Digital Sandbox

Don't want to muck around with jumper wires or loose components and instead go straight to the code? Say no more for the Digital Sandbox by Sparkfun is here to save the day!

The Digital Sandbox (DS) is a great way to jump into electronics with little to no experience required while still learning all the basics of microcontroller programming and electronics interaction. It is equipped with everything, on board, that you will need to complete 13 experiments including controlling an LED, measuring how loud things are, detecting what the temperature is, and more.

By interfacing the Sandbox to your computer, you have full access to the Arduino programming environment as well as the "blocky" arduino add-on known as Ardublock. This easy to use computer program puts microcontroller programming in the hands of even the youngest electronics enthusiast. Instead of hand writing code, you can simply drag and drop code blocks to make the Sandbox do what you wish.

The expertly written Digital Sandbox Guide (included) walks you step by step through how to setup and program each experiment with full example code and troubleshooting tips if something goes wrong. The kit does not require any soldering and is recommended for beginners ages 8 and up.

Note: There are three additional circuit experiments included in the DS Guide that will require the Digital Sandbox Add-On pack.

Circuit Experiments:

• Circuit 1: Exploring Blink
• Circuit 2: Multi-Blink
• Circuit 3: Dimming (the Hard Way)
• Circuit 4: Dimming (the Easy Way)
• Circuit 5: Color Mixing
• Circuit 6: Number Storage with Variables
• Circuit 7: If This, Then That
• Circuit 8: The Reaction Tester
• Circuit 9: Serial Calculator
• Circuit 10: Do the Analog Slide
• Circuit 11: Automatic Night Light
• Circuit 12: Thermal Alert!
• Circuit 13: Sound Detecting

Included in Kit:

• 1x Digital Sandbox Board
• 1x Clear Acrylic Baseplate
• 1x USB Mini-B Cable - 6ft
• 1x Instruction Manual
• 4x Phillips Machine Screw - 4-40, 3/8"
• 4x Standoff - 4-40, 3/8"

Included on Board:

• LED Bar Graph
• Slide Switch
• Temperature Sensor
• Light Sensor
• RGB LED
• Slide Potentiometer
• Microphone
• Push Button
• 3-pin Add-On Header

Links:

• Experiment Guide
• Experiment Guide (Arduino Companion)

ArduBlock & Digital Sandbox Examples:

• Windows
• Mac OS X
• GitHub (Example Code & Design Files)
• Product Video

• [Schematic]: Digital Sandbox Schematic - May 2012
• [Documentation]: Eagle Files
• [Documentation]: Digital Sandbox Guide