mikeexplorer posted:I would think programming it may have some similarities to ladder logic and I might be able to help.
Mike: Ladder logic is an old school method of industrial programming with relays; 2 in series for AND, 2 in parallel for OR. I realize that they still use ladder logic for modern PLC (programmable logic controllers) systems but that's because they didn't want to have to change things over when they had so much invested in the older technology. That and the fact that the transition most likely involved both older equipment along with the new. It's odd that ladder logic is still used in industrial control environments.
The Arduino (pronounced: ard - as in aardvark, ui - as in ween from Haloween, and no - as in no meaning negative) is much less restrictive. Of course it does involve logic but the mechanisms of the programming language are much more open.
The Arduino uses a version of the "C++" programming language that came from the older "C" language developed at Bell Labs. C++ is an object oriented language that allows for the creation of new entities that have common functionality. For example: you can create an LED object that can have methods to change its state like so:
#define LED_PIN 13
LED myLed(LED_PIN);
myLed.on();
delay(1000);
myLed.off();
These objects in the Arduino world are refered to as a "library". There are a number of libraries already available for the Arduino including a Servo library (as described here).
There's a lot more to it but I think you've got the idea. There are plenty of books, videos, etc about the Arduino platform as well as the C++ programming language. You might want to give them a try.
-- Leo
