So yesterday I received my very first
Creation Crate package. This months subscription included all the wonderful goodies required to build your very first RGB arduino based mood lamp. Before we dive into this build let me first say that if you are looking to start working with arduino then Creation Crate is the perfect start. They ship everything you need from start to finish and offer excellent guidance along the way.
This kit includes:
** Instructions
** An Arduino
** All Jumper cables
** Breadboard
** 3 Leds
** 1 Resistor
** A Light Dependent Resistor (LDR)
** The paper lamp cover
** Stickers
** Arduino Code ( Which I typed out and made it super simple for you to copy and paste in the sketchbook.)
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| Breadboard |
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| Resistors/LEDS/ jumpers |
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| My DIY Power supply now up and running. Check BLOG for Step by Step build. |
STEP 1: Placing the LEDS
Gather materials and place LED's onto the breadboard. The longer leg (of the led's facing towards you.
(
Diode and LED Polarity. Diodes only allow current to flow in one direction, and they're always polarized. A diode has two terminals. The positive side is called the anode, and the negative one is called the cathode.
STEP 2: Placing the Resistors
Now take your resistor and LDR and connect those to the breadboard as shown. ** Make sure
that the two get connected on the same rail as shown in the picture.
Step 3: Connecting the LEDS/ Resistors
Now we will begin by taking the 3 mini jumpers and connecting the led's. We do this by attaching the cathodes of the leds to the negative rail (blue) on the breadboard. Once they are all connected and you sit back and admire your progress then we move on.
As with connecting the cathodes (-) we must also connect the anodes(+). We do this by attaching the wires to the respected leds making sure we don't connect to the same rails. As you can see from the photos the breadboard is now coming alive.
The resistors also need to be connected to the breadboard as well. Run a jumper wire like I have from one end of the resistor and connect it to the 5v rail (red). Next you need to complete the circuit by now attaching the free end of the LDR to the ground rail on the breadboard (blue)
after this has all been arranged you now have finished the trickiest part. Looks amazing doesn't it. Next step is setting up the arduino on your laptop or pc.
Step 4: Connecting to the Arduino
The connection to the arduino from your breadboard are quite simple to understand. The arduino is labelled with numbers which make pin connections fairly simple. Basically it will say connect this to this pin and so on. So here we go RED LED : Pin (11) GREEN LED: Pin (10) BLUE LED: Pin (9) LDR: Pin (Analog 0)
Step 5: Hooking up the Arduino and Code
After you have completed the circuit now comes the exciting part of bringing your Creation Crate alive. Plug the usb into your computer and install the
arduino program. This is free. After the install, open up the Arduino program. You will be greeted with this window which is called a sketchbook. The sketchbook allows you to write code and then upload it directly to your arduino board. The program includes alot of free codes already written for you to enjoy and is as simple as selecting your needs. This is the bread and butter of the Arduino world.
So once in the sketch window all you now need to do is copy the following code and place it in a blank sketch. Click upload and bammm you should be up and running.
*******CODE:
int pulseSpeed = 5; // how fast lamp runs
int ldrPin = 0; // LDR in Analog input 0
int redLed = 11; // red led in digital pin 11
int greenLed = 10; // green led in digital pin 10
int blueLed = 9; // blue LED in digital pin9
int ambientLight; // stores the value of the light in the room
int power = 150; // brightness 2-255
float RGB[3]; // this is an array
float CommonMathVariable = 180/PI;
void setup () {
pinMode(redLed,OUTPUT);
pinMode(greenLed,OUTPUT);
pinMode(blueLed,OUTPUT);
digitalWrite (redLed,LOW);
digitalWrite (greenLed,LOW);
digitalWrite (blueLed,LOW);
// this sets all the outputs to off
}
void loop (){
for (float x = 0; x < PI; x = x + 0.00001){
RGB[0] = power * abs(sin(x * (CommonMathVariable)));
// Red
RGB[1] = power * abs(sin((x + PI/3) * (CommonMathVariable)));
// green
RGB[2] = power * abs(sin((x + (2 * PI)/3)*(CommonMathVariable)));
ambientLight = analogRead(ldrPin);
// reads light and stores
if (ambientLight > 600) {
// makes the light only turn on if dark
analogWrite (redLed,RGB[0]);
analogWrite (greenLed,RGB[1]);
analogWrite (blueLed,RGB[2]);
}
else {
digitalWrite (redLed,LOW);
digitalWrite (greenLed,LOW);
digitalWrite (blueLed,LOW);
}
for (int i = 0; i < 3; i++) {
if (RGB[i] < 1) {
delay (20 * pulseSpeed);
}
else if (RGB[i] < 5) {
delay (10 * pulseSpeed);
}
else if (RGB[i] < 10) {
delay (2 * pulseSpeed);
}
else if (RGB[1] < 100){
delay (1 * pulseSpeed);
}
else {}
}
delay(1);
}
}
Finished:
Check back soon for next months build.
Eventually after many projects and impulse Ebay buys I have collected quite a few of the Arduino Uno micro controllers. I would like to think more = better. To be honest today was the first time I actually connected more then one to a power supply. Now that I know how easy it is to wire up and the extra applications you gain I will make better use of it. During my projects as of today I have never incorporated more then one, maybe one day. So if you would like a lesson on how to connect these bad boys, then keep scrolling. As always show some love and subscribe.
Prepare your workstation by placing the breadboard and Arduinos closeby. Depending on the size of your jumper wires will determine how close. 
