SIK Keyboard Instrument
A SparkFun keyboard.Copyright 2014 SparkFun Education CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0 https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/sik-keyboard-instrument
Students work as if they are electrical engineers to program a keyboard to play different audible tones depending on where a sensor is pressed. They construct the keyboard from a soft potentiometer, an Arduino capable board, and a small speaker. The soft potentiometer “keyboard” responds to the pressure of touch on its eight “keys” (C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C) and feeds an input signal to the Arduino-capable board. Each group programs a board to take the input and send an output signal to the speaker to produce a tone that is dependent on the input signal—that is, which “key” is pressed. After the keyboard is working, students play "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and (if time allows) modify the code so that different keys or a different number of notes can be played.
Electronics and sensory equipment are ubiquitous across all engineering fields. Electrical and mechanical engineers in particular design buttons and knobs as sensors that give output to users. For example, the “beeps” that microwave buttons make when pressed serve as cues to make the device more user-friendly, which is an important design consideration when creating consumer products.
After this activity, students should be able to:
- Describe potentiometers and provide examples of real-world applications for them.
- Connect electrical components and troubleshoot in case of unexpected results.
- Use “for loops” and “if statements” to carry out a program.