Saturday, May 12, was Arduino Day 2018. Peter, founder of Tech Explorations and I took the opportunity to do a live webinar in which we answered questions from our friends in the audience about the Arduino, e-textiles, Raspberry Pi, and lots of related topics.

It was a lot of fun, and we hope to do more Webinars in the future.

Here's is the full video, followed by a list of resources that our audience asked about, and then by the audience questions.

Resources asked by the audience

Questions from the audience

  • Q: What in your opinion is the best way to hook sensors together in textiles?
  • Q: Serial communication Issue between Arduino Mega with UI in computer via USB cable: UI sends commands Stop/Start to Arduino once in a while. Arduino sends info about its status back to UI every 5seconds. Everything works for a while.However, after a random amount of time, UI cannot receive info from Arduino anymore, but UI can still send start/stop commands to Arduino. Do you have any idea of the issue? Is the Serial channel from Arduino to UI congested? How to clear the congestion without reseting Arduino board. Many thanks. Tim
  • Q: In general, can Arduino be used in a commercial product? Any legal constraint? If yes, what is the solution? Purchase licence? Thanks. Tim
  • Q: Can you please suggest the best interface board (or shield) for Wireless or Bluetooth communication between Arduinos or b/w Arduino and Computer? Thanks. Tim
  • Q: Any pointers where I can find info on using SIP trunking with an Arduino (so we can make something like an intercom or VOIP phone and call it up using an IP PBX)?
  • Q: I'm doing a watering system right now - A: I think it is open sprinkler https://opensprinkler.com/ "Raspberry Pi OpenSprinkler started out as a hobby kit for makers and software developers. We continue supporting those communities with our Raspberry Pi version. OpenSprinkler is built around open-source software and hardware. Its design files are publicly available. You can easily customize and extend its functionality, both software and hardware."
  • As an amateur radio crazy guy! I'm using a stm32f446 as an interface between a Raspberry Pi and an ADF7021 (radio in a chip) as a digital voice hot spot (p25, dmr, dstar & ysf)
  • Q Is there a serious outdoor moisture sensor you could recommend. The cheap ones corrode in a short period of time.
    A: https://www.bunnings.com.au/gardman-soil-moisture-... A: https://www.littlebirdelectronics.com.au/gravity-s...
  • Q: Is it worthwhile to combine the Arduino with a RPi to get the best of both? Or is there a better solution?
  • Q: Is there an alternative to the Freetronics Etherdue?
    A: https://www.littlebirdelectronics.com.au/seeeduino...
  • Q: Is there an Arduino style board with a boot loader which can execute code from an external storage device like SD or similar?
  • Q: I have a grandson that I would like to learn electronics and coding. I have bought an Arduino starter kit with various components. what is the best resource we should look up to get some projects to get started. Please Terry
  • Q: What is the easiest way to play a digital sound file? Was planning to use the dac port on the Due.
    A: https://www.littlebirdelectronics.com.au/mp3-trigg...
  • Q: Question for Emily. Do you find that the practical aspects of e-textiles are engaging and creating excitement with students in the classroom? As a parent & beginner with e-textiles, how can I introduce this medium to my children?
  • Q: I install with the Windows Installer with no problems, except I have to manually install libraries via zip. Cannot use online manual manage libraries function. (DoE school)
  • Q: Fantastic webinar!! Many thanks. Have a great weekend!! Tim