Summary of How to Shrink Your Arduino Projects: Making a Permanent Circuit Board
This article explains how to shrink Arduino projects by creating permanent circuit boards using an Atmega chip instead of a breadboard. It details the process of programming the Atmega chip via an Arduino Uno acting as an ISP programmer, burning the bootloader, and uploading custom code for a compact, lasting setup.
Parts used in the Shrink Arduino Project:
- Atmega8 or 16
- Arduino uno
- 16Mhz crystal
- Resistor 10K
- Resistor 100K
- 22pf capacitor
- 10uf capacitor
- Jumper and connectors
- Breadboard
When you make a project using Arduino, it usually contains a lot of jumper connections on the breadboard and the project will not be a permanent one. If you want to make any other project using that Arduino, you will have to remove all the connections made on it and to rebuild the same project, you need to start over again.
Shrinking Arduino projects makes them smaller in size, appealing, and permanent. So in this post, I will be showing how to shrink Arduino projects and make life easier!
Required Materials
- Atmega8 or 16
- Arduino uno
- 16Mhz crystal
- Resistor 10K , 100K
- 22pf capacitor
- 10uf capacitor
- Jumper and connectors
- Breadboard
How Does it Work?
The basic idea of shrinking an Arduino project is to make a permanent circuit board for it. This is done by programming an Atmega chip using an Arduino. To program an Atmega using Arduino, first of all, we need to make a DIY programmer and burn bootloader. To use your Arduino to burn a bootloader onto an Atmega, you need to follow a few simple steps.
Steps to Shrink Arduino:
- Open the Arduino IDE
- Open the ISP sketch (from Examples) and upload the sketch to your board by selecting the correct Board and Serial port3.
- After successful uploading of the sketch(ISP), wire your Arduino board to the target board(atmega8/16) as shown in the diagram below.(Note for the Arduino Uno: you’ll need to add a 10 uF capacitor between reset and ground. After uploading the ISP sketch)
- Select the Tools > Board menu that corresponds to the board on which you want to burn the bootloader. I am using Atmega8 as target microcontroller to shrink Arduino, so I will choose board as Arduino NG or older w/ Atmega8.
- Select Arduino as ISP from Programmer menu.
- Check that everything is connected properly and click Burn Bootloader > Arduino as ISP command.
- After a while, you will see the message “Done burning bootloader”. Then you can upload your codes using the Arduino IDE to your Atmega8 chip.
- Try uploading File>Examples>Basics>LED blink sketch to Atmega8 via Arduino and if the LED blinks then your board works properly.
NOTE: While uploading the sketch via ISP, instead of simply uploading the sketch, select upload using programmer(Ctrl+shift+U).
Read More: How to Shrink Your Arduino Projects: Making a Permanent Circuit Board
- How does shrinking an Arduino project work?
The basic idea is to make a permanent circuit board by programming an Atmega chip using an Arduino. - What is the first step to program an Atmega using an Arduino?
You need to make a DIY programmer and burn the bootloader. - Which sketch should be opened to upload to the board?
You must open the ISP sketch from the Examples menu in the Arduino IDE. - What component is needed between reset and ground for an Arduino Uno?
You will need to add a 10 uF capacitor between reset and ground after uploading the ISP sketch. - How do you select the target microcontroller board in the tools menu?
Select the Tools > Board menu that corresponds to the board on which you want to burn the bootloader. - What command is used to start the burning process?
You click Burn Bootloader > Arduino as ISP command. - How can you verify if the board works properly after burning the bootloader?
Try uploading File>Examples>Basics>LED blink sketch to Atmega8 and check if the LED blinks. - What shortcut key combination is used to upload using the programmer?
Select upload using programmer(Ctrl+shift+U) instead of simply uploading the sketch.
