Gearbox Labs has worked with all of the sensors on this page. Many appear in one or more of our publications.

Links to the sensor on our store are included. After each sensor are some ideas that would be great science or engineering fair ideas.

Electricity Control

  • Resistors - Control the flow of current so you don't pop an LED or fry another component. 220 Ohms is the most often used in Arduino projects, but there are others like 100 Ohm and 4.7 kOhm to have around. Store Link
  • Potentiometer - Just like the dimmer switch on the wall to set the mood, the potentiometer is a variable resistor that can be used for brightness controls, volume control, servo motion control and more. 10k is the standard. Store Link
  • Flex Sensor - This sensor is also a variable resistor but uses a different action to generate electrical resistance. This sensor is used in control gloves to interact with robotic hands and arms. Store Link
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Microcontrollers

  • Uno - This is the original microcontroller. Perfect for starting out with just enough connections to do most starter projects. Add a shield for easier builds. Store Link - Uno Only | Store Link Uno with IO Shield | Store Link Add-on Prototyping Shield
  • ESP32 WROOM 32D Dev Kit C An Arduino compatible microcontroller with Bluetooth (both BLE and Standard) and Wi-Fi. This includes a breadboard-friendly feather board to make prototyping fast and easier. 4 megabytes of onboard storage make this microcontroller even more powerful. This is the microcontroller of choice for our IoT and STEM Data curricula. Store Link
  • ESP32 32E - Firebeetle The next generation of ESP32 from DFRobot. Features pin headers for fast connections without a breadboard. Store Link
  • Leonardo - A faster microcontroller than the Uno with more connection pins. Includes the Xbee socket for IoT upgrades. Store Link
  • Mega - Do you need an Uno friendly board but with more pins than we can count (just kidding). The Mega is a familiar board with Uno capabilities and form factor but with a ton of digital and analog pins. Store Link
  • ESP32 LoRa - this is a microcontroller with Bluetooth (Both kinds), Wi-Fi and a LoRa radio. LoRa is a lower data rate radio that can connect at distanced up to 50 km. It can be programmed just like the Uno but has these connectivity capabilities built in. 

Camera

  • Husky Lens AI Camera System - A great camera system friendly to a variety of machine learning codes. Store Link

Motion

  • Servo - These slower and more controlled motion devices are often used in robotic arms or for precise controlled movement of wheels and gears. There are two types of servos limited rotation and continuous. The limited rotation servo can only move back and forth over a limited range of usually 180 degrees. The continuous rotation servo can move forward or backward in an unlimited number of rotations but is usually much slower and therefore more precise than the DC Motor. Store Link
  • DC Motor- Electrical machine that converts electrical energy into circular movement and mechanical energy. Often the rotations are very quick and are measured in 10s, 100s, or even 1000s of revolutions per minute. Best of quick, sustained movement forward or backward. Store Link
  • Fan - A variation of the DC Motor that has blades attached to help circulate air. We use two fans, a .02-amp fan that can be used with the Uno without a transistor or a .04-amp fan that needs a transistor to work with Uno projects. Store Link
  • 2N2222 Transistor- Used for general purpose low-power amplifying or switching applications. Often used with a motor or fan Store Link
  • DRV8833 Driver- Bidirectional control of DC motors. This provides greater control of the DC motor for wheels and gears. Store Link
  • Robotic Car - A great two motor mini-car for building small robots. Pair this with the DRV8833 and zoom, zoom. Store Link
  • Water Pump - Uses a DC motor to pump water from a reservoir to another location. Often used in greenhouses to water plants or circulate nutrients. Store Link

Sensors

Disclaimer. The sensors are meant to be used for prototyping, informational, and demonstration purposes only. The sensors are not meant to be used as replacements for certified professional sensors that have been independently tested and certified for use in health and safety applications.