I’m interested in the Lilypad, but have a few questions first.
Do I need to purchase a cord separatly to plug into the computer? I have an arduino Uno - will that USB cord work?
How does the Lilypad interact with other “shields” that the Uno would have stacked? Since there aren’t “pins” how do I get the Lilypad to talk to an Escudo or Motor shield? Can I use any shield to interact with the Lilypad like I would the Uno?
I see there are tutroials around lights - are there examples outthere with wearcbles that run motors, EL wire, etc?
You will need a different “cord” than the USB you use with an Arduino. The LP Arduino is like the Pro and Pro mini Arduinos, it doesn’t have a USB-serial adapter onboard (like your Uno has). So you need a cable with the adapter or one of the FTDI BoBs. I believe the LP also runs off 3.3 V so be sure to get one that “talks” at 3.3V levels to the LP.
You don’t use shields with the LP. I suppose you could if you found a good way to interconnect them. All the normal Arduino BoBs should work. You could wire them up as usual or use the conductive thread that’s normal for LP projects when embedded in clothing.
Perhaps you should read through the pages at the tutorial.
Thanks Mee_and_Mac. I have read through the tutorials. I must not be smart enough to understand all the ins and outs. I guess what confuses me is that I have read that the Lilypad is a sewable version of the Arduino. So I assumed that if I need shields for the Uno, I must need them for the Lilypad.
Now that I have been thinking about it, I suppose I could “wire” the components directly to the Lilypad. Which makes me wonder why I need shields at all - even with the Uno?
So as far as communication between the Lilypad and the Arduino - I should buy this BoBs in addition to the Lilypad?
I guess I am in for another $20 regardless of how I look at it. I am considering going with the Flroa from Adafruit - looks pretty similar and cheaper, overall. Anyone used these?
One more thing…the reason I ask about shields is I want to use the Escudo for sequencing EL wire in a costume, but I have no idea how to connect to a Lillypad. Maybe I should find a way to stick with the Uno - thing is I have Seen Leah’s MIT site and I love what they’ve done there…
You’ll need either the BoB or the cable. I might lean towards the BoB only because it can be make to talk at either 3.3 or 5 V levels. I thought the LP’s were all 3.3V/8Mhz** but I wont swear to it (the LP main board doesn’t have a voltage regulator onboard). One other option for you to consider is a Pro Mini. It’s functionally about the same as a LP (it has a voltage regulator) and can be had in 3.3V/8MHz and 5V/16MHz flavors. It’s rectangular vs round and perhaps that may be good thing or a bad thing … it depends on where you’re trying to fit it into.
As far as the costume and shields go … I can only say the same as I did above. It depends on what space you have to fit things into. An Uno + the EL Escudo Dos shield is easy. Just plug 'em together and wire up the EL wire and battery and inverter and you’re good to go (hardware-wise). No soldering to be done. But it’s a relatively “tall” package compared to what you might achieve with a LP or Pro Arduino and the BoB (EL Sequencer). But with this latter you’ve got to interconnect them somehow. That’s a trade-off only you can decide on.
**To be precise I think the LPs can run off 3V to 5V but the x-tal on the board sets the clock frequency to 8MHz no matter what.
The Adafruit Flora looks interesting. It seems a cross of a LP (size-wise) but with the capability of an Arduino Leonardo (onboard USB and voltage regulator) or perhaps a Pro Micro (USB onboard) but the Flora has less I/O pins. As with the Pro Minis above, you’d have to wire it to an EL Sequencer to make your costume.
Mee_n_Mac:
As with the Pro Minis above, you’d have to wire it to an EL Sequencer to make your costume.
I thought the El sequncer was a logic board of its own, as in you don't need a microcontroller with it, it can be programmed alone. I thought I read that somewhere ina tutorial....
Mee_n_Mac:
As with the Pro Minis above, you’d have to wire it to an EL Sequencer to make your costume.
I thought the El sequncer was a logic board of its own, as in you don't need a microcontroller with it, it can be programmed alone. I thought I read that somewhere ina tutorial....
You are correct. I had my mind thinking of something else (wiring a Escudo shield to be a BoB).
continuing on from the topic, has anyone attempted to do this as yet?
Or how do you use the El escudo dos with the uno? I guess I am trying to translate the information to lilypad. I have a project due in two weeks so any information is crucial.