SIK Experiment Guide for Arduino - V3.3

This Tutorial is Retired!

Please note that this tutorial is for the SparkFun Inventor's Kit version 3.3. If you have SIK version 4.0, check out the latest tutorial. Do you have the old v3.3 kit and want to upgrade to v4.0? Try getting the SIK bridge pack !

View the updated tutorial: SparkFun Inventor's Kit Experiment Guide - v4.0

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Contributors: HelloTechie, Toni_K
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Introduction: Hardware

The SparkFun Inventor's Kit is your map for navigating the waters of beginning embedded electronics. This kit contains all the information and parts you will need to create 16 circuits that cover the basics of programming and hardware interactions. At the center of this kit is one core philosophy -- that anyone can (and should) experiment with electronics. When you're done with this guide, you'll have the know-how to start creating your own projects and experiments.

This guide is also available as a downloadable PDF, if you prefer.

SparkFun Inventor's Kit - V3.3

You should have one of the two following versions of the SIK. If you need a overview of the parts included in your kit, please click on the product link below.

SparkFun Inventor's Kit V3.3 - Special Edition

KIT-14189
5 Retired

SparkFun Inventor's Kit (for Arduino Uno) - V3.3

KIT-13970
2 Retired

The primary difference between the two kits is the microcontroller included in the kit. The SparkFun Inventor's Kit includes a SparkFun RedBoard, while the SparkFun Inventor's Kit for Arduino Uno includes an Arduino Uno R3. At the heart of each is the ATmega328p microcontroller, giving both the same functionality underneath the hood. Both development boards are capable of taking inputs (such as the push of a button or a reading from a light sensor) and interpreting that information to control various outputs (like a blinking LED light or an electric motor). And much, much more!

Note: The Arduino Uno version of the kit does not include a carrying case or printed copy of this manual to decrease weight and cost for international shipping.
Note: You can complete all 16 experiments in this guide with either kit.

If you need more information to determine which microcontroller is right for you, please check out the following tutorials.

RedBoard Hookup Guide

January 7, 2014

How to get your RedBoard up-and-blinking!

What is an Arduino?

February 26, 2013

What is this 'Arduino' thing anyway? This tutorials dives into what an Arduino is and along with Arduino projects and widgets.

Open Source!

At SparkFun, our engineers and educators have been improving this kit and coming up with new experiments for a long time now. We would like to give attribution to Oomlout, since we originally started working off their Arduino Kit material many years ago. The Oomlut version is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 3.0 Unported License.

SparkFun's version 3.3 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike International License.

Suggested Reading

Before continuing on with this tutorial, we recommend you be familiar with the concepts in the following tutorials:

What is a Circuit?

Every electrical project starts with a circuit. Don't know what a circuit is? We're here to help.

How to Use a Breadboard

Welcome to the wonderful world of breadboards. Here we will learn what a breadboard is and how to use one to build your very first circuit.

What is Electricity?

We can see electricity in action on our computers, lighting our houses, as lightning strikes in thunderstorms, but what is it? This is not an easy question, but this tutorial will shed some light on it!

Polarity

An introduction to polarity in electronic components. Discover what polarity is, which parts have it, and how to identify it.