ARDUINO

As you've probably heard, Arduino is the most popular platform for prototyping electronic projects.  It consists of Open-Source hardware and software that is very easy to use.  After connecting one of their different development boards to a computer's USB port, these devices allow you to run different instructions you program on it thorugh the Arduino IDE. 

Arduino Hardware

The Arduino Team has designed not one, but an entire family of hardware that covers a wide range of specifications. Some boards have a small form factor, and thus have a limited amount of readily accessible pins.Some are designed to run directly from a 3.7V battery, while others need at least 5V. Thanks to the variety of choices, we can choose the most appropriate board depending on the requirements of a project.

Arduino Software: Pre-programmed bootloader

The microcontroller unit on each Arduino board is pre-programmed with a tiny piece of firmware (0.5KB of memory) that allows us to upload code without using any additional hardware. We can see the bootloader running when an Arduino is reset as its activity makes the LED (pin 13) blink on startup.

Arduino Software: Development Environment (Download)

As most Integrated Development Environments (IDEs), the one offered by the Arduino team combines a text editor for writing code, and a set of interfaces for debugging, programming, and monitoring an Arduino board.

The Arduino Team have greatly facilitated the use of inexpensive computational devices in projects developed by artists, designers, hobbyists and just about anyone interested in creating interactive objects or environments. Once the code is loaded onto an Arduino Board, we are able to perceive inputs from a particular environment, and produce a desired response or effect. All the code and design files associated with the project are available under an open-source license, so that anyone can use—and sometimes even improve—them.

Arduino Compatible Boards and Packs

From the tiny Arduino Micro, to the very powerful Arduino Mega, Arduino has a large and diverse line of products that Acrobotic carries and supplements with our diverse line of compatible boards and customized packs. For beginners, check out the or Acrobotic Makers Starter Kit.