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Arduino Zero What is it, what is it for and in which development projects can it be used?

The Arduino ZERO board is intended for those users who run projects that do not support the classic Arduino UNO. This is due to the processing power of the MCU, flash memory, and CPU clock.

Due to this it is important that you know what Arduino ZEROs are and what these boards are for in electronics. This information can be found in the paragraphs of this article.

Also, we will show you the main characteristics of the board and the criteria that you must take into account when working with the Arduino ZERO. Take a look at this powerful board.

What are the Arduino Zero and what are these electronic development boards for?

The plate Arduino ZERO is a device that has an electronic bus that includes a ATMEL Cortex-M0 SAMD21 32-bit core MCU. It is characterized by having a program debugging, or debug, making it possible for the user not to need any external hardware.

It has all the necessary technology to work on Internet of Things projects. It is necessary to clarify that its operation is a little lower than that of other plates, since the voltage it supports is 3.3V. All pins except 4 work with external interrupts of type 0 and 1. On the other hand, the direct current, both input and output, is 7 mA and the CPU clock speed reaches the 48 MHz.

Features What are the main features of this Arduino board?

The main features that this Arduino board has are:

  • It is ideal for working in robotics, automation and technology projects.
  • Has a embedded debugger that connects to the hardware of the MCU with which you can program the SAMD21 through an interface SWD. This also allows full access to the microcontroller and work with the program codes to modify them.
  • The external power that Arduino ZERO has It is done by means of a center-positive connector or by the GND and VIN pins located in the header of this 2.1 mm connector. This means that there is no USB port to power the board.
  • The PWM are 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13; while the analog inputs They’re in A0 to A5. The output voltage is at the DAC, which is channel A0.
  • The SPI is located at SS, MOSI, MISO and SCK of the palca.
  • Owns a watch that works 48MHz, so real time and calendar can be counted.

What should I keep in mind when working with Arduino ZERO boards?

What should I keep in mind when working with Arduino ZERO boards?

The first thing you should know is that the plate Arduino ZERO works with a voltage of 3.3V, slightly lower than the rest of the other plates. For this reason, you must take this restriction into account because you could burn the microprocessor and other components. When you work in the IDE and open the monitor, the microcontrollers and the sketch execution do not restart, so you will have to restart the process through a button that you will find on the dashboard of the software Arduino.

Power is not via USB input, which could complicate the project if you want to use the 2.1mm connector for another circuit connection. By last, you must be careful in the amount of processes that you attribute to the project. While it is true that this board is far superior in power to the Arduino UNO and you have a powerful microcontroller, a good memory and a 48 MHz clock, you must always be attentive to the load that you transfer to it.

List of the best projects you can do with Arduino ZERO boards

Learn about the best projects you can carry out with an Arduino ZERO board:

WiFi Controlled NeoPixel Screen

WiFi Controlled NeoPixel Screen

With this project you will be able to create a screen of NeoPixel managed by Wifi. You will need one Arduino ZERO board, a ring with NeoPixel type lights, several LEDs, a breadboard, a 1000 µF capacitor, a 475 ohm resistor and cables to generate the connections. You will have to do the assembly following the descriptions and specifications of the parts and considering the pins of the board, according to everything we have talked about in this post.

When you have the assembly ready, you must enter the following code:

Temperature values ​​recording

Temperature values ​​recording

You’re going to need a badge Arduino MKR Zero, 100 nF capacitor, a 4.75 k ohm resistor, a temperature and humidity sensor, an insert plate, cables, and a MicroSD card. With this project you work to keep a record of the temperature and humidity values ​​that your device registers.

You will have to assemble the Arduino with the breadboard, then the temperature and humidity sensor with the breadboard, after this you will have to connect the power pin of the sensor to the VCC pin and finally connect the sensor data pin with pin7. When you finish you must bring the ground pin that has the humidity and temperature sensor to the pin GND from the plate Arduino. Next, you will connect the capacitor with the GND and the resistance.

Once you finish you must enter these codes:

Arduino Zero Robot

Arduino Zero Robot

You can create a robot with an Arduino board. For this you will need an adapter Arduino MKR2UNO, an Arduino MotorShield Rev3 board, a DC motor, cables and a battery of 9V. When you have these materials you will have to assemble them by gluing the motor and then making the connections indicated by the pieces.

Next, you will have to enter these codes: