Arduino Cookbook, 2nd Edition
Want to create devices that interact with the physical world? This cookbook is perfect for anyone who wants to experiment with the popular Arduino microcontroller and programming environment. You’ll find more than 200 tips and techniques for building a variety of objects and prototypes such as toys, detectors, robots, and interactive clothing that can sense and respond to touch, sound, position, heat, and light.
You don’t need to have mastered Arduino or programming to get started. Updated for the Arduino 1.0 release, the recipes in this second edition include practical examples and guidance to help you begin, expand, and enhance your projects right away—whether you’re an artist, designer, hobbyist, student, or engineer.
- Get up to speed on the Arduino board and essential software concepts quickly
- Learn basic techniques for reading digital and analog signals
- Use Arduino with a variety of popular input devices and sensors
- Drive visual displays, generate sound, and control several types of motors
- Interact with devices that use remote controls, including TVs and appliances
- Learn techniques for handling time delays and time measurement
- Apply advanced coding and memory handling techniques
Why Read This Book
You should read this if you want a fast, example-driven reference for building real Arduino projects: it shows practical ways to sense, actuate, communicate, and log data with minimal setup. You’ll get copy-paste-ready recipes and design notes that speed prototyping and help you understand common pitfalls when interfacing hardware.
Who Will Benefit
Hobbyists, students, and engineers who prototype with Arduino/AVR boards and need quick, working examples for sensors, displays, motors, and communications.
Level: Beginner — Prerequisites: No prior Arduino experience required; basic familiarity with programming concepts and elementary electronics (voltage, current, simple circuits) is recommended.
Key Takeaways
- Build working Arduino sketches to read sensors and drive actuators using digital I/O and analog inputs
- Interface common peripherals (LCDs, EEPROMs, I2C/SPI sensors, serial devices) reliably
- Implement PWM, timers, and interrupt-driven input for responsive control
- Use the Arduino IDE, libraries, and bootloader tools to compile, upload, and debug sketches
- Log data and communicate over serial, USB, and basic networking shields
- Combine hardware and code into small projects (motors, robots, wearables, detectors) with practical wiring and parts guidance
Topics Covered
- Getting Started with Arduino
- Basic I/O: Digital and Analog
- Timing, Delays, and PWM
- Sensors: Light, Temperature, Sound, Position
- Actuators: Motors, Servos, Relays
- Displays and Indicators (LCD, LEDs)
- Serial, I2C, and SPI Communication
- Data Logging and Storage
- Networking and Shields (overview)
- Project Recipes: Robots, Wearables, Detectors
- Troubleshooting, Parts, and Best Practices
- Appendices: Arduino reference and library notes
Languages, Platforms & Tools
How It Compares
More recipe-focused and broader in quick examples than Massimo Banzi's Getting Started with Arduino (which is a shorter intro); more approachable and example-rich for prototyping than Jeremy Blum's Exploring Arduino, which dives deeper into electronics and design trade-offs.
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