Book Image

Internet of Things Programming Projects

By : Colin Dow
Book Image

Internet of Things Programming Projects

By: Colin Dow

Overview of this book

The Internet of Things (IOT) has managed to attract the attention of researchers and tech enthusiasts, since it powerfully combines classical networks with instruments and devices. In Internet of Things Programming Projects, we unleash the power of Raspberry Pi and Python to create engaging projects. In the first part of the book, you’ll be introduced to the Raspberry Pi, learn how to set it up, and then jump right into Python programming. Then, you’ll dive into real-world computing by creating a“Hello World” app using flash LEDs. As you make your way through the chapters, you’ll go back to an age when analog needle meters ruled the world of data display. You’ll learn to retrieve weather data from a web service and display it on an analog needle meter, and build a home security system using the Raspberry Pi. The next project has a modern twist, where we employ the Raspberry Pi to send a signal to a web service that will send you a text when someone is at the door. In the final project, you take what you've learned from the previous two projects and create an IoT robot car that you can use to monitor what your pets are up to when you are away. By the end of this book, you will be well versed in almost every possible way to make your IoT projects stand out.
Table of Contents (21 chapters)

Wiring up a servo motor to the Raspberry Pi

This project involves wiring up a servo motor to our Raspberry Pi. Many people confuse servo motors with stepper and DC motors. Let's take a look at the differences between these types of motors.

Stepper motors

Stepper motors are brushless DC electrical motors that move a full rotation of equal steps. The position of the motor is controlled without the use of a feedback system (open-loop system). This makes stepper motors relatively inexpensive and popular for robotics, 3-D printers, and CNC-type applications.

The following is a crude diagram of the internal workings of a stepper motor:

By turning on and off the coils A and B in sequence, the Permanent Magnet (which is attached...