Nitrogen is critical for farming at scale and without some form of nitrogen to enrich the soil, we couldn’t grow staple crops efficiently enough to feed our large global population. Serious science goes into the production of fertilizers and the Birkeland-Eyde process was one early example. It uses electrical arcs to turn nitrogen in the air into nitric acid. Marb is an enthusiastic citizen scientist and built his own experimental reactor to harness the Birkeland-Eyde process.
The Birkeland-Eyde process was largely phased out a century ago, because it is inefficient due to the high energy requirements. It needs a lot of energy to create the electric arcs — too much energy to be practical at the scale necessary for modern industrial farming. But efficiency isn’t a major concern for Marb, who is more interested in the science than fertilizer production.
Creating an electrical arc isn’t very difficult, but controlling it is more challenging. For that reason, Marb used an Arduino UNO Rev3 to oversee his DIY reactor. Through a breakout shield, the Arduino controls the flow of power to the arc electrodes. That requires a large power supply, transformers, and a boost converter.
The rest of the reactor is devoted to the containment, preparation, and flow of air. The Birkeland-Eyde process works best with dry air, so Marb’s design pumps air through a desiccant-packed tube and into the reaction chamber where the electrodes meet. Sensors, like a temperature sensor, help the Arduino gain feedback on the conditions.
Marb’s video ends with a demonstration, but he hasn’t yet refined the reaction process for maximum yields. If there is enough interest, Marb says that he’ll make a follow-up video with more detail.
The Arduino UNO is legendary among makers, and with the release of the UNO R4 in 2023, the family gained a powerful new member. But with two incredible options, which UNO should you pick for your project? Here’s a breakdown of what makes each board shine, depending on your needs, skills, and goals.
Why the UNO Rev3 is still a go-to classic
The UNO Rev3 has been around for over a decade, earning its reputation as a solid, reliable board perfect for beginners. Simple, robust, and versatile, it’s the “base camp” of the Arduino ecosystem. Its 8-bit architecture makes it straightforward to understand exactly what’s happening in your code.
Applications and ideal uses
The UNO Rev3 is fantastic for projects like controlling LEDs, motors, and simple sensors – as well as any of the 15 projects included in our best-selling Arduino Starter Kit.
Its ability to handle a higher current directly from each pin makes it ideal for connecting power-hungry sensors or motors without needing extra components. It’s also compatible with an enormous number of sketches and libraries that have been built around it over the years.
One key advantage? The microcontroller on the UNO Rev3 can be removed, allowing you to use it independently – a feature that many seasoned users love.
The UNO R4 builds on everything makers love about the Rev3, adding features that bring it up to speed with the needs of today’s tech. Its 32-bit Arm® Cortex®-M4 guarantees significantly faster processing power and can handle more advanced projects. It comes in two versions: the UNO R4 Minima for essential functionality and the UNO R4 WiFi for Internet-connected projects.
The latter is the brains of the Plug and Make Kit: the easiest way to go from zero to tech hero, with step-by-step tutorials to create a custom weather station, a video game controller, a smart timer and so much more!
Advanced features for new possibilities
The UNO R4 packs in features that are groundbreaking for the UNO family:
12-bit DAC: Enables analog output for audio waveforms or other analog components without external circuitry.
CAN bus: Ideal for connecting multiple devices in robotics or automotive projects.
Wi-Fi® and Bluetooth® on the R4 WiFi model: Easily build IoT projects and connect to the Arduino Cloud to control your devices remotely.
Enhanced Diagnostics: The R4 WiFi includes an error-capturing mechanism that helps beginners by identifying issues in the code, a fantastic learning tool.
Applications and ideal uses
With increased memory and processing power, the UNO R4 is perfect for projects that require complex calculations or manage multiple processes. Think IoT, data sensing, automation systems, creative installations or scientific equipment where precise measurements and real-time adjustments are key.
What’s more, the UNO R4 has the capability to leverage AI – and our community has jumped at the chance of exploring whole new realms. One user built a gesture recognition system made of cardboard, another added smart detection to a pet door to always know if their cat was home or not, and another yet came up with a great tool to always know what song is playing. Not to mention the possibilities for advanced animationslike this one – inspired by Bad Apple – developed thanks to the LED matrix right on the UNO R4.
Is a 32-bit MCU always better than an 8-bit?
The short answer is, no. We believe the best solution is always determined by the requirements of the project at hand: bigger, faster, more powerful or more expensive is not always better.
8-bit microcontrollers process data in 8-bit chunks, which limits the size of numbers they can handle directly to values between 0 and 255 (or -127 and 128). This limitation makes them best suited for applications with minimal data processing needs, such as basic tasks like toggling LEDs or controlling simple sensors. However, they also tend to be more affordable and to consume less power, making hardware design less expensive, and have a simpler architecture, which translates to easier programming. So, if you are still learning the basics and need the most straightforward tool, or you are tackling a project with minimal requirements, an 8-bit MCU is not only all you need, but probably your best option.
On the other hand, if you need to work on much larger numbers and perform data-heavy calculations, 32-bit microcontrollers can handle advanced applications like image processing and real-time analytics. The difference is not just 4-fold going from 8 to 32: it’s a huge jump from 255 to 4,294,967,295! Almost by definition, any solution that requires this kind of performance will be more complex to design and program, require more memory, and consume more power, often affecting battery life. The upside, of course, is the incredible potential of what you can achieve!
Compatibility and transitioning from UNO Rev3 to UNO R4
If you already have experience with the UNO Rev3 and are considering the R4, but have concerns about compatibility, rest assured: they have the same form factor, pinout, and 5V operating voltage. This makes it easy to transfer accessories such as shields from one to the other.
On the software side, tutorials and projects are often compatible. We have even created a GitHub repository where you can check compatibility for libraries with the new R4 (and even help us update information or add new R4-friendly versions). This is part of the effort we share with our community to make sure that transitioning to the UNO R4 – if you choose to do so – is as seamless as possible.
Which Arduino UNO should I choose?
UNO Rev3
UNO R4
• Best for beginners or those working on foundational projects.
• Great for educational settings, where understanding core programming concepts and hardware interactions are the focus.
• Ideal if you need a reliable, budget-friendly, no-frills board with vast project resources available online.
• Perfect for advanced users or beginners looking to push boundaries with more complex projects.
• Best for IoT, data-intensive, or networked applications that require more processing power.
• A smart choice if you’re experimenting with new peripherals like CAN bus, DAC, or Wi-Fi/Bluetooth connectivity.
Choose your UNO and start creating!
Whether you choose the classic UNO Rev3 or the more recent UNO R4, you’re joining a global community of makers, educators, and inventors who love to create. Both boards offer incredible opportunities, each tailored to different stages and styles of making. Ready to dive into a new project? Buy your next UNO and discover limitless possibilities!
We are excited to announce that the Arduino Cloud now supports the UNO R4 WiFi board, providing makers with seamless connectivity and enhanced features.
Building upon the recent release of the much-anticipated UNO R4 in our store, this new integration significantly amplifies the capabilities of the Arduino Cloud. The UNO R4 WiFi is a revolutionary addition to the Arduino family, combining the widely popular UNO R3 form factor with built-in WiFi connectivity. It is perfect for all users, from beginners to experts, wanting to explore the forefront of innovation and IoT projects creation.
How to connect UNO R4 WiFi to Arduino Cloud
With the Arduino Cloud, connecting your UNO R4 WiFi board becomes a breeze. Our user-friendly interface and intuitive workflows ensure a smooth setup process. To get started, follow our usual “Add a device” workflow:
Navigate to the Devices section and click on “Add Device.” Your board will be detected automatically.
The workflow will guide you through updating the connectivity firmware to ensure compatibility.
Once the update is complete, your UNO R4 WiFi is ready to be managed from the Arduino Cloud.
UNO R4 WiFi + Arduino Cloud = Unleash your creativity
Develop from anywhere using the web editor, share your sketches with your colleagues and friends, create dashboards to monitor and control your devices remotely from a browser or your mobile phone, share information between multiple devices, or integrate seamlessly your devices with Alexa.
About Arduino Cloud
The Arduino Cloud is the next exciting journey for IoT enthusiasts to bring their projects to life quickly. It is an all-in-one intuitive IoT platform, supporting a wide range of hardware and backed by the vibrant Arduino community. Arduino Cloud removes complexity to empower users from all levels of expertise to create from anywhere, control and share their projects with stunning dashboards.
Sign up for Arduino Cloud now and unleash the full potential of your UNO R4 WiFi board!
The first Arduino UNO was launched back in 2005, with a clear purpose to allow everyone who had an idea to make it possible through a simple and open interface.
Many years have passed, technology has evolved, but we never forgot that initial thrill that came from opening up countless possibilities to so many makers.
The Arduino Make Your UNO Kit is the natural extension of a story that will shape the makers of tomorrow, a step in the past to move forward in a brilliant future.
The Arduino Make Your UNO Kit is a 3×1 experience in which the user learns the basics of electronics, gets familiar with soldering, and finally builds a synth with the included shield and upcycled packaging.
The Arduino Make Your UNO Kit experience is unique: you’ll be able to build an Arduino UNO from scratch, assembling every component, and familiarizing yourself with circuits and electronics.
A complete online guide with a 3D viewer makes it easy and fun to follow, even for an absolute beginner. Never soldered before? No worries, a practice PCB is included to test and improve your soldering skills! There’s a debugger to check your board functions properly once it’s been assembled.
There’s even a white space on the back of the board to show who it belongs to, adding to the truly personalized experience!
After the learning, comes the fun part — the unique nature of Arduino Make Your UNO Kit is not just from the assembly. At the end of the process, you’ll have in your hands a full functioning synthesizer to create tunes to your own individual beat.
The Arduino Make Your UNO Kit is also the very first of a series of more sustainable production: the packaging comes in FSC certified paper, and converts into the container for the synth. Plus, even the practice solder board can be readily used as a keychain to minimize waste.
Whether you are a beginner, a passionate maker, or a curious musician, the Arduino Make Your UNO Kit is the perfect gift for a 100% fun guaranteed experience (treating yourself is allowed)!
Home for the holidays? This is the perfect time to make something!
The Arduino Project Hub offers around 6,000 projects for levels: each tutorial includes detailed assembling instructions and the Arduino code. We have selected the top five Arduino projects for beginners; you don’t need a degree in engineering — these are an easy and safe way to express your creativity, and entertain yourself and your loved ones).
Otto by Camillo Carlo Palacio is a little robot that walks, dances, makes sounds, and avoids obstacles thanks to a Nano Every, a micro servo motor, and a buzzer.
Always lose count while exercising? The team of Mod Natao, Peter Ma, Sarah Han, and Kevin Vo has come up with a solution! This setup works with an Uno, a WiFi Shield, and a proximity sensor to track your push-ups.
This basic security device by Ivan is based on an Uno along with an ultrasonic sensor that detects objects or eagerly awaited guests in an indoor environment via ultrasonic waves.
Have some leftover boxes? Here’s an idea! Ryan Chan minimalistic robotic arm is constructed out of cardboard, and powered by an Uno, a micro servo, and a potentiometer. It’s capable of recording and replaying five positions.
According to this project’s write-up, while some struggle to get enough nourishment, those in more developed countries often aspire to consume too little food. As an apparent commentary on this situation, Niklas Roy and Kati Hyyppä have created a mechatronic game called J’ai faim!, French for “I’m hungry!”
In this Arduino-controlled game, participants rotate a Barbie head to point her comically over-sized tongue over a piece of sushi lit up by an LED. When in position, the player fires her solenoid-actuated tongue using the joystick, and if the correct sushi is eaten the score progresses from “starving” to “well fed.”
You can see the game—reminiscent of a very strange version of whack-a-mole—in the video below.
Notable Board Books are an Arduino-powered way to enjoy music
Arduino Team — August 6th, 2018
Annelle Rigsby found that her mother, who suffers from Alzheimer’s, is delighted to hear familiar songs. While Annelle can’t always be there to help her enjoy music, she and her husband Mike came up with what they call the Notable Board Book that automatically plays tunes.
The book itself is well laid-out, with song text and familiar photos printed on the pages. Electronics for the book are in a prototype state using an Arduino Uno and an Adafruit Sound Board to store and replay the audio bits.
Page detection is handled by an array of photocells, and it is meant to turn on automatically when picked up via a series of tilt switches. When a switch is triggered, a relay can then hold the book on until the song that is playing is done, or for a predetermined amount of time.
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