Programming and Circuiting
For this project, I worked with Isabella, Rachel, and Jenna. Despite us being a group of four, we mostly worked in partners. My partner was Jenna. We spent these last few weeks learning about circuits and how to manage them. We learned basic electronics via alligator clips and batteries and then moved onto more complicated circuits in breadboards. Our end goal for this was to build a robot light show that we built the circuit and designed the code for.
Things to Know
- Circuit - A complete loop made of conductors from one side of a power source to the other
- Parallel Circuit - Current has multiple routes it could take
- Series Circuit - The current goes through multiple resistances in a row
- Resistance - An obstacle to a current that weakens, reduces, or slows current. This is measured in Ohms
- Current - The flow of electricity from positive to negative (from one side of power source to the other). This is measured in amps by an ammeter
- Voltage - The push or pull of electricity; the "drop" of electricity across a resistor. This is measured in volts. The voltage in a circuit is equivalent to the current in the same circuit multiplied by the resistance.
- Power - The brightness of a bulb. This is measured in watts.
Throughout this unit we went through many packets that helps us understand how currents and electricity works. These packets had us complete tasks involving light bulbs, wires, batteries, and resistors. We ran experiments until we were ready to move on.
Next we went to building circuits through breadboards. This involved wires and resistors. We spent long enough on this subject to grasp the concept of breadboards and apply it to our next tasks.
Next we went to building circuits through breadboards. This involved wires and resistors. We spent long enough on this subject to grasp the concept of breadboards and apply it to our next tasks.
Arduino
The next part of our electrical adventures involved Arduino. Arduino is a program where you can learn to write code and then write your own code from scratch. We downloaded code examples and applied those to circuits we built (using our breadboard knowledge) and ran experiments with flashing lights and music. Our goal for this was to create a creative, robot light show. Mine and Jenna's show involved a buzzer playing songs such as "Sandstorm" by Darude and "Careless Whisper" by Wham! ft. George Michael whilst LED lights played along
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I apologize for filming in vertical. I was delirious. What was I thinking?
Reflections
The hardest part of this project was the learning curve. The alligator cups and light bulbs were easy enough, but once we got into more advanced circuitry, things got much tougher. I expect it was my being a beginner that made everything so difficult, but it didn't take too long to get the hang of. Another hard thing was trying to conjure up a creative art show in such limited time. It made me unhappy to see so many other creative and fun projects because I was comparing my cute songs to their crazy lights.
The better parts of this project were the feelings of achievement when finishing the final product, no matter how much better other students' projects were. Another good part was completing the first packet. When the four of us had a simultaneous "a-ha" moment. This project was fun and learning a bit of coding was great.
The better parts of this project were the feelings of achievement when finishing the final product, no matter how much better other students' projects were. Another good part was completing the first packet. When the four of us had a simultaneous "a-ha" moment. This project was fun and learning a bit of coding was great.