Electronics Resources
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Resources for Learning about Electronics
Introduction
This page will talk about resources for learning about electronics in general. This information will be able to apply to all your future interactions with the modern world - with a solid foundation to better understand the technologies which built that world.
It is also useful for FRC, which is likely what brought us together here.
If your main purpose here is to look for reference materials for using FRC equpment ( such as motor controllers, pneumatics, and motors, with or without the roborio ) specifically; visit the page FRC Electronics Equipment for guides and reference materials.
Where to get started?
Before we can talk intelligently about using electricity, we need a common language to speak in.
So to begin, we must have an idea of what is the meaning of the electrical terminology of voltage, current, resistance, and power.
Once we understand that - we can then talk about how ohm’s law and watt’s law govern how they interact with eachother.
These concepts will still be very abstract, but will give the foundation for us to distinguish between
Direct Current and Alternating Current electronics. (of which we will focus on the former for now)
All this - so that we can now talk about the electronic components which make up circuits, tying it all together.
With this solid basis of understanding, you will have the tools necessary to build electronic projects and begin to master the art of troubleshooting
Great Educational Resources
To learn more about the PHYSICS of electricity:
- https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/what-is-electricity/all
To learn more about electronics projects in general:
- https://www.sparkfun.com/engineering_essentials
- https://learn.adafruit.com/
To find cool projects:
- https://hackaday.com/
Free, Extremely Advanced, University Level Courses & Resources:
- https://www.edx.org/learn/electronics
Electronics Journey, Level 1: Sparky
Terminology:
- Voltage, Current, Power, Resistance
Resistance
SI Symbol: R
SI Unit : Ohm ( Ω )
- A measure of how ‘hard’ an electron must ‘push’ to move through a material
- Sort of ‘friction’ for electrons
- Materials with very low resistance pass electricity easily, and are known as conductors
- A measure of how much of the energy in the electrons is converted to heat in a conductor
Conductors
- Conductors are the term for materials which have low resistance to electrical flow.
- All materials will conduct electricity, given the proper conditions.
- Conductors refer to materials which are chosen to intentionally conduct electricity due to their properties.
- Typically, gold is known as the best conductor you would run into, followed by silver and copper.
- Most metals conduct electricity, but are poor conductors compared to copper.
- Salt water, Metals, Some gasses, and human flesh are all fairly good conductors.
Insulators
- Insulators are materials that have high resistance to electricity.
- Air, Ceramics, Wood, and Pure water, and human skin- are all usually known as insulators since they conduct electricity poorly.
Voltage
SI Symbol: E
SI Unit : Volt ( V )
“The Electromotive Force”
- How hard can each electron push?
- Measure of Potential Energy
- A Measure of energy difference
- Determines how much work each electron can do.
- Determines how much insulation a conductor must have to be safe to touch.
Current
SI Symbol: I
SI Unit : Ampere ( A )
How many electrons are there?
- A measure of the amount of electrons passing a given point per second.
- Determines how thick a conductor must be before it will start to get hot.
Power
SI Symbol: P
SI Unit : Watt ( W )
Formulae :
- I * E = P
aka
- V * A * W
aka
- Voltage * Current = Wattage
aka
- Volts * Amps = Watts
“The amount of work you can do is a combination of how many electrons there are, and how hard they are pushing.”
Basic Laws of how Electricity Behaves
Ohm’s Law
[!]Ohm’s Law Formula [!]Ohm’s Law Formula
Ohm’s law states that the current through a conductor between two points is directly proportional to the voltage across the two points.
Voltage = Resistance * Amperage
- Watt’s Power Law
Watt = Amp *
Do you want to know more?:
To learn more about the PHYSICS of electricity:
- https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/what-is-electricity/all
To learn more about electronics projects in general:
- https://www.sparkfun.com/engineering_essentials
- https://learn.adafruit.com/
To find cool projects:
- https://hackaday.com/
Free, Extremely Advanced, University Level Courses & Resources:
- https://www.edx.org/learn/electronics