pic project for beginner?

Any advice on getting starting in PIC projects? I've put together some
basic circuits in the past and am looking for something more
challenging and creative.

Any good kits? Other suggestions?

 

What would you like to have after you are done with the project? A
useful tool? A toy? Do you want any outcome other than education?
What do you want to learn about? What motivates you?

Jon

 

Hi Jon,

Perhaps for a first project a circuit that would open and close a
switch from the signal from a Radio Controlled airplane or car
receiver. Basically a device that can turn something on and off via a
commercial radio control unit. There are units out there that do this
but it sounds like it shouldn't be too hard and is something I could
use.
Lawrence

 

I don't know much about these receivers (almost nothing, really.) But
my vague memory says that they use pulse coding and are usually hooked
to a DC servo unit that requires something between say 0.8ms and 2.5ms
to indicate a rotation of from 0 to 180 degrees. And I think this
needs to be repeated on something like every 20ms, though I don't have
any idea what happens if it is repeated on faster cycles (I can guess
what happens on slower cycling.) Something like that?

If I got any of that right, then would you like to do something that
reads this millisecond duty and then operates a relay switch based on
some given time threshold? Like, say, >1.5ms?

Jon

 

Bike timer might also be a good project!

Lawrence

 

U can try Knight Raider Leds

........0
.......0.
......0..
.....0...
....0....
...0.....
..0......
0.......

 

What language are you using? PicBasic, Proton, Assembly, C?

I have had good luck with PicBasic from Melabs. Lots of good stuff including
easy LCD interfacing, easy button, serial com etc... I had 2 pics each with
LCDs passing messages back and forth in no time. I used ME labs samples for
guides and built off of them. The forum offers lots of help too.

http://www.melabs.com/products/pbp.htm

http://www.microengineeringlabs.com/resources/samples.htm

I tried assembly but needed to get going quicker and have no prior
programming exp...well very little. I suppose I will migrate to C when I
don't have so many things to do.