Arduino: Everyone can invent now!

Arduino is an open-source microcontroller board that bridges the digital world and the physical world. According to the official website, “Arduino is an open-source electronics prototyping platform based on flexible, easy-to-use hardware and software. It's intended for artists, designers, students, hobbyists and anyone interested in creating interactive objects or environments.” (Arduino.cc, 2014)

Arduino is a very popular programmable circuit board, which is generally suitable for users of all ages and all kind of interactive projects. It provides a great open source platform for learning programming and setting up the circuit boards. (Freetronics, 2014) 

Video 1: Massimo Banzi: How Arduino is open-sourcing imagination (2014)

<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoBUXOOdLXY&channel=TEDtalksDirector>

Massimo Banzi, one of the founders of Arduino claims that Arduino has the potential of changing the world by making the technology more accessible. Everyone has the opportunity to get involved and build something new as the tutorials and instructions can be found easily on the Internet. (Banzi, M, 2014)

Quin Ethnyre, a thirteen-year-old CEO of Qtechknow has already become a successful Maker that inspires the world. (Atmel Staff, 2014) He is a self-taught developer who found his passion for science and technology. Quin is now a speaker and teacher who makes starter kits and began teaching people who are interested in electronic programming. (Haze, 2013) Thus, Arduino has developed an open-source electronic platform that encourages everyone to explore the knowledge of electronics, regardless of age, background or skill level.

Figure 1 : A 12-YEAR-OLD'S QUEST TO REMAKE EDUCATION, ONE ARDUINO AT A TIME. [image] 
Available at: http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2013-08/short-circuit

Arduino provides a crowdsourcing platform where everyone can access the open-source programming and electronic circuit designs. Users can download the open source software and the hardware design files through the Arduino libraries, which allow them to express creativity by innovating their own interactive project. In addition, Arduino Playground creates an environment where all the Arduino users worldwide to teach and learn from the Makers community. This is a place where the makers can share their code, circuit diagrams, tutorials, DIY instructions, tips and tricks and inspiration. (Playground.arduino.cc, 2014)

This microcontroller creates a vision of the future of technologies that interact the digital interfaces to the physical objects by using sensors, buttons, LEDs, motors, and so on. Arduino is the ideal open hardware platform for discovering the fundamental concepts and features of the Internet of Things. (Doukas, 2012) Arduino is a great tool that makes computers connect to the physical world by using both software and hardware, leading the growth in Internet of Things. Humans can even make a connection to the plant based on the Arduino technology, developing a system that allows plants to call for human help. We can communicate with the plant by updating the online Twitter status. The thirsty plant will post to let you know on Twitter if it needs water, and send out a thank you if you water it. (Botanicalls.com, 2014)

Figure 2: HOW TO - Make plants talk! They'll Twitter you when they need to be watered (and more).... [online] MAKE. Available at: http://makezine.com/2008/02/25/how-to-make-plants-talk-t/

Figure 3: HOW TO - Make plants talk! They'll Twitter you when they need to be watered (and more).... [online] MAKE. Available at: http://makezine.com/2008/02/25/how-to-make-plants-talk-t/

Using an Arduino simplifies the amount of hardware and software development, which offers fast and easy prototyping. (Lo, 2014) As an interactive media design student, I believe that Arduino stimulates the creativity and innovation among the makers and design students through the culture of open source, which empower people to invent something with their valuable imagination and ideas.

REFERENCES: 

Images:

Moran, S. (2014). A 12-YEAR-OLD'S QUEST TO REMAKE EDUCATION, ONE ARDUINO AT A TIME. [image] Available at: http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2013-08/short-circuit [Accessed 11 Dec. 2014].

Torrone, P. (2008). HOW TO - Make plants talk! They'll Twitter you when they need to be watered (and more).... [online] MAKE. Available at: http://makezine.com/2008/02/25/how-to-make-plants-talk-t/ [Accessed 12 Dec. 2014].

Video:

Massimo Banzi: How Arduino is open-sourcing imagination. (2014). [image] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoBUXOOdLXY [Accessed 11 Dec. 2014].

Information:

Freetronics, (2014). What Is Arduino? | Freetronics. [online] Available at: http://www.freetronics.com.au/pages/what-is-arduino#.VImAWYqsVCU [Accessed 11 Dec. 2014].

Banzi, M. (2014). Transcript of "How Arduino is open-sourcing imagination". [online] Ted.com. Available at: http://www.ted.com/talks/massimo_banzi_how_arduino_is_open_sourcing_imagination?language=en [Accessed 11 Dec. 2014].

Arduino.cc, (2014). Arduino - HomePage. [online] Available at: http://www.arduino.cc/en/pmwiki.php?n= [Accessed 11 Dec. 2014].

Doukas, C. (2012). Building internet of things with the Arduino. [North Charleston, S.C.]: [CreateSpace].

Playground.arduino.cc, (2014). Arduino Playground - HomePage. [online] Available at: http://playground.arduino.cc/ [Accessed 11 Dec. 2014].

Haze, L. (2013). A 13-Year-Old Is Teaching MIT Grad Students About Technology - RYOT News. [online] RYOT News. Available at: http://www.ryot.org/in-less-than-three-years-13-year-old-quin-etnyre-learned-to-program-electronics-created-his-own-company-and-began-teaching-mit-graduates-in-his-spare-time-photo-youtubebbc/474093 [Accessed 11 Dec. 2014].

Botanicalls.com, (2014). Botanicalls Twitter DIY. [online] Available at: http://www.botanicalls.com/archived_kits/twitter/ [Accessed 12 Dec. 2014].

Lo, D. (2014). What are the advantages of using an Arduino over just using the underlying microcontroller? - Quora. [online] Quora.com. Available at: http://www.quora.com/What-are-the-advantages-of-using-an-Arduino-over-just-using-the-underlying-microcontroller [Accessed 12 Dec. 2014].

Blog:

Quin Etnyre talks Makers at the White House. (2014). [Blog] atmel. Available at: http://blog.atmel.com/2014/06/18/quin-etnyre-talks-makers-at-the-white-house/ [Accessed 11 Dec. 2014].