Little Bird Guides

Physical Computing 101

#8 · Feb 10, 2021 Pro

In this lesson, we will take a closer look at the Raspberry Pi Pico's pins, and essential electronic components that forms many circuits. You will also learn how to read resistor colour codes.

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Getting started with the Raspberry Pi Pico

#1 · Jan 19, 2021 Pro

In this lesson, learn to install MicroPython on the Raspberry Pi Pico. After completing this lesson, you can get started with programming and making things with it.

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You've installed MicroPython on your Raspberry Pi Pico, but how do you start programming it? There are a few ways, in the first part of this lesson, learn to connect the Pico to the MicroPython REPL. Linux and MacOS have powerful terminal emulators such as screen which can be used to directly connect to the device's Read-Eval-Print-Loop (REPL) over a serial (USB) connection. We could then start running Python code interactively.

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I2C Communication Protocol with Raspberry Pi Pico

#13 · Mar 31, 2021 Pro

So far, we have hooked up a few commonly used electronic components to the Raspberry Pi Pico. As you branch out into using more sensors, actuators, displays, etc, you will come across the use of Digital Communication Protocols. It is through these protocols, that microcontrollers such as the Pico and other devices can communicate. In this lesson, you will learn about the I2C communication protocol and use an OLED display with the Pico.

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Alarm with Raspberry Pi Pico

#10 · Mar 10, 2021 Pro

Learn to build an alarm with the Raspberry Pi Pico! In this lesson, you will be introduced to the PIR motion sensor. Here, PIR sensor stands for passive infrared sensor. It measures infrared light radiating within its view. This can be from humans, animals, vehicles, etc. This is perfect for building a security alarm!

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Physical Computing with the Raspberry Pi Pico

#3 · Jan 19, 2021 Pro

In this lesson, learn how to blink an LED on the Raspberry Pi Pico. It's a fantastic first step in learning about physical computing and you can get started without any other components due to the Pico's built-in LED! For the first part of this lesson, we'll get the built-in LED blinking. But microcontrollers are usually used with external components. So in the next part of this lesson, we'll show you how to use the Pico with an external LED.

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1-Wire Communication Protocol with Raspberry Pi Pico

#14 · Mar 31, 2021 Pro

Another commonly used Digital Communication Protocol is the 1-Wire protocol. In this lesson, you will learn about 1-Wire and how to use the DS18B20 Temperature Sensor with the Pico.

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Light Show with Raspberry Pi Pico

#9 · Feb 24, 2021 Pro

Create your own colourful light show with the Raspberry Pi Pico and multiple LEDs! Every light show needs a bit of a pause, so you will learn how to use the utime module to create delays. In the next part of the lesson, learn about multithreading with the _thread library. After completing this lesson, you will have mastered the basics and can go on to create other LED-based projects. For example, you could create a mini traffic light system or a night lamp.

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Temperature Indicator with Raspberry Pi Pico

#11 · Mar 17, 2021 Pro

The Raspberry Pi Pico has an internal temperature sensor which can be read from its fourth analogue-to-digital converter (ADC) channel. What's an ADC? In this lesson, we'll explore ADCs, and introduce you to the Lorikeet, a WS2812B LED stick. Together, we'll create an internal temperature indicator with the Pico and Lorikeet.

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Use the Raspberry Pi Pico with Arduino IDE

#17 · Apr 8, 2021 Pro

The Raspberry Pi Pico supports multiple languages such as, MicroPython, C/C++ or even Assembly. There's a lot to like about MicroPython, with its clean and simple python code. However, C/C++ was seen as the best choice for developers who want to push the Pico to its limit. For newcomers who want to do so as well, there's a steeper learning curve despite there being documentation. Now there's another way, a Pico community member has created an Arduino core for the Arduino IDE that supports the Raspberry Pi Pico! In this lesson, we'll walk you through the steps from installing the IDE, to the Arduino Core and finally uploading your first sketch.

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SPI Communication Protocol with Raspberry Pi Pico

#18 · Apr 14, 2021 Pro

In order for devices to communicate, whether they are computers or microcontrollers, there needs to be a method for communication. In our previous guide on I²C and Pico, we've briefly talked about digital communication protocols. Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) is a synchronous serial communication protocol that is widely used between microcontrollers and peripheral ICs such as sensors, displays, flash memory, real-time clocks, shift registers, ADCs, DACs, etc. In this guide, learn about the SPI communication protocol. Then use a 74HC595 shift register with the Pico and a whole heap of LEDs!

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How to use interrupts with Raspberry Pi Pico

#6 · Jan 22, 2021 Pro

Imagine you are watching a movie, and there is a knock at the door. You press pause, answer the door, and there is a salesman. Uninterested, you send them away and are back at your living room. You sit down and press play. That is an example of an interrupt. You were doing something, you were interrupted, and you then did something to handle the interrupt before going back to doing what you were doing before. In electronics, there are also interrupts. In this context, an interrupt is a signal emitted by hardware or software when an event needs immediate attention. You can think of an Interrupt Service Routine as a special block of code. It's also known as an interrupt handler or ISR for short. Basically, it is a software process invoked by an interrupt request from a hardware device. For example, they can be are executed in response to an event such as a voltage change on a pin. In this lesson, we will learn how to use hardware interrupts with a push button and the Pico

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