DEV-13819

  SparkFun Arduino ProtoShield Hookup Guide Introduction  Heads Up! This tutorial is for the latest version of the SparkFun Arduino ProtoShield. If you have an older version, please consult the retired Arduino ProtoShield Quickstart Guide The SparkFun Arduino ProtoShield PCB and ProtoShield kit lets you customize your own Arduino shield using whatever custom circuit you can come up with! This tutorial will go over its features, hardware assembly, and how to use shield. SparkFun Arduino ProtoShield - Bare PCB  DEV-13819 SparkFun ProtoShield Kit  DEV-13820 Suggested Materials To follow along with this project tutorial, you will need the following materials. Depending on what you have, you may not need everything listed here. Add it to your cart, read through the guide, and adjust the cart as necessary. SparkFun Arduino ProtoShield Hookup Guide SparkFun Wish List SparkFun ProtoShield Kit DEV-13820 Riding on the waves of the very popular Arduino USB board is this small prototyping shield. Originally spawned wit… Breadboard - Mini Modular (Red) PRT-12044 This red Mini Breadboard is a great way to prototype your small projects! With 170 tie points there's just enough ro… Breadboard - Mini Modular (Green) PRT-12046 This green Mini Breadboard is a great way to prototype your small projects! With 170 tie points there's just enough … Breadboard - Mini Modular (Blue) PRT-12045 This blue Mini Breadboard is a great way to prototype your small projects! With 170 tie points there's just enough r… Breadboard - Mini Modular (Black) PRT-12047 This black Mini Breadboard is a great way to prototype your small projects! With 170 tie points there's just enough r… SparkFun RedBoard - Programmed with Arduino DEV-13975 At SparkFun we use many Arduinos and we're always looking for the simplest, most stable one. Each board is a bit… Stackable Header - 3 Pin (Female, 0.1") PRT-13875 This is a simple 3 pin female PTH header. This header is in a configuration that makes it ideal to be used with the [… Breadboard - Mini Modular (White) PRT-12043 This white Mini Breadboard is a great way to prototype your small projects! With 170 tie points there's just enough r… Female Headers PRT-00115 Single row of 40-holes, female header. Can be cut to size with a pair of wire-cutters. Standard .1" spacing. We use … Hook-Up Wire - Assortment (Solid Core, 22 AWG) PRT-11367 An assortment of colored wires: you know it's a beautiful thing. Six different colors of solid core wire in a cardboard … (2) SparkFun Bluetooth Modem - BlueSMiRF Silver WRL-12577 The BlueSMiRF Silver is the latest Bluetooth wireless serial cable replacement from SparkFun Electronics! This ver… Break Away Male Headers - Right Angle PRT-00553 A row of right angle male headers - break to fit. 40 pins that can be cut to any size. Used with custom PCBs or gen… SparkFun USB Mini-B Cable - 6 Foot CAB-11301 This is a USB 2.0 type A to Mini-B 5-pin cable. You know, the mini-B connector that usually comes with USB Hubs, … Jumper Wires Standard 7" M/M - 30 AWG (30 Pack) PRT-11026 If you need to knock up a quick prototype there's nothing like having a pile of jumper wires to speed things up, and … Tools You will need a soldering iron, solder, general soldering accessories, and the tools listed below for prototyping. Solder Lead Free - 100-gram Spool Needle Nose Pliers  TOL-09325  TOL-08793 Diagonal Cutters Weller WLC100 Soldering Station  TOL-08794  TOL-14228 Wire Strippers - 30AWG (Hakko)  TOL-12630 Retired Suggested Reading If you aren’t familiar with the following concepts, we recommend checking out these tutorials before continuing. How to Solder: Through-Hole Soldering What is an Arduino? This tutorial covers everything you need to know about through-hole soldering. What is this 'Arduino' thing anyway? This tutorials dives into what an Arduino is and along with Arduino projects and widgets. Top View Bottom View Stackable Headers for Arduino Uno R3 Footprint The Arduino ProtosShield is based off the Arduino R3's footprint. Headers can be installed on the pins located closest to the edge of the board. You will notice that the location of the headers are highlighted in a rectangular silkscreen. For those using the stackable headers included in the kit, make sure to insert the header from the top side and solder from the bottom. These pins are also broken out on the other side of its labeling. You will notice that the 1x10 header on the upper right side of the board is slightly offset from the Arduino R3 footprint. Don't worry, this was intentional so that you can place the board on a standard breadboard! Prototyping Area Next up is the sea of plated through holes. Look at all that great space for prototyping projects! Solderless Mini-Breadboard Do you have a small circuit on a mini-breadboard connected to your RedBoard or Arduino Uno? The ProtoShield has a spot to place a mini-breadboard on top to keep everything together. Peel the adhesive off the minibreadboard, align it to the silkscreen, and stack it on! Solderable-Like Breadboard Once you are done prototyping your circuit on the mini-breadboard, there is an option to solder the circuit directly to the board for a more secure connection. The bottom half of this area was designed with a breadboard in mind. You will not notice too much on the top side. Flip the board over and you will see open jumper pads between each through hole to make a connection like a breadboard. Once you add a component, simply add a solder jumper between holes to make a connection. For those that prefer the standard prototyping pads, we left the other side as is. Solderable-Like Breadboard (Top View) Solderable-Like Breadboard w/ Open Jumpers (Bottom View) ICSP (MISO, MOSI, and SCK NC) Need to access the Arduino's ICSP pins? The pins are broken out if you do not want to remove the shield every time you need the ICSP pins or if you decide to stack another shield on top of the ProtoShield. You will need add two 1x3 stackable headers. Note: The MISO, MOSI, and SCK pins are not connected (NC). Additionally, there may not be enough room for a mini-breadboard if you decide to add 1x3 stackable headers to the ICSP pins and then stack an additional shield on top. You will need to go with a lower profile by soldering the circuit with wires to the ProtoShield. ⚡ Oh snap! This shield was designed for the Arduino Uno footprint. If you are using a variant with 3.3V logic level on the ICSP pin (i.e. SAMD21 Development Board or Arduino Pro 3.3V/8MHz), you will need to cut the two traces connecting to the 5V pin on the 1x3 ICSP header. Power There are a few locations along the outside of the board for power and ground. Let's focus on the power rails in the prototyping area. 5V Rail Just below the silkscreen for the mini-breadboard is a 5V rail. This is connected to the 5V pin from your Arduino. VDD Rail (NC) Need a different voltage? We squeezed a VDD rail just below. It is currently not connected to anything. We left it up to the user to connect to Arduino's 3.3V pin or another regulated voltage (i.e. 2.8V or 1.8V). GND Rail Need to ground more circuits? There are few more ground connections on the board as indicated by the image below. Reset Button Stacking a shield on an Arduino can make it hard to reset the microcontroller. Like other Arduino shields, the reset button has been rerouted on the ProtoShield. Software Serial UART Port The SparkFun Arduino ProtoShield breaks out a software serial UART port. The pins are arranged in such a way as to connect to our BlueSMiRF if you decide to go wireless. If you decide that you want to connect a different serial UART device or use different pins for serial, we added closed jumpers on the back. Simply cut the traces and reroute the connection by adding wires to the headers. Oh Snap! ProtoSnap-able Prototyping Hardware The board includes prototyping hardware that is based on the ProtoSnap design. When you are finished testing and want to use bigger components, simply snap off the bottom of the board using pliers. 3mm LEDs (NC) When viewing the board from the top, there are two locations for 3mm LEDs and their 330Ω current limiting resistors. Note: The LED pins L1 and L2 are not connected (NC). To control, simply solder a wire from L1 or L2 to an I/O pin. Ground is currently connected to the rest of the shield between the mousebites. We left it up to the user to choose and solder these connections. Momentary Pushbutton (NC) There is a spot for a momentary pushbutton and 10kΩ pull up resistor on the other side of the LEDs. Note: The button (SW2) is not connected (NC). To control, simply solder a wire from SW2 to an I/O pin. 5V and ground are currently connected to the rest of the shield between the mousebites. We left it up to the user to connect. Hardware Assembly Headers Grab a female stackable header and slide it from the top side of the ProtoShield. With your soldering hand, pull the header with your index finger and thumb toward the edge of the board. Using your other hand, push against the header using your index finger and grip the board with your thumb. Hold the header down with your middle finger. Grab the soldering iron with your soldering hand and tack on one pin. Repeat for each header. Buttons Insert the buttons for reset and prototyping. You may need to bend the buttons to fit into the through holes. Careful not to snap off the prototyping area! Hold the button against the board and tack some solder on one pin. LEDs Find the 3mm LED's cathode side and align it with its silkscreen labeled with a "—" sign. Slide the LED in from the top side and tack on a pin. Repeat for the second LED. Resistors The kit includes resistors with two different values. There is one 10kΩ resistor [color band = BROWN, BLACK, ORANGE, GOLD ] that is used as a pull-up resistor. The two 330Ω resistors [color band = ORANGE, ORANGE, BROWN, GOLD] are used to limit current to the LEDs. 10kΩ Pull-Up Resistor 330Ω Current Limiting Resistor Let's start with the pull-up resistor. Bend the 10kΩ resistor's terminals. Then slide the pins where it says "10k". Bend the terminals to hold the resistor in place for soldering. The resistor can get hot to the touch when holding the component down during soldering. At this point, feel free to grab a small piece of cardboard to hold the resistor down. When you are ready, tack one of the 10kΩ resistor's pins. Repeat for the 330Ω resistors. Check Alignment Before Soldering Away! At this point, it would be good to check the alignment of the components. Make sure that they are flush against the board and they are in its correct location. Did you add solder for the components on the bottom side? All of the components included in the kit should be soldered on the side of the jumpers. Everything good? Solder away! This is the fun part. Cut Excess Leads Grab a flush cutter and trim off excess leads connected to the prototyping hardware. Careful not to cut off the stackable headers! Finished ProtoShield If you used water soluble flux, clean the board off. Otherwise, bask in the glow of your new ProtoShield for Arduino! Your board should look similar to the images below with the terminals soldered and cut. Customize So what do you do from here? There are a few options! We left this up to the user to choose depending on personal preference. You can stick a mini-breadboard on the shield for prototyping small circuits. Additional headers can be added on however you would like for serial UART or in the prototyping area. For a lower profile, you can also strip hookup wire and solder cables against the plated through holes. For those sandwiching the ProtoShield with another shield, you can solder two 1x3 stackable headers for the ICSP pins. If you choose this route, you will need to go with a lower profile, using wires to connect the circuit. Close Up of ICSP Pins w/ Stackable Headers ProtoShield w/ Stackable Headers ⚡ Oh snap! This shield was designed for the Arduino Uno footprint. If you are using a variant with 3.3V logic level on the ICSP pin (i.e. SAMD21 Development Board or Arduino Pro 3.3V/8MHz), you will need to cut the two traces connecting to the 5V pin on the 1x3 ICSP header. Finished Prototyping? If you are finished prototyping, you can remove the mini-breadboard and solder your custom circuit to the prototyping area for a more secure connection. Want to use a different LED or a bigger button in your project? You can snap off the prototyping area using needle nose pliers and replace it with the hardware of your choice! Big Dome Pushbutton - Red Metal Pushbutton - Momentary (16mm, Red)  COM-09181  COM-11966 NovelKeys Big Switch - Tactile Super Bright LED - Red 10mm  COM-14583  COM-08862 Example Code Note: The following examples assumes you are using the latest version of the Arduino IDE on your desktop. If this is your first time using Arduino, please review our tutorial on installing the Arduino IDE. Blinking LED Let's connect L1 to pin 13 using a wire. Assuming that you soldered to L1, connect it to pin 13. Prototyping Hardware Arduino L1 13 Copy the code below and upload to your Arduino! /*BLINKING AN LED Turn an LED on for one second, off for one second, and repeat forever. This sketch was written by SparkFun Electronics, with lots of help from the Arduino community. This example is based on the blinking an LED example in the SparkFun Inventor's Kit v3.3. This code is completely free for any use. Visit https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/sik-experiment-guide-for-arduino---v33/experiment-1 -blinking-an-led for more information. Visit http://www.arduino.cc to learn about the Arduino. Version 2.0 6/2012 MDG ******************************************************************************/ // The LED is connected to digital pin 13 // Change the pin number depending on // what L1 is connected to. const int L1 = 13; void setup() { pinMode(L1, OUTPUT); } //Set L1 to output void loop() { digitalWrite(L1, HIGH); delay(1000); digitalWrite(L1, LOW); delay(1000); } // Turn on the LED // Wait for one second // Turn off the LED // Wait for one second LED labeled as L1 should begin blinking. Fading LED Let's connect L2 to pin 6 and to fade in and out. Assuming that you soldered to L2, connect it to pin 6. Prototyping Hardware Arduino L2 6 Copy the code below and upload to your Arduino! /* Fading LED Use for-loops to smoothly vary the brightness of an LED This sketch was written by SparkFun Electronics, with lots of help from the Arduino community. This example is based on the Fading LEDs example in the LilyPad Development Board Activity Guide. This code is completely free for any use. Visit https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/lilypad-development-board-activity-guide/4-fading-l eds for more information Visit http://www.arduino.cc to learn about the Arduino. ******************************************************************************/ // Create integer variable for the LED pin we'll be using: const int L2 = 6; // Create a new integer variable called brightness: int brightness; void setup() { // Set the LED pins to be output: pinMode(L2, OUTPUT); } void loop() { // The two "for loops" below will make a LED fade on and off in a "breathing" pattern. // Now we'll have the program automatically change the value of brightness // using a command called "for". // // // // // for is like a tiny version of loop. The for command has several parts: 1. something to do before starting (brightness = 0) 2. a test to decide whether to keep going (brightness