Arduino is an open-source electronics platform based on easy-to-use hardware and software. It consists of a microcontroller, development board, and a programming language used to write and upload code to the board. Arduino boards are typically used for creating interactive projects and prototypes, such as robotics, wearables, and IoT applications.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• About Arduino
• The Nicla Family
  • Nicla Vision
  • Nicla Sense ME
  • Nicla Speech
• Other Arduino Products
• Integrating it with Arduino IoT products

At its core, the Arduino platform consists of a microcontroller board (such as the Arduino Uno) that can be programmed to control various sensors, motors, and other electronic components. The Arduino board can be connected to a computer via a USB cable and programmed using the Arduino Integrated Development Environment (IDE), which is a simple software tool that allows you to write and upload code to the board.

Arduino’s open-source hardware and software platform takes inputs, such as the press of a button, and use these inputs to control an output, like making a motor spin or buzzer buzz. From beginner projects, like making multiple LEDs blink at one time, to more complex ideas, like creating a mind controlled robot, Arduino is a great platform for those new to coding and hardware design, and for the experienced maker looking for a fast way to experiment and create.

• Arduino MKR boards: A family of small, low-power boards that are designed for IoT applications, with built-in connectivity options such as WiFi, Bluetooth, and LoRa.
• Arduino IoT Cloud: A cloud-based platform for managing and analyzing data from IoT devices, including support for remote monitoring and control.
• Arduino Shields: A range of expansion boards that can be added to Arduino boards to add additional functionality, including sensor boards, motor control boards, and communication boards.

One of the key features of Arduino is its flexibility. It can be used to create a wide variety of projects, from simple LED blinkers to more complex projects like robots or home automation systems. Arduino’s popularity has also led to a large community of users and developers, who create and share projects, libraries, and tutorials.

Overall, Arduino is a great platform for learning about electronics and programming, and for prototyping and building your own custom electronic projects.

Arduino boards are able to read inputs – light on a sensor, a finger on a button, or a Twitter message – and turn it into an output – activating a motor, turning on an LED, publishing something online. You can tell your board what to do by sending a set of instructions to the microcontroller on the board. To do so you use the Arduino programming language (based on Wiring), and the Arduino Software (IDE), based on Processing.

Over the years Arduino has been the brain of thousands of projects, from everyday objects to complex scientific instruments. A worldwide community of makers – students, hobbyists, artists, programmers, and professionals – has gathered around this open-source platform, their contributions have added up to an incredible amount of accessible knowledge that can be of great help to novices and experts alike.

HISTORY

Arduino was born at the Ivrea Interaction Design Institute as an easy tool for fast prototyping, aimed at students without a background in electronics and programming. As soon as it reached a wider community, the Arduino board started changing to adapt to new needs and challenges, differentiating its offer from simple 8-bit boards to products for IoT applications, wearable, 3D printing, and embedded environments.

THE NICLA FAMILY

https://www.arduino.cc/pro/hardware-nicla-family/ 

Nicla Vision

Click to access ABX00051-datasheet.pdf

Arduino’s Nicla Vision is a vision-based development platform that includes hardware, software, and AI tools. It’s designed to enable developers to create custom computer vision applications, such as object detection, facial recognition, and gesture recognition.

The Nicla Vision platform consists of a small, low-power board with a built-in camera and microphone, as well as a set of software tools for programming and deploying computer vision applications. The board is based on the popular ESP32 microcontroller, which provides plenty of processing power for running complex computer vision algorithms.

One of the key features of Nicla Vision is its integration with popular machine learning frameworks, such as TensorFlow Lite and the Arduino Machine Learning library. This allows developers to easily train and deploy custom machine learning models on the board, without needing specialized hardware or software.

Overall, Nicla Vision is a powerful and flexible platform for developing custom computer vision applications. It’s well-suited for both beginners and experienced developers who want to explore the world of computer vision and AI. However, it’s worth noting that Nicla Vision is a relatively new platform, and as such, there may be some limitations or bugs that need to be ironed out over time.

Nicla Sense ME

https://docs.arduino.cc/resources/datasheets/ABX00050-datasheet.pdf

This is a small sensor board that includes an accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer, and environmental sensors such as temperature and humidity. By integrating the Nicla Sense ME board with the Nicla Vision board, you could potentially create a more advanced safety system for the helmet, with features such as fall detection, impact sensing, and environmental monitoring.

Nicla Voice

This is a small board with a built-in microphone and speaker, designed for voice recognition and voice control applications. By integrating the Nicla Voice board with the Nicla Vision board, we could potentially create a voice-controlled helmet that allows the wearer to perform various functions hands-free.

Other Products

There are several other products from the Arduino Nicla family that you could potentially use in combination with the Nicla Vision board to create a more comprehensive smart helmet solution. Here are a few examples:

1. Sense Air: This is a sensor board specifically designed for air quality monitoring, with sensors for particulate matter, VOCs, and other pollutants. If your helmet is used in an environment with poor air quality, you could potentially use the Nicla Sense Air board to monitor the air quality and provide alerts or other feedback to the wearer.
2. Robotics: This is a set of hardware and software tools specifically designed for robotics applications. While it’s not directly related to helmet safety, if you’re interested in creating a robotic or automated system that interacts with the shop floor, the Nicla Robotics tools could potentially be useful.

Not all of these products may be necessary or appropriate for your specific use case, and that integrating multiple products may require additional hardware and software development work. However, these products illustrate the breadth of the Nicla family and the potential for combining multiple products to create more advanced and comprehensive solutions.

POWER SOLUTIONS FOR NICLA SENSORS

https://support.arduino.cc/hc/en-us/articles/4408893476498-Connect-a-battery-to-Nicla-Sense-ME-or-Nicla-Vision

INTEGRATING IT WITH ARDUINO IOT PRODUCTS

There are several other Arduino products that could potentially be integrated with the Nicla family to create a more comprehensive solution for ensuring actionable intelligence and a safe environment on a shop floor. Here are a few examples:

1. Arduino MKR WiFi 1010: This is a small, low-power board that includes WiFi connectivity and is designed for IoT applications. By integrating the MKR WiFi 1010 with the Nicla Vision board, you could potentially send data from the Nicla Vision system to the cloud for further processing and analysis. This could enable more advanced analytics and machine learning applications to be applied to the data.
2. Arduino MKR ENV Shield: This is a shield board that includes a variety of environmental sensors, including temperature, humidity, pressure, and light. By integrating the MKR ENV Shield with the Nicla Vision board, you could potentially create a more comprehensive environmental monitoring system for the shop floor, with data being fed into the same cloud-based system as the Nicla Vision data.
3. Arduino IoT Cloud: This is a cloud-based platform for managing and analyzing data from IoT devices. By integrating the Nicla Vision board and other Arduino boards with the Arduino IoT Cloud, you could potentially create a more comprehensive solution for managing and analyzing data from all of the devices on the shop floor.
4. Arduino Industrial 101: This is a rugged, industrial-grade board that includes WiFi and Ethernet connectivity, as well as support for the Arduino IoT Cloud. By integrating the Nicla Vision board with the Industrial 101, you could potentially create a more robust and reliable system for industrial environments.
5. Arduino Robot: This is a robot kit that includes a chassis, motors, sensors, and a control board. By integrating the Nicla Vision board with the Arduino Robot kit, you could potentially create a robot that is capable of performing tasks autonomously, while also using computer vision to interact with the shop floor environment.

Overall, the Arduino ecosystem includes a wide range of products and tools that can be combined in various ways to create custom solutions for industrial applications. By integrating the Nicla family with other Arduino products, it’s possible to create a more comprehensive and advanced system for ensuring safety and actionable intelligence on the shop floor.

NI+IN UCHIL Founder, CEO & Technical Evangelist
nitin.uchil@numorpho.com