Combining Arduino and Raspberry Pi: Easy Projects

Chosen theme: Combining Arduino and Raspberry Pi: Easy Projects. Welcome! Today we explore beginner‑friendly builds where Arduino handles real‑time sensing and control while Raspberry Pi adds brains, networking, storage, and a friendly interface.

Project 1: USB Temperature Logger with Web Dashboard

Use an Arduino Uno, a DHT22 or DS18B20 sensor, and a Raspberry Pi with Wi‑Fi. Wire sensor to Arduino, connect Arduino over USB to the Pi, and confirm the device appears with dmesg before sending your first readings.

Project 1: USB Temperature Logger with Web Dashboard

Have Arduino print timestamped temperature and humidity lines. On the Pi, a short Python script using pyserial logs data to CSV. Serve charts with Flask and Chart.js, so your phone shows a tidy, auto‑updating graph at home.

Project 2: Smart Plant Guardian

Use a capacitive soil moisture sensor and a light sensor on Arduino for robust, low‑noise readings. Calibrate dry and wet points with your actual soil, then stream clean percentage values to Raspberry Pi for logging and trend analysis.

PIR Sensing and Pixel Magic

Wire a PIR motion sensor to Arduino for instant triggers. Drive a WS2812B LED strip with a proper 5V supply and a small data resistor. Arduino handles animations smoothly without jitter, waking lights gently when someone walks by.

Schedules, Buttons, and Voice

Let Raspberry Pi expose a tiny web page or MQTT topic for control. Add Home Assistant or simple Flask endpoints so you can schedule quiet hours, set colors, or tap a phone button to change mood scenes from the couch.

Power and Safety First

Use a dedicated 5V supply sized for your LED count, share ground, and add an inline fuse. Keep high‑current runs short, avoid powering long strips from one end, and ensure the Pi never back‑feeds current into the Arduino’s regulator.

Communication Patterns That Keep Projects Stable

Serial That Just Works

Wrap messages in lines with start markers, commas, and checksums. Implement a small state machine on Arduino, and on the Pi parse cautiously. Log malformed messages to a file so intermittent wiring issues are traceable later.

I2C Without Headaches

If you choose I2C, mind voltage levels and cable length. Use level shifters between 5V Arduino and 3.3V Pi, enable pull‑ups thoughtfully, and assign simple register‑style commands for predictable reads and writes across restarts.

Firmata or Custom Protocol?

Firmata lets the Pi manipulate Arduino pins quickly without custom firmware, great for experiments. For production, a tiny bespoke protocol with explicit commands and acknowledgments is easier to secure, optimize, and maintain over time.

Setup, Tools, and Habits That Save Hours

Measure current draw with a USB meter. Prefer separate supplies for heavy loads and share ground. Use buck converters for pumps or long LED runs, and avoid powering Arduino from the Pi’s 5V pin when peripherals pull serious current.

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Post a photo, wiring diagram, and a short lesson learned. Did you pick USB serial or I2C? What tripped you up? Your notes might unlock someone else’s first success this weekend.

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Combining Arduino and Raspberry Pi: Easy Projects

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Project 1: USB Temperature Logger with Web Dashboard

Project 1: USB Temperature Logger with Web Dashboard

Project 2: Smart Plant Guardian

Communication Patterns That Keep Projects Stable

Serial That Just Works

I2C Without Headaches

Firmata or Custom Protocol?

Setup, Tools, and Habits That Save Hours

Join In: Share, Ask, and Subscribe

Join In: Share, Ask, and Subscribe