Workshops/Shrimping it
The arduino platform is a great platform to work with, it is easy to code for and has a nice learning curve. However, after you have finished playing with and tweaking your circuit you are left with a fairly bulky and costly product. This is fine most of the time, when you are just playing and experimenting, but can quickly become a pain when you have multiple more permanent projects. So what can you do about it? Well, this is where a shrimp comes into play.
What is a shrimp?
It's a very minimal do it yourself Arduino, it is simply the Atmel microcontroller and the components needed to make it work. It is functionally the same as the Arduino Uno but costs a lot less, your ticket includes all the parts you need to make the above shrimp plus an FTDI programming dongle, all of which you will take home. We'll also be selling additional shrimps if you want some more.
They were dreampt up by our friends at the Makers of Morecambe makerspace. You can see more at shrimping.it.
Preparation
Every thing will be provided on the day (except the laptop/computer), however in the interest of saving time and so you can get the most out of the workshop it is recommended that you install the Arduino IDE and USB to UART drivers and familiarise your self with the IDE.
If you have any trouble installing the software or with the IDE we will be able to help you during the workshop.
Experiences required
This workshop assumes you do not have any electronics experience and is aimed at people who have no or limited experience with programming microcontrollers. Some programming experience may be required however tthe sketches are designed to be easy to read and follow so are suitable for beginners.
What you need
You will need a computer running Windows, Linux or Mac OS that is capable of running the Arduino IDE.
What you get
By the end of the workshop you will have a fully working shrimp on a mini breadboard along with everything needed to programming it (except a computer of course).
Additional shrimps will also be available for to purchase during or after the workshop or most of the time when the space is open, talk to Michael Daffin (talk) or one of the trustees if you want to order one.
| Full Kit | £12 | Protected shrimp, USB to UART converter |
| Full Kit+ | £14 | Protected shrimp+, USB to UART converter |
| Protected Shrimp | £6 | Components, micro breadboard |
| Protected Shrimp+ | £8 | Components, mini breadboard |
| Protected Shrimp Components Only | £5 | Atmega328, discrete components for a protected shrimp |
| USB to UART converter | £5 | Needed for uploading sketches to the shrimp, and for serial communication to the shrimp |
| Micro Breadboard | £2.50 | 170 tie-point breadboard |
| Mini Breadboard | £4.50 | 400 tie-point breadboard |
Workshop Structure
- Introduction to Arduino and the shrimp
- Demo and build the minimal shrimp
- Demo and build the protected shrimp
- Explain and demo the arduino ide
- Install the software and upload blink
- Go through the sketch and introduce the Arduino ice language basics
- Play around and experiment with the shrimp.
Resources
http://shrimping.it/blog/bill-of-materials/
http://shrimping.it/blog/shrimp-kit/