);
// map the result to a voltage range from 0 to 5 volts
float voltage = (5./1023.)*analogValue;
// print it out:
Serial.println(voltage);

[Get Code]

Now write a sketch to control the LEDs with the sensor so that as the sensor lets more voltage through, the number of LEDs that light up changes. First, make constants for the LED pin numbers, and a variable for the sensor values.

const int LEDone = 9; // pin that the first LED is on
const int LEDtwo = 10; // pin that the second LED is on
const int LEDone = 11; // pin that the third LED is on
const int LEDtwo = 12; // pin that the fourth LED is on
const int sensorPin=0; //pin that the sensor is on
int sensorValue = 0; // value read from the analog sensor

[Get Code]

In the setup(), initialize serial communication at 9600 bits per second, and make the LED pins outputs.

void setup() {
// initialize serial communications at 9600 bps:
Serial.begin(9600);
// declare the led pins as outputs:
pinMode(LEDone, OUTPUT);
pinMode(LEDtwo, OUTPUT);
pinMode(LEDthree, OUTPUT);
pinMode(LEDfour, OUTPUT);
}

[Get Code]

Start the main loop by reading the sensor using analogRead(). Print the sensor value out as well.

void loop() {
sensorValue = analogRead(sensorPin); // read the pot value

Serial.println(sensorValue); // print the sensor value back to the serial monitor

[Get Code]

Finish the main loop by setting up an if/else loop that turns the appropriate LEDs on/off.

//assuming the values are between 400 and 900

if(sensorValue<450){
digitalWrite(LEDone, HIGH);
digitalWrite(LEDtwo, LOW);
digitalWrite(LEDthree, LOW);
digitalWrite(LEDfour, LOW);
}else if (sensorValue >=450 && sensorValue<= 650){
digitalWrite(LEDone, HIGH);
digitalWrite(LEDtwo, HIGH);
digitalWrite(LEDthree, LOW);
digitalWrite(LEDfour, LOW);
}else if (sensorValue >=651 && sensorValue<= 775){
digitalWrite(LEDone, HIGH);
digitalWrite(LEDtwo, HIGH);
digitalWrite(LEDthree, HIGH);
digitalWrite(LEDfour, LOW);
}else if (sensorValue >=776){
digitalWrite(LEDone, HIGH);
digitalWrite(LEDtwo, HIGH);
digitalWrite(LEDthree, HIGH);
digitalWrite(LEDfour, HIGH);
}
}

[Get Code]