Sensors

Getting Started with Load Cells

June 11, 2015

A tutorial defining what a load cell is and how to use one.

Experiment Guide for RedBot with Shadow Chassis

May 28, 2015

This Experiment Guide offers nine experiments to get you started with the SparkFun RedBot. This guide is designed for those who are familiar with our SparkFun Inventor's Kit and want to take their robotics knowledge to the next level.

FLIR Lepton Hookup Guide

March 26, 2015

See the invisible world of infrared radiation using the FLIR Dev Kit and Raspberry Pi.

Wake-on-Shake Hookup Guide

March 13, 2015

A basic hookup guide for getting started with the SparkFun Wake-on-Shake. The board gives you the ability to put your project into hibernation until bumped or shaken awake using the ADXL362 accelerometer. This means you can design projects meant to stay inert for long periods of time, possibly even several years, depending on the battery type used to power the project.

VL6180 Hookup Guide

February 12, 2015

Get started with your VL6180 based sensor or the VL6180 breakout board.

RedBoard Santa Trap

December 25, 2014

A fun holiday project to try for anyone looking to catch Santa on Christmas!

Using the SparkFun PicoBoard and Scratch

November 11, 2014

Here are a few tips in using the PicoBoard with Scratch v1.4. The PicoBoard allows us to write Scratch programs that interact with a variety of sensors on the PicoBoard. These sensors include: sound, light, a slider, a push button, and 4 external sensors (A, B, C, and D).

APDS-9960 RGB and Gesture Sensor Hookup Guide

November 6, 2014

Getting started guide for the Avago APDS-9960 color, proximity, and gesture sensor.

Humidity-sensing LED Flower

October 28, 2014

How about that humidity? This tutorial shows how to add sensing capability to the 21st Century Fashion Kit's RGB flower project.

Hackers in Residence - Cosmic Ray Detector

August 11, 2014

Learn how to detect cosmic rays with this simple and cheap detector, built by Hacker in Residence Pete Marchetto.

HMC6343 3-axis Compass Hookup Guide

August 7, 2014

How to hook the HMC6343 -- a high-end, tilt-compensated compass module -- up to an Arduino. Never get lost again!

MS5803-14BA Pressure Sensor Hookup Guide

July 24, 2014

Breakout of MS5803-14BA Pressure Sensor to measure the absolute pressure of the fluid around them to determine altitude, water depth, or any other tasks that require an accurate pressure reading. This includes air, water, and anything else that acts like a viscous fluid.

ADXL337 and ADXL377 Accelerometer Hookup Guide

July 17, 2014

How to get started using both the ADXL337 and ADXL377 3-axis accelerometers with analog outputs.

AD8232 Heart Rate Monitor Hookup Guide

July 17, 2014

Learn how to create your very own heart rate monitor.

Hackers in Residence - The ElectricBone

June 25, 2014

Drum machines and keyboards have been the standard for making digital music, but how do you make electronic music if you're trained to play the trombone? One of our Hackers in Residence, Carlos Mello, took it upon himself to find a solution to that very question.

Soil moisture-sensing by hacking a solar light

June 19, 2014

How to take a solar powered pathway light from a hardware store and make it into a crude soil moisture sensor.

ISL29125 RGB Light Sensor Hookup Guide

June 12, 2014

A guide to help you integrate the ISL29125 RGB light sensor breakout board into your electronic projects.

MMA8452Q Accelerometer Breakout Hookup Guide

June 11, 2014

How to get started using the MMA8452Q 3-axis accelerometer -- a solid, digital, easy-to-use acceleration sensor.

Logomatic Hookup Guide

May 29, 2014

Basic introduction and hook-up guide for the SparkFun Logomatic.

Are You Okay? Widget

May 23, 2014

Use an Electric Imp and accelerometer to create an "Are You OK" widget. A cozy piece of technology your friend or loved one can nudge to let you know they're OK from half-a-world away.

Interactive Hanging LED Array

April 10, 2014

Learn how we converted 72 lightbulbs into an interactive LED array for our conference room.

ML8511 UV Sensor Hookup Guide

March 13, 2014

Get up and running quickly with this simple to use UV sensor.

LSM9DS0 Hookup Guide

February 27, 2014

How to assemble, connect to, and use the LSM9DS0 -- an accelerometer, gyroscope, and magnetometer all-in-one.
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Old Tutorials

Looking for the old, archived tutorials? Head on over to the archived tutorials on the main SparkFun site.
Please be aware that the tutorials you find there are no longer actively maintained.