How to Shrink your Arduino Projects - AAduino

2016-05-09 | By Maker.io Staff

Arduino

Johan Kanflo, an avid tinkerer has been using Atmel’s ATmega328 for quite some time as an ISM radio node. Whilst his prototypes were working well using a breadboard they were not very deployable into the real world. Johan decided to design a suitable circuit, no bigger than a AA battery to be fitted into a battery compartment box alongside 2x AA batteries to power it.

Figure 1: AAduino RFM69C module

The AAduino is a wireless Arduino clone the size of an AA battery with additional keystone battery terminals for power. The board itself is powered by an ATMega328p running at 8MHz and is fitted with an RFM69C wireless module, there is also room for two DS18B20 temperature sensors and a LED. Johan has managed to pack a lot into this tiny package, the size of an AA battery.

Figure 2: AAduino inside 3x AA battery box

The AAduino is fully software compatible with the Arduino IDE and is a primary example of how to shrink your Arduino projects into to a tiny form factor, using some initiative and creativity. Although the AAduino is small form factor it is not smallest version out there, be sure to check out other small form factors from Tiny circuits.

Figure 3: AAduino battery pack

You can get all the Cad files, Bill of materials (BOM), and the Arduino IDE code on Johan’s GitHub Page.

Check out DigiKey's range of ATTiny DIP package IC’s, if your projects do not require a larger amount of input and output then these are perfect for prototyping on your breadboards.