CS 353 Fall 2025 Syllabus Labs/Projects

Lab Goals Part 1: Buttons Part 2: Calculations Part 3: Speaker Check-in Start Project

Lab 3: Parallel Piano	Goals Wire 7 buttons with different resistors in parallel into 1 analog input. Use a voltage divider to differentiate between different button presses. Calculate the V_out that will be produced for each button. Differentiate between button presses and play a different tone with each button.
Part 1: Buttons in Parallel	Button in Parallel This circuit is designed to produce a different voltage for each button because each button is in series with a different resistor. Build the circuit Follow the circuit diagram provided. Hint: The power rails (2 vertical columns) do not need to be used for power & ground. Program the Arduino Program your Arduino to read from A0 and print the signal to Serial. Press different buttons. You should see a different value for each button.
Part 2: Calculations	Voltage Divider A voltage divider is a passive circuit which produces a V_out which is a fraction of the V_in. In this lab we will be using a voltage divider to differentiate between different button presses. Calculate expected values For each button's resistor, calculate the V_out. Do your calculated values align with your analog read values? For more information about conversion see the documentation on analogRead() Program the Arduino Program the arduino to print the specific resistor value associated with a button when it is pressed. Resistors in Parallel Draw what the circuit would look like if two buttons pressed. Determine the equation to describe V_out if two buttons were pressed. Use this chapter for more information about resistors in parallel. Resistors in Series and Parallel Chapter Include this in your check-in.
Part 3: Speaker	Piezo Electric Buzzer Piezo elements convert vibration to voltage or voltage to vibration. They can be used as a buzzer for making beeps, tones and alerts and can be used it as a sensor, to detect fast movements like knocks. It's rated for up to 12Vpp use but you can also use 5V square waves. Build the circuit Follow the circuit diagram provided. Program the Arduino Use the tone() function to produce a different note frequency (A-G) for each button. Turn off the tone when no buttons are being pressed with noTone(). Here is a reference that includes constants for each note. .
Check-in	Check-in The goal is for you to have the keyboard working by the check-in. It's okay if you don't, just submit a check-in (video&doc) of what you have done so far and you'll receive 75% on the check-in (-2.5% of your project grade). You can only turn in extensions if your check-in is ontime and complete. Submit your code on Filer Submit your arduino code in a folder titled `[your username]_L03` (with your colby username, mine would be `hewolfe_L03`) on filer in the folder `/Courses/CS353_A_FA/<your username>/Private/Labs/`. Submit a video and Check-in document on Google Classroom Upload a 0.5-2 minute Documentation Video with narration. Show that while you are pressing a button the associated note plays. Show that when you stop pressing a button the note stops. Describe what is happening. Attach a Google Doc Check-in which includes: A header with your name, your partner's name, the date and a title. Photo of circuit: Clear photo of the circuit in which the wiring is clearly visible, wired correctly. Video Description Paragraph: 2-5 sentences describing what is happening in the video. If complete: How does it work? If incomplete: What is the current issue? Where are you stuck? V_out Calculations Discussion: How did the values you calculated for V_out align with the values you read from A0? Derivation an equation for V_out when two buttons are pressed at the same time. Project Idea: 2-5 sentences describing an idea for a project that incorporates the piezo element (as an input or output device) with the IR sensor and/or the vibrating motor. (Button, potentiometer, and red LED are optional). What is it? What materials would you need? How would you implement it?
Start Project	Registers, Interrupts and PWM For this project's reading watch these three videos on Registers, External Interrupts and Timer Interrupts. Introduction to Registers Introduction to External Interrupts Introduction to Timer Interrupts Helpful Reference: ATmega328P Datasheet