The Arduino Plug and Make Kit is all about turning creative sparks into reality in mere minutes. With its intuitive, snap-together design, even the wildest ideas become achievable – fast, fun, and frustration-free. That’s exactly what Julián Caro Linares, Arduino’s Product Experience team leader, discovered when he built his latest project for our in-house Make Tank: Button Clash, an arcade-inspired game for two players.  

Button Clash was a popular attraction among the interactive demos we had at the Arduino booth at this year’s Maker Faire Rome! By connecting it via Arduino Cloud, we were able to collect stats in real time (fun fact: the left side won 54% of the matches!). 

Meet Julián Caro Linares, Plug and Make Kit Star  

Julián brings together technical expertise and passion for robotics, making, and human-centered design to create documentation, tutorials, and more for the Arduino Pro ecosystem. “Our team gets to truly transform prototypes into products,” he says. “It’s exciting to figure out the best way to explain to users how awesome these tools are, and to help them truly learn to create what they want or need.”  

Outside of work, he loves creating projects that inspire connection and joy. From social robots that mimic emotional states to interactive gift boxes, his creations show how technology can engage people in meaningful and unexpected ways. And have you seen his recent LEGO®-Alvik mashup?

When it came to Button Clash, Julián drew inspiration from his love of physical interfaces and the pure satisfaction of smashing arcade buttons: “This game puts players into ‘inner childhood’ mode, where all you want to do is beat your opponent!”

Button Clash 

Button Clash is a two-player game that challenges you to press an arcade button faster than your opponent. The rules are few and intuitive:  

• Once both players press their buttons simultaneously, the game begins with a simple melody played by the Modulino Buzzer node.  
• Smash your button as fast as possible, to fill your side of the LED matrix on the Arduino UNO R4 provided in the Plug and Make Kit.  
• The first player to take over half the matrix wins!  

Building this game is a breeze thanks to the Modulino nodes and Qwiic cables in the kit. The arcade buttons require just a bit of soldering, but add a unique retro charm: well worth the extra step, in our opinion! The result is a highly engaging, customizable game that’s perfect for parties, family nights, or just unleashing your competitive spirit.  

Creativity made easy  

For Julián, the best part of the Plug and Make Kit is how it simplifies the process of turning out-of-the-box ideas into real projects. “Like the name says, you can just plug the different Modulino together and make your project: no matter how unconventional it is,” he says.  
Explore the full tutorial to replicate Button Clash on Arduino’s Project Hub and get inspired to create your own fun and interactive games! With the Plug and Make Kit, you can start your creative adventure today.

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Everyone loves looking at exotic animals and most of us only get to do that at zoos. But, of course, there is a lot to be said about the morality of keeping those animals in captivity. So, good zoos put a lot of effort into keeping their animals healthy and happy. For more intelligent animals, like elephants, enrichment through intellectual stimulation is a solid strategy. With that in mind, a team of Georgia Tech students worked with Zoo Atlanta to give elephants a musical toy to enrich their lives.

Like the toys you get for your dog, this device’s purpose is to give the elephants some mental stimulation. It provides them with an activity that they can enjoy, thus improving their lives. It works by playing specific tones (known to please elephant ears) when the elephants stick their trunks in holes in a wall. In essence, it is similar to an electronic toy piano for kids — just optimized for elephant physiology.

An Arduino Mega 2560 board plays the tones through a DY-SV5W media player module, which outputs an audio signal to an outdoor speaker system. Each hole in the wall has a VL53L0X ToF (Time of Flight) sensor to detect trunks. Those sensors were paired with ATtiny85 microcontrollers that tell the Arduino when a trunk is present.

The researchers also added a real-time clock and an SD card reader to log activity, giving the team the ability to evaluate the response from the elephants. In the same way that you can tell your dog loves his new toy by how much he plays with it, the team was able to determine that the elephants enjoyed their musical device over the course of about a week.

Image credit: A. Mastali et al.

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We all know that the future of manufacturing lies in IoT — yet the path to adoption can sometimes feel daunting. But what if you could simplify the process and start seeing results quickly? That’s exactly what we’re going to explore in our upcoming Arduino Cloud Café webinar on December 10 at 5PM CET / 11AM EST.

This session is a unique opportunity to hear from experts at Arduino, AWS, and Atlas Machine as they dive into how industrial IoT is transforming manufacturing operations. Whether you’re just starting to explore IoT or looking for ways to optimize your existing systems, this webinar is for you.

What to expect

In this session, we’ll be sharing actionable tips and insights to help you easily integrate IoT into your operations:

• Learn how to collect data quickly — without months of delays.
• Understand how to retrofit your legacy equipment and get real-time visibility into your operations.
• Discover how to integrate the data from Arduino devices with the rest of your business systems on AWS for smarter decision-making.

We’ll also be sharing real-world success stories, including how Atlas Machine & Supply leveraged Arduino (Opta and Arduino Cloud) and AWS solutions for predictive maintenance and remote monitoring across their global fleet of industrial equipment.

And don’t forget, we’ll have a live Q&A session at the end, where you can ask our experts anything. Feel free to submit your questions throughout the webinar, and we’ll do our best to address as many as possible.

Meet the speakers

We’re excited to be joined by a fantastic lineup of speakers who are experts in their fields:

• Richie Gimmel, CEO at Atlas Machine & Supply
• Danny Kent, IoT Development Director at Atlas Machine & Supply
• Andrea Richetta, Principal Product Evangelist at Arduino
• Gabriel Verreault, Senior Manufacturing Partner Solutions Architect at AWS

Why you should join

If you’ve been looking for a way to simplify IoT adoption in your manufacturing operations, this is your chance to learn from industry leaders who are making it happen. Whether you’re trying to modernize old equipment or integrate IoT into your larger business strategy, you’ll walk away with valuable insights and tips you can start using right away.

Save your spot today! Don’t miss out on this chance to hear from the experts and get your questions answered. We can’t wait to see you there!

The post Simplifying IoT for smarter manufacturing: Join the chat with Arduino, AWS, and Atlas Machine appeared first on Arduino Blog.

Until the 21st century, cathode-ray tube (CRT) TVs were pretty much the only option. As such, media was made to suit them. Retro video game consoles in particular look best on CRT TVs. But those old TVs are getting hard to find and desirable models are now quite expensive. So, bitluni built his own “fake CRT TV” that works using lasers and UV magic.

Conventional CRT TVs work by shining an electron beam onto a phosphorescent screen, which glows for a moment after being excited by the electrons. Electromagnetic coils deflect that beam so it can scan across the X and Y axes of the screen. Add some clever modulation and you’ve got moving pictures.

The fake CRT made by bitluni works in a similar manner, except it has a 405nm laser pointer instead of an electron beam, stepper motors instead of deflection coils, and a screen printed in special UV-reactive filament instead of a phosphorescent screen. The two stepper motors move mirrors to direct the laser and an Arduino Nano board controls those through a CNC shield.

However, that system is far slower than that of a real CRT, so bitluni had to operate it a bit differently. CRT TVs normally make raster images by scanning across the entire screen, row by row, until the beam reaches the bottom and the process repeats. The fake CRT TV works displays vector graphics instead. That means that it moves the laser to trace the lines of the shapes to display, which is the same way that old tube oscilloscopes worked.

But that is still pretty slow, so bitluni can’t display anything particularly complex or fast-moving. Still, it looks great in the 3D-printed retro-style enclosure. It isn’t suited to playing Super Mario Bros., but it is a nice decorative piece. 

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Inventor Charly Bosch and his daughter Leonie have crafted something truly remarkable: a fully electric, Arduino-powered car that’s as innovative as it is sustainable. Called the Batteryrunner, this vehicle is designed with a focus on environmental impact, simplicity, and custom craftsmanship. Get ready to be inspired by a car that embodies the spirit of creativity!

When the Arduino team saw the Batteryrunner up close at our offices in Turin, Italy, we were genuinely impressed – especially knowing that Charly and Leonie had driven over 1,000 kilometers in this unique car! Their journey began on a small island in Spain, took them across southern France, and brought them to Italy before continuing on to Austria. 

Building a car with heart – and aluminum

In 2014, Charly took over LORYC – a Mallorca carmaker that became famous in the 1920s for its winning mountain racing team. His idea was to ??build a two-seater as a tribute to the LORYC sports legacy, but with a contemporary electric drive: that’s how the first LORYC Electric Speedster was born. “We’re possibly the smallest car factory in the world, but have a huge vision: to prove electric cars can be cool… and crazy,” Charly says. 

With a passion for EVs rooted in deep environmental awareness, he decided to push the boundaries of car manufacturing with the Batteryrunner: a car where each component can be replaced and maintained, virtually forever. 

Indeed, it’s impossible not to notice that the vehicle is made entirely from aluminum: specifically, 5083 aluminum alloy. This material is extremely durable and can be easily recycled, unlike plastics or carbon fiber which end up as waste at the end of their lifecycle. 

The car’s bodywork includes thousands of laser-cut aluminum pieces. “This isn’t just a prototype: it’s a real car – one that we’ve already been able to drive across Europe,” Charly says.

The magic of learning to do-it-yourself

“People sometimes ask me why I use Arduino, as if it was only for kids. Simple: Arduino never failed me,” is Charly’s quick reply. After over a decade of experience with a variety of maker projects, it was an easy choice for the core of Batteryrunner’s system. 

In addition to reliability, Charly appreciates the built-in ease-of-use and peer support: “The Arduino community helps me with something new every week. If you are building a whole car on your own, you can’t be an expert in every single aspect of it. So, anytime I google something, I start by typing ‘Arduino’, and follow with what I need to know. That’s how I get content that I can understand.” 

This has allowed Charly and Leonie to handle every part of the car’s design, coding, and assembly, creating a fully integrated system without needing to rely on external suppliers. 

Using Arduino for unstoppable innovation

A true labor of love, after four years since its inception the Batteryrunner is a working (and talking!) car, brought to life by 10+ Arduino boards, each with specific functions. 

For instance:

• An Arduino Nano is used to manage the speedometer (a.k.a. the “SpeedCube”), in combination with a CAN bus module, stepper motor module, and stepper motor.

• Different Arduino Mega 2560, connected via CAN bus modules, control the dashboard, steering wheel, lights and blinkers, allowing users to monitor and manage various functions.

• Arduino UNO R4 boards with CAN bus transceivers are used to handle different crucial tasks – from managing the 400-V battery system and Tesla drive unit to operating the linear windshield wiper and the robotic voice system.

Charly already plans on upgrading some of the current solutions with additional UNO R4 boards, and combining the GIGA R1 WiFi and GIGA Display Shield for a faster and Wi-Fi®-connected “InfoCube” dashboard.

All in all, the Batteryrunner is more than a car: it’s a rolling platform for continuous innovation, which Charly is eager to constantly improve and refine. His next steps? Integrating smartphone control via Android, adding sensors for self-parking, and experimenting with additional features that Arduino makes easy to implement. “This is a car that evolves,” Charly explains. “I can add or change features as I go, and Arduino makes it possible.”

Driving environmental awareness

Finally, we see Batteryrunner as more than a fun, showstopping car. Given Charly’s commitment to low-impact choices, it’s a way to shift people’s mindset about sustainable mobility. The environmental challenges we face today require manufacturers to go well beyond simply replacing traditional engines with electric ones: vehicles need to be completely redesigned, according to sustainability and simplicity principles. To achieve this, we need people who are passionate about the environment, technology, and creativity. That’s why we fully agree with Charly, when he says, “I love makers! We need them to change the world.”

Follow LORYC on Facebook or Instagram to see Charly and Leonie’s progress, upgrades, and experiments, and stay inspired by this incredible, Arduino-powered journey.

The post It’s silver, it’s green, it’s the Batteryrunner! An Arduino-powered, fully custom electric car appeared first on Arduino Blog.

The Halo franchise is full of iconic designs, from vehicles like the Warthog to weapons like the Needler. But the armor, such as the Spartan armor worn by Master Chief, is arguably the most recognizable. The helmets are especially cool, and LeMaster Tech put his own unique spin on an ODST-style helmet by adding an adjustable-transparency RGB-backlit visor.

The ODST helmet that LeMaster Tech used for this project was made by Anthony Andress, AKA “enforce_props,” and it is a solid resin casting. LeMaster Tech’s goal was to make the coolest visor imaginable for that helmet.

He achieved that using a PDLC (Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystal) “smart film” that changes from opaque to transparent when it receives current. That film can be cut to shape without causing any harm. He further enhanced the effect with some RGB LED backlighting, which illuminates the interior of the helmet and helps to make the wearer’s face more visible when the visor is transparent.

LeMaster Tech used an Arduino Nano board to the control the PDLC film and the NeoPixel individually addressable RGB LEDs. Momentary buttons in a 3D-printed enclosure control the LED lighting color, the lighting effect modes, and the visor transparency. The PDLC needs 20V to become transparent, so LeMaster Tech used a large battery to power that and a step-down converter to power the Arduino and LEDs. 

The result looks fantastic and this helmet is going back to enforce_props, who will finish turning it into a cosplay masterpiece. 

The post This Halo helmet features an adjustable-transparency RGB-backlit visor appeared first on Arduino Blog.

Inventive, open-source, and cost-effective – these words perfectly describe CapibaraZero, a multifunctional security and hacking tool developed by young innovator Andrea Canale.

Inspired by the popular Flipper Zero, a portable device used to interact with digital systems, Canale sought to create a more accessible, Arduino-based alternative. 

The original Flipper Zero, known for its ability to read, copy, and emulate RFID tags, NFCs, and even remote control signals, has become a valuable tool for tech enthusiasts. Canale’s CapibaraZero captures much of this functionality but adds his own unique approach and vision.

A student’s vision for an accessible, open-source alternative

A passionate student from the University of Turin, Canale began working on CapibaraZero while still in high school, driven by the desire to build a tool that didn’t just replicate Flipper Zero’s capabilities but improved upon them through the power of open-source design. 

CapibaraZero, named after Canale’s favorite animal, combines an Arduino Nano ESP32 with custom-designed PCB boards, making it adaptable and expandable. With sections dedicated to Wi-Fi^®, Bluetooth^®, infrared, NFC, and even network attacks, CapibaraZero allows users to experiment with multiple forms of wireless communication and digital security protocols in a way that’s affordable and accessible.

A tool for experimentation and learning

What makes CapibaraZero remarkable is not only its functionality but also Canale’s dedication to ensuring it remains open-source, user-friendly, and continually evolving. With additional modules for advanced features like Sub-GHz communication and network attacks (such as ARP poisoning and DHCP starvation), CapibaraZero empowers enthusiasts to expand the tool’s potential beyond traditional hacking devices. 

Canale has even provided an in-depth tutorial for anyone interested in building or exploring CapibaraZero on Arduino’s Project Hub. He also is sharing the project on a dedicated website and public GitHub repository. Check out the details and join Canale’s journey to push the boundaries of DIY security tools!

The post CapibaraZero: a student’s journey in reinventing hacking tools with Arduino appeared first on Arduino Blog.

In recent years, tools such as the FlipperZero have become quite popular amongst hobbyists and security professionals alike for their small size and wide array of hacking tools. Inspired by the functionality of the FlipperZero, Project Hub user ‘andreockx’ created a similar multi-radio tool named the CapibaraZero, which has the same core abilities and even a little more.

The project uses an Arduino Nano ESP32 as its processor and as a way to provide Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Low-Energy, and human interface features. The chipset can scan for nearby Wi-Fi networks, present fake captive portals, prevent other devices from receiving IP addresses through DHCP starvation, and even carry out ARP poisoning attacks. Andre’s inclusion of a LoRa radio module further differentiates his creation by letting it transmit information in the sub-GHz spectrum over long distances. And lastly, the PN532 RFID module can read encrypted MiFare NFC tags and crack them through brute force.

This collection of the Nano ESP32, wireless radios, and a LiPo battery + charging module were all attached to a custom PCB mainboard while five additional buttons were connected via secondary daughterboard before the entire assembly was placed into a 3D printed case.

For more details about the CapibaraZero, you can read Andre’s write-up here on the Project Hub.

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If you want to add a display to your Arduino project, the easiest solution will likely be an LCD or OLED screen. But though those are affordable and work really well, they may not provide the vibe you’re looking for. If you want a more vintage look, Vaclav Krejci has a great tutorial that will walk you through using old-school LED bubble displays with your Arduino.

Krejci’s video demonstrates how to use HPDL-1414 displays, which are what most people call “bubble” displays, because they have clear bubble-like lenses over each character’s array of LEDs. They were fairly popular in the late ‘70s and ‘80s on certain devices, like calculators. These specific bubble displays can show the full range of alphanumeric characters (uppercase only), plus a handful of punctuation marks and special symbols.

The HPDL-1414 displays Krejci used come on driver boards that set the characters based on serial input. In the video, Krejci first connects those directly to a PC via a serial-to-USB adapter board. That helps to illustrate the control method through manual byte transmission.

Then Krejci gets to the good stuff: connecting the HPDL-1414 bubble displays to an Arduino. He used an Arduino UNO Rev3, but the same setup should work with any Arduino board. As you may have guessed based on the PC demonstration, the Arduino controls the display via Serial.print() commands. The hex code for each character matches the standard ASCII table, which is pretty handy. That makes it possible to Serial.write() those hex codes and even Serial.write() the actual characters.

Don’t worry if that sounds a little intimidating, because Krejci has sample code that will let you easily turn any arbitrary array of characters into the serial output you need. Now you can use those awesome bubble displays in your own projects!

The post How to use vintage LED bubble displays with your Arduino appeared first on Arduino Blog.

Playing drums is a lot of fun, but drum sets are very big and very loud. They also aren’t cheap. Those factors keep them from being an option for many people who would otherwise be interested. Conventional electronic drum sets are much quieter and a bit more compact, but they still take up a fair amount of space and come with hefty price tags. That’s why Cybercraftics designed this DIY drum set mat that solves all of those problems.

This is an electronic drum set in the form of a flexible desk mat. It is affordable to build and can be tucked away in a closet or cupboard when not in use. It doesn’t have the same layout as a real drum set, but it can still help new drummers learn fundamentals like paradiddles. Those require a lot of practice to ingrain the motions into muscle memory and this mat makes it possible to run through the rudiments just about anywhere without loud noises disturbing anyone.

Cybercraftics designed this drum mat to work like a standard MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) input device, but with piezoelectric sensors instead of buttons. Those produce a signal when struck. They are analog signals and there are seven sensors, so this project uses an Arduino Leonardo board that has enough analog input pins. The Leonardo also has a Microchip ATmega32U4 microcontroller, which means it is configurable as a USB HID — handy for interfacing with whatever MIDI software you may want to use.

On the physical side, this is just two desk mats cut and glued together, which circular pieces covering the piezoelectric sensors. A small 3D-printed enclosure protects the Arduino.

If you’ve ever wanted to get into drumming, this may the opportunity you’ve been waiting for.

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At Cornell University, Dr. Anand Kumar Mishra and his team have been conducting groundbreaking research that brings together the fields of robotics, biology, and engineering. Their recent experiments, published in Science, explore how fungal mycelia can be used to control robots. The team has successfully created biohybrid robots that move based on electrical signals generated by fungi – a fascinating development in the world of robotics and biology.

A surprising solution for robotics: fungi

Biohybrid robots have traditionally relied on animal or plant cells to control movements. However, Dr. Mishra’s team is introducing an exciting new component into this field: fungi – which are resilient, easy to culture, and can thrive in a wide range of environmental conditions. This makes them ideal candidates for long-term applications in biohybrid robotics.

Dr. Mishra and his colleagues designed two robots: a soft, starfish-inspired walking one, and a wheeled one. Both can be controlled using the natural electrophysiological signals produced by fungal mycelia. These signals are harnessed using a specially designed electrical interface that allows the fungi to control the robot’s movement.

The implications of this research extend far beyond robotics. The integration of living systems with artificial actuators presents an exciting new frontier in technology, and the potential applications are vast – from environmental sensing to pollution monitoring.

How it works with Arduino

At the heart of this innovative project is the Arduino platform, which served as the main interface to control the robots. As Dr. Mishra explains, he has been using Arduino for over 10 years and naturally turned to it for this experiment: “My first thought was to control the robot using Arduino.” The choice was ideal in terms of accessibility, reliability, and ease of use – and allowed for seamless transition from prototyping with UNO R4 WiFi to final solution with Arduino Mega.

To capture and process the tiny electrical signals from the fungi, the team used a high-resolution 32-bit ADC (analog-to-digital converter) to achieve the necessary precision. “We processed each spike from the fungi and used the delay between spikes to control the robot’s movement. For example, the width of the spike determined the delay in the robot’s action, while the height was used to adjust the motor speed,” Dr. Mishra shares.

The team also experimented with pulse width modulation (PWM) to control the motor speed more precisely, and managed to create a system where the fungi’s spikes could increase or decrease the robot’s speed in real-time. “This wasn’t easy, but it was incredibly rewarding,” says Dr. Mishra. 

And it’s only the beginning. Now the researchers are exploring ways to refine the signal processing and enhance accuracy – again relying on Arduino’s expanding ecosystem, making the system even more accessible for future scientific experiments.

All in all, this project is an exciting example of how easy-to-use, open-source, accessible technologies can enable cutting-edge research and experimentation to push the boundaries of what’s possible in the most unexpected fields – even complex biohybrid experiments! As Dr. Mishra says, “I’ve been a huge fan of Arduino for years, and it’s amazing to see how it can be used to drive advancements in scientific research.”

The post Exploring fungal intelligence with biohybrid robots powered by Arduino appeared first on Arduino Blog.

We are thrilled to announce that Alumnus Software, based in India and the United States, has joined our System Integrators Partnership Program (SIPP) at the Gold level. With over 20 years of expertise in embedded software, IoT applications, and Edge AI development, Alumnus has a strong track record of building custom embedded systems and data-driven IoT applications for industries ranging from automotive and healthcare to industrial automation and consumer electronics.

As an official SIPP partner, Alumnus will enable Arduino users to leverage their expertise in resource-constrained environments – overcoming challenges like limited CPU, memory, and storage, low bandwidth, extended battery life requirements, and real-time response demands. This collaboration means faster deployment, quicker revenue generation, and a seamless bridge between connected devices and cloud-based applications for enterprise-scale projects.

Ashis Khan, Board Member at Alumnus Software, shared his enthusiasm for the partnership:  

“With Arduino, businesses have achieved a 25-40% faster time-to-market and up to 60% reduction in non-recurring engineering (NRE) costs when connecting their data to the cloud. Through this partnership, Alumnus Software plans to help Arduino users scale enterprise-class applications more efficiently, leveraging data and AI with our two decades of expertise in Data, IoT, Edge AI, Cloud enablement, and embedded software development.”

Rob Ponsoby, Partner Sales Manager – AMER at Arduino, added: “We are excited to welcome Alumnus to the SIPP program. Their depth of experience in embedded software and IoT solutions will provide valuable resources for Arduino users, helping them bring their innovative ideas to life in faster, more efficient ways.”

Follow Alumnus Software’s journey on LinkedIn and Facebook, and learn more about their contributions to advancing embedded technology by visiting the company website.

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The System Integrators Partnership Program by Arduino Pro is an exclusive initiative designed for professionals seeking to implement Arduino technologies in their projects. This program opens up a world of opportunities based on the robust Arduino ecosystem, allowing partners to unlock their full potential in collaboration with us.

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The Arduino Plug and Make Kit was designed to open up infinite possibilities, breaking down the idea that technology is a “black box” reserved for experts. With its snap-together system, this kit gives everyone – beginners and seasoned makers alike – the power to create and innovate without barriers. Forget being a passive user! With the Plug and Make Kit, technology is accessible and ready to bring your ideas to life.

Meet Giulio Pilotto, Plug and Make Kit Star

Giulio Pilotto is one of Arduino’s senior software engineers and works closely on Arduino Cloud projects. When we held a “Make Tank” workshop at our Turin office to showcase the potential of the Plug and Make Kit, he joined in with inspiration from a recent escape room experience. 

The result was Riddle Treasure, a puzzle-based game that allows you to recreate the excitement of an escape room anywhere you are.

At this year’s Maker Faire, Pilotto had the opportunity to present Riddle Treasure at the Arduino booth. While he had showcased his own creations at previous Maker Faire editions, this time felt special: “The Maker Faire is always a wonderful high-energy event,” he says. “I was happy to represent the Arduino team as we focus more than ever on the community: all our products were presented in the light of what people can do with them.” 

Riddle Treasure

To be honest, this is probably the most advanced project our in-house “Make Tank” came up with (so far!). After all, it has to be somewhat complicated to emulate intricate escape room puzzles! However, following Pilotto’s step-by-step instructions on Project Hub and leveraging the easy snap-together mechanism of Modulino nodes, anyone can recreate Riddle Treasure – or even invent a personal, unique variation.

The goal of the game is to unlock a safe. But to get there, you need to complete three steps in order. 

1. Combination Lock: First, you must rotate the encoder in Modulino Knob like a safe’s combination lock. When you hit the right position, one of the lights on Modulino Pixels turns from red to green. When you get all five LEDs to turn green, you can move on to the next step. 

2. Secret Sentence: Use the banana cables to connect the words in the panel. When you get them all in the right order to form the secret sentence, a password is revealed on the LED matrix of the UNO R4 included in the Plug and Make Kit. 

3. Final Unlock: Input the password via Modulino Buttons, and watch the safe unlock! 

We take care of the complexity, so you can simply plug into tech!

Arduino has done the hard work so you can play and have fun even with deliberately complex projects like this one. 

“Building this without having to solder, or even worry about settings or any electronics aspect at all, is a game changer. With Plug and Make Kit, Arduino has already selected and optimized the Modulino sensors: all you have to do is put them together to get started on your ideas,” Pilotto says. 

Search Project Hub for “Plug and Make” to find Riddle Treasure and many more ideas, and get inspired to create your own amazing projects with the Plug and Make Kit!

The post A riddle wrapped in an enigma… made easy, with Arduino Plug and Make Kit appeared first on Arduino Blog.

You’re managing a network of IoT sensors that monitor air quality across multiple locations. Suddenly, one of the sensors goes offline, but you don’t notice until hours later. The result? A gap in your data and a missed opportunity to take corrective action. This is a common challenge when working with IoT devices: staying informed about the real-time status of each device is crucial to ensure smooth operation and timely troubleshooting.

This is where Device Status Notifications, the latest feature in the Arduino Cloud, comes in. Whether you’re an individual maker or an enterprise, this feature empowers you to stay on top of your devices by sending real-time alerts when a device goes online or offline.

What is “Device Status Notifications?”

Device Status Notifications allow you to receive instant alerts whenever one of your devices changes its connectivity status, whether it’s going offline or coming back online. You can customize these alerts for individual devices or all devices under your account, with the flexibility to exclude specific devices from triggering notifications.

We announced it a while ago, Arduino Cloud already supports Triggers and Notifications, allowing you to create alerts based on specific conditions like sensor readings or thresholds. With the addition of Device Status Notifications, you can now monitor device connectivity itself. This means you can now receive an alert the moment a device loses connection, providing a proactive way to manage your IoT ecosystem. For more details on the original feature, check out our Triggers and Notifications blog post.

Key benefits for users

• Real-time monitoring: Get notified instantly when a device disconnects or reconnects, helping you take corrective actions promptly.
• Customization: Configure your alerts to focus on specific devices or apply rules to all your devices, with the flexibility to add exceptions. You can also decide when the notification should be sent — either immediately upon a status change or after a set period of downtime.
• Convenience: Choose to receive notifications via email or directly on your mobile device through the Arduino IoT Remote app, making it easy to stay informed wherever you are.

How to set up Device Status Notifications

Video link

1. Set up a Trigger

Go to the Triggers section and select “+ TRIGGER”

2. Choose “Device Status” as your condition

Decide whether to monitor the status of:

• A specific device (select “Single device”), or
• Any device (select “Any device (existing and upcoming)”).

If you select “Single device,” you can choose the device that you want to be monitored.

If your selection is “Any device,” you can add exceptions for devices you don’t want to trigger the alert.

3. Configure what you are going to monitor

Choose whether to monitor when the device goes online, offline, or both. Then decide if the notification should be sent immediately or after a set period (options range from 10 minutes to 48 hours).

4. Customize the notification settings

Notifications are configured in the same way as any other Trigger. You can add the action of sending an email or a push notification to your phone via a push notification on the Arduino IoT Remote app.

Ready to test Device Notifications?

Want to make sure your IoT devices stay connected and functioning? Start using the Device Status Notifications feature today. Simply log in to your Arduino IoT Cloud account, and configure your notifications to stay informed whenever your devices go online or offline. 

Make sure you’re on a Maker, Enterprise, or School plan to access this feature.

And don’t forget to download the Arduino IoT Remote app from the App Store or Google Play  to receive real-time alerts on the go and stay connected, wherever you are.

Black Friday is here – Save Big on Arduino Cloud!

Take your IoT projects to the next level this Black Friday!

For a limited time, enjoy 25% off the Arduino Cloud Maker Yearly plan with code BLACKFRIDAY. Don’t miss this opportunity to access premium features and elevate your creativity. Hurry—this offer is valid for new Maker Yearly plan subscriptions only and ends on December 1st, 2024.

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At Arduino, we believe coding should be accessible to everyone – including the youngest learners. With this in mind, we’re thrilled to announce that the Arduino Alvik robot now officially supports block-based coding!

Coding has never been easier thanks to Alvik’s seamless integration with mBlock, one of the most widely used platforms for educational hardware, available in both desktop and web-based versions compatible with Chromebook, MacBook, and Windows PC. With mBlock’s intuitive block-based coding and Alvik as a tangible, interactive robot companion, elementary students and teachers can explore robotics, mathematics, astronomy, and other engaging projects. 

With the release of the public beta version of the integration in mBlock, Alvik’s new features and improvements will be implemented over time based on feedback from educators.

Beyond coding: bringing all areas of learning to life

Alvik provides a unique, hands-on learning experience. This makes it the ideal tool for elementary-aged students who benefit from interacting with something they can see, touch, and control. They can get immediate feedback on their commands and see the robot’s reactions and movements in real time. 

But Alvik is more than just a gateway to coding; it’s a multidisciplinary tool that can enrich learning across all subjects. This classroom companion truly reflects the spirit of STEAM education, enabling teachers to bring learning to life in creative and often unexpected ways. 

Teaching abstract concepts to elementary-aged students can be tough. However, young children grasp abstract concepts and problem-solving skills more effectively when “learning becomes more hands-on, tangible and interactive”. This is where physical tools like Alvik can make a significant difference.

Through Arduino’s engaging Block-Based Coding and Robotics lesson, children can program their Alvik to perform an array of exciting tasks. These step-by-step project-based activities cover a diverse range of subjects, allowing students to convert abstract concepts into concrete, relatable experiences. This immersive approach is a great way to nurture kids’ natural curiosity and deepen their understanding of challenging topics and ideas.

And it doesn’t stop there. With LEGO^® Technic compatibility and M3 screw connectors, Alvik becomes a canvas for creativity. Students can customize and decorate their robot for special occasions like Halloween and Christmas, blending art design with engineering and making the learning process even more personal and engaging.

With Alvik, kids aren’t just learning to code – they’re learning to think creatively and critically, and explore a wide range of subjects in a way of solving real-life tasks.

Why choose Alvik with block-based coding for primary school?

1. Enhances engagement with a child-friendly interface – Based on the popular Scratch platform created by MIT, mBlock is crafted specifically for elementary-aged students. With its game-like elements, vibrant colors, and instant visual feedback, block-based coding lowers the entry barrier and makes programming fun and engaging for learners of all ages.

2. Builds confidence at an early age – Block-based coding helps eliminate common frustrations like syntax errors, which can hinder young learners in text-based programming. Instead, students experience early success as they watch the Alvik robot follow their commands – boosting their confidence and love for creating more.

3. Makes interdisciplinary learning easy – Following the lessons available in Arduino’s dedicated online platform, elementary-aged teachers could enhance the students’ knowledge of various subject matters through playing and hands-on creative projects.

4. Simplifies abstract concepts – Abstract coding concepts such as loops, conditionals, and variables can be difficult for young students to grasp. Block-based coding provides a visual and interactive way to understand these concepts. Blocks represent specific functions and operations, making abstract ideas more concrete.

5. Supports the transition to text-based coding – Block-based coding with Alvik isn’t just a fun starting point – it’s a bridge to more advanced learning. As students advance, they can easily transition from blocks to text-based coding languages like MicroPython with a simple click of a button. This seamless shift lets students build on their skills and dive deeper into the world of programming at their own pace. And you won’t have to worry about purchasing separate hardware either, as students can program their Alvik robot by following the lessons in Arduino’s Explore Robotics in MicroPython course.

6. Supports Chromebook – The mBlock web platform works across Chromebooks, Windows PCs, and MacBooks, so students and teachers can jump into their projects on any device, anytime.

A wealth of support at your fingertips

We know that stepping into the world of coding can feel like a challenge, especially for elementary teachers without a computer science background. That’s why Alvik comes with free access to dedicated learning resources with project-based lesson plans, step-by-step tutorials, and engaging activities. These are currently available in English, Italian and Spanish, with more lessons coming soon. Utilizing both Alvik and mBlock means teachers can lead their students into the world of coding and robotics (and beyond!) with confidence.

Ready to get started?

With Arduino’s strong reputation for innovation and mBlock’s child-friendly platform, we’re combining our strengths to make learning robotics and coding more engaging and enjoyable than ever before. 

Are you ready to inspire the next generation of innovators? Bring the joy of coding into your classroom with Alvik! 

Visit our online store to buy your Arduino Alvik robot today.

You can also visit our list of education partners to contact a local distributor for more information or to make a purchase.

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Arduino and Microchip are excited to open electronica – the “world’s leading trade fair and conference for electronics” – by introducing the Arduino UNO SPE Shield, a powerful ally to bring advanced connectivity to new and existing projects, with Single-Pair Ethernet (SPE) and RS485. 

SPE is a new Ethernet communication standard that enables power and data to coexist on a single pair of wires, referred to as Power over Data Line (PoDL). This allows for faster data transfer and reduced wiring complexity and costs, leading to more streamlined and rapid deployment of integrated strategies for the automation of buildings, factories, and processes, in the context of the Internet of Things (IoT) and Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). 

By incorporating RS485 connectivity, the Arduino UNO SPE Shield becomes a versatile tool for upgrading RS485 legacy systems or integrating modern technologies with current infrastructures, creating a seamless bridge between the old and the new.

As a valuable new addition to the Arduino ecosystem, the Arduino UNO SPE Shield offers plug-and-play compatibility with Arduino UNO R4 – catering to a broad spectrum of innovators, from DIY enthusiasts to engineers developing cutting-edge solutions for industrial applications.

A powerful partnership

The SPE Shield was created in collaboration with Microchip, a leading provider of smart, connected and secure embedded control and processing solutions, by using its LAN8651B1T-E/LMX Single Pair Ethernet MAC-PHY.

In recognition of this joint effort, Martin Miller, Director of Automotive Information Systems at Microchip remarked: “Our collaboration with Arduino in launching the new SPE Shield aims to empower the maker and engineering communities by providing them with advanced tools to drive new breakthroughs. This solution represents our commitment to developing and delivering flexible, connected and scalable solutions for the future.”

Indeed, the partnership has allowed for a product that delivers both cutting-edge, reliable technology as well as versatility and a user-friendly experience. 

Fabio Violante, CEO of Arduino, commented: “The Arduino UNO SPE Shield represents a pivotal step in accelerating the adoption of 10BASE-T1S technology across industry and maker communities alike. By bringing single-pair Ethernet to our globally trusted platform, we’re making this game-changing standard accessible to millions of innovators worldwide. What sets our implementation apart is our unique addition of Power over Data Lines capabilities – an industry-first feature that extends beyond the standard specifications to unlock entirely new possibilities for powered, single-cable solutions. This powerful combination of standardized communication and innovative power delivery empowers developers to create more elegant, cost-effective connected systems that bridge today’s industrial requirements with tomorrow’s possibilities. Whether you’re retrofitting legacy equipment or prototyping next-generation IoT devices, the UNO SPE Shield delivers the essential building blocks for modern industrial communication in our signature easy-to-use Arduino format.”

Key benefits of the Arduino UNO SPE Shield

• Fast and reliable data transfer with Single-Pair Ethernet.
• Reduced wiring complexity and lower project costs.
• Versatile use across industries from smart factories to energy monitoring.
• Seamless integration with the widest range of technologies, ensuring a quick start with minimal setup.
• Plug-and-play compatibility with Arduino’s major maker platform for makers at all levels.
• Open-source support with a dedicated Arduino library to streamline programming and development.

Revolutionizing connectivity across industries

The Arduino UNO SPE Shield enables enhanced innovation across a wide array of fields, solving real-world challenges from smart buildings to prototyping IoT devices. 

For instance, with the Arduino UNO SPE Shield interconnected building management solutions can easily combine smart lighting, HVAC, and security devices with energy monitoring systems – all integrated via a central control system powered by SPE and RS485.

In general, the new SPE standard is considered a game changer for the connection of field devices and sensors. For example, in smart-grid monitoring the SPE Shield provides seamless connectivity between energy meters, solar inverters, and battery storage systems, delivering real-time data to the cloud. 

In factory automation, adopting SPE can reduce wiring costs, node costs, and power consumption, while enabling data communications via a single pair of wires. Being able to effortlessly retrofit legacy RS485 equipment with this technology only adds to the benefits of the Arduino UNO SPE Shield.

In the automotive industry, combining SPE and RS485 allows for solutions that bridge advanced systems with legacy components, enabling comprehensive monitoring of engine health and fuel efficiency in connected vehicles. 

Last but not least, the SPE Shield’s unique combination of ultra-fast data transfer, real-time connectivity and seamless integration with legacy components facilitates quick testing and refinement of prototypes, accelerating the development of new ideas.

Connect to your next innovation, with Arduino UNO SPE Shield. Sign up for the waiting list to be the first to know when it’s available for purchase!

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We’re thrilled to announce that Arduino Education has been shortlisted for the Bett Awards 2025, this time in the AV, VR/AR, Robotics, or Digital Device category with our Alvik robot! This recognition highlights our dedication to innovation, inclusivity, and the advancement of practical STEM education.

The Bett Awards celebrate leading-edge technology in education, with entries evaluated on key criteria such as innovation, curriculum suitability, online safety, research evidence, customer support and more.

About the Alvik robot

Alvik is an adaptable, lifelong learning robot that supports educators and students as they transition from block-based programming to text-based coding using MicroPython and Arduino language. It enables them to explore robotics and tackle real-life challenges with comprehensive learning content. However, Alvik isn’t just designed to teach programming and robotics; it can also enhance students’ understanding of topics like mathematics and astronomy, along with other engaging projects. Alvik’s curriculum-aligned course makes it an ideal fit for today’s classrooms, empowering students with hands-on skills and a strong foundation in STEAM.

But what truly sets Alvik apart from other educational robots is its limitless potential for customization. Students and teachers can easily add external sensors using the I2C Grove and Qwiic plug-and-play connectors, eliminating the need for soldering or complex wiring. Additionally, the LEGO® Technic and M3 screw connectors encourage hands-on creativity, allowing users to build custom components and further expand Alvik’s capabilities.

We’re honored to be recognized once again, and we can’t wait to attend Bett in just a couple of months. The winners will be announced at the Bett Awards 2025 Ceremony on January 22nd at The Brewery, London. We look forward to seeing you there!

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Good designers prioritize the user experience — particularly the experience of users with disabilities that affect their perception and fine motor skills. A young person without disabilities, for example, may feel that jars are easy to open, while an elderly person with reduced hand strength may have the complete opposite experience. To help designers better understand the experience of people living with disabilities related to hand dexterity, a team of graduate students from Keio University and the University of Maryland developed DexteriSync.

DexteriSync is an exoskeleton-like device worn on the hand. But unlike most exoskeletons, DexteriSync reduces the user’s ability instead of expanding it. It does so via thermal manipulation. If you’ve ever had numb hands following a snowball fight, you know how much the cold can affect your dexterity. In fact, skin temperature is one of the biggest factors related to hand and finger dexterity. By controlling the user’s skin temperature, DexteriSync is able to induce a reduction in dexterity and that could be useful to designers that want to make their products accessible to those living with disabilities.

DexteriSync is able to cool the wearer’s skin by pumping cold water through tubes attached to the 3D-printed exoskeleton frame. Copper contacts on the tubes help to make the thermal transfer more efficient. Peltier coolers remove heat from the pumped water, with an Arduino UNO Rev3 board controlling that process and monitoring the water temperature with a K-type thermocouple paired with a MAX6675 amplifier.

The team performed two user studies to evaluate DexteriSync. The first was intended to test the dexterity of users. The goal of the second was to determine if DexteriSync could affect user thermal perception. Both studies found that DexteriSync did have a noticeable effect.

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Wouldn’t it be great if, while playing a virtual reality game, you could feel the heat of a fire on your arm? Or the cold of chilly water? Engineers around the world have been trying to make that happen, but there is a big problem: temperature changes are slow. The immersive effect diminishes when the thermal feedback lags behind the virtual cause. That’s why a team from South Korea’s Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology turned to motors to dramatically speed up the process.

The Flip-Pelt wearable device relies on Peltier elements to create heating and cooling effects, which is a common strategy for thermal feedback. Peltier elements use electricity to produce thermal transfer, heating one side of the element while simultaneously cooling the other side. By placing a Peltier element against the skin, it is possible to create a cooling or heating sensation on demand.

But it takes a long time to reverse the thermal transfer — changing a side of the Peltier element from hot to cold is too slow to be useful for VR thermal feedback. So, the Flip-Pelt prototype doesn’t even bother. Instead, it keeps the Peltier elements going in just one direction and physically swaps the side of the elements that touch the user’s skin.

The prototype Flip-Pelt device contains eight Peltier elements arranged in two rows along the inside of the user’s forearm. Eight servo motors, controlled by an Arduino Nano 33 IoT board, can flip the elements from the cool side to the hot side in response to events in the VR world. The Arduino also controls the Peltier elements themselves through H-bridges, so it can adjust the power going to each.

While this is relatively complex, it does create almost instant changes in perceived temperature.

You can read more about the project in the team’s published paper here.

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OPC Unified Architecture – OPC UA in short – is a cross-platform, open-source machine-to-machine communication protocol for industrial automation. It was developed by the Open Platform Communications (OPC) Foundation and is defined in detail in the IEC 62541 standard.

With the release of the Arduino_OPC_UA library we enable users to convert any product from our Arduino Opta range into an OPC UA-enabled device. 

Step-by-step guide to setting up OPC UA on Arduino Opta

It’s as simple as uploading a single sketch onto your Opta and connecting it to an Ethernet network. Once uploaded, the OPC UA firmware exposes the Arduino Opta’s analog and digital inputs, the user button and LED (only Arduino Opta WiFi), as well as its relay outputs as properties that can be read from or written to using OPC UA. OPC UA communication is performed using OPC UA binary encoding via TCP sockets.

Arduino_OPC_UA is a port of the Fraunhofer open62541 library implementing IEC 62541 in highly portable C99 for both Windows and Linux targets. One serious challenge during the porting of open62541 was to decide on sensible tradeoffs concerning RAM consumption, as using OPC UAs full namespace zero (NS0) requires up to 8 MB of RAM while the STM32H747 powering the Arduino Opta has a total of 1 MB of SRAM to offer – some of which already allocated by the the Arduino framework for the Arduino Opta.

Expand functionality with Arduino Opta Modules and OPC UA integration

Additionally, Arduino_OPC_UA supports the automatic discovery, configuration and exposure as OPC UA objects of the recently released Arduino Opta expansion modules. Currently three different expansion modules exist: Arduino Opta Analog Expansion (A0602), Arduino Opta Digital Expansion with electro-mechanical relay outputs (D1608E), and with solid-state relay outputs (DS1608S). During system start-up, the Arduino Opta’s expansion bus is queried for connected expansion modules and automatically configures them and brings them online for interfacing via OPC UA.

You can extend the default OPC UA server to add additional OPC UA properties such as data collected from a sensor device connected to the Arduino Opta. As a demonstration, we’ve created an example showing how to collect temperature and humidity data from a Modbus RTU device (connected to the Opta’s RS485 port) and subsequently expose this data via OPC UA properties.

How will you use the new Arduino_OPC_UA library? Let us know in the comments below or share your newest projects on Project Hub! 

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