Arduino, Alexa etc.
In my latest video tutorial I show you how to control a pull type solenoid switch with a push button using the D1 mini.
Solenoid switches have a wide range of uses from water/air valves to electrical relays. In a future project I use a pull type solenoid similar to the one used here to act as a locking mechanism.
The parts you will require are as follows:
The schematic is as follows:
The sketch for this tutorial can be found here.
Having to rely on mains power can frequently limit the usefulness of the devices we make. Being able to power them continuously from the sun using a solar panel in combination with a rechargeable battery is an cheap and easy solution.
In this tutorial, I give a basic explanation of the process of harnessing energy from the sun using solar and an example circuit which you could use for your own small scale projects.
The parts used for this project can be found here:
TP4056 Li-Ion Battery Charge Controller:
https://www.banggood.com/custlink/KGmmYIsB5L
TP18650 3.7V Li-Ion Battery (2600mAh):
https://www.banggood.com/custlink/KKDmESs4HB
6V 4.5W Mono crystalline Solar Panel:
https://www.banggood.com/custlink/GvD3YIs0PU
5V 1A USB Step Up Converter:
https://www.banggood.com/custlink/mvK3ESN6SK
Coming Up I will be using the theory presented here to create a Solar Module for my wireless moisture sensor to provide a hopefully near continuous supply of power so I can monitor my plants all through the summer season.
Before you can begin programming the D1 mini from within the Arduino IDE it must first be installed. Follow these easy steps to get started:
Many micro-controllers such as the D1 mini have few analog inputs so it is useful to be able to use multiple analog sensors using the same input pin. In this video, part of a upcoming series of tutorials, I will show you a simple way to do this.
The example sketch accompanying this tutorial can be found here.
A more advanced version of this sketch using Blynk can be found here.
A short tutorial on using the ESP-01 to connect your Arduino projects to the Internet of Things (IoT) via. The ESP-01 is a WiFi enabled microcontroller that may be used standalone or in combination with an Arduino to enable WiFi control and monitoring of any project.
If you have difficulty getting your ESP-01 to work, see my separate video on flashing new firmware:
A quick announcement of my upcoming tutorial series designed around introducing the Internet of Things (IOT) and creating IOT devices using Arduino and the WeMos D1 Mini.
As well as learning all about both IOT and the D1 Mini (no prior experience necessary), I aim to teach you how to build your very own internet enabled weather station and a WiFi controlled switch that can be controlled via an Amazon Alexa.
Come back soon or subscribe to my YouTube channel to be the first to hear of future announcements…
DuPont or jumper cables are used commonly in Arduino projects, for those components that do not come with DuPont connectors we must fashion our own. The process of adding connectors to the bare wire is known as crimping and it can be done most easily using a crimping tool. Here is a short guide to crimping DuPont cables using one of these to ensure you can get it right everytime!
The crimping tool I use is cheap and widely available:
You will also need some connectors:
Examples of a crimped connector, bad (left), good (right):
First strip the wire exposing only 3-4 mm of wire
This ensures that the connector will grip the plastic insulation and will have sufficient contact with the wire.
Place the connector within the 20-22 AWG slot of the crimping tool ensuring the ‘pin’ portion of the connector is outside of the tool.
Slowly close down on the crimp tool to slightly bend the connector, this is so that we can fit it into the 28-24 slow, do not fully crimp the connector! Release the connector by pushing on the ratchet release located between the handles.
Place the connector inside the 28-24 slot of the crimping tool and close down until it is just in contact with the connector, again making sure the pin portion is not inside the tool.
Place the wire inside the connector and ensure that 1-2mm of plastic insulation is inside the connector.
Clamp down on the tool, 2-3 times until it automatically releases ensuring that the connector does not rotate too much as you do.
Slide the connector into the desired plastic housing and you are done!
The ESP-01 is a simple device but it can be difficult to get working and is easy to break, in this video I’ll show you how I fixed some of mine by easily re-flashing the firmware.
The ESP flasher tool I used is available here:
In this tutorial I will show you how to configure an ESP32 device within the Arduino IDE and connect it to the Blynk mobile App tp monitor/interact with a variety of projects, in this example a temperature and humidity monitor for a mini greenhouse.
The ESP32 device used in this tutorial can be purchased here:
You’ll also need an DHT11 temperature and humidity sensor:
The Arduino code for this tutorial is available here:
http://medfizz.com/cabuu/Arduino_Scripts/BlynkWithESP32.ino
Cheap Radio-Frequeny (RF) devices may be easily controlled using Amazon Echo and the Broadlink RM Pro. This short tutorial demonstrates how to configure new devices in the Intelligent Home Centre App and enable the Broadlink skill in the Amazon Echo app to control them.
The RM Pro is available at the link below:
Details of my 3D printed Blind Controller may be found at thingiverse:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2631414