Roadmap to learn electronics
Before diving into learning, understanding the roadmap is crucial. However, it’s essential first to explore the various fields within electronics. This knowledge will help you determine your area of interest.
There are two parts of electronics.
- Hardware
- Software (Embedded electronics)
Now, let’s delve into those topics.
1. Hardware
Hardware is the backbone of any electronic system. Designing hardware is the first step in creating a functional electronic system. There are two types of electronic circuits.
- Analog circuit - Deals with analog voltages. These circuits mainly contain resistors, capacitors, inductors, diodes, transistors, etc. We can not run software on these circuits. We need to program their functionality by controlling the voltage levels of different components or using other methods. One good example of an analog circuit is a power converter (Like a DC-DC buck/boost converter). These circuits can't run software although they can be programmed to some extent by choosing the component values wisely, having feedback, etc.
- Digital circuit - A Digital circuit deals with only two levels of voltage, which we call zero and one or true and false. These circuits mainly contain logic gates, transistors, diodes, etc. We can run software on these circuits if they have a memory element and a CPU. A digital circuit without memory or a CPU will do the only job it was made for.
A circuit can contain a mixture of analog and digital parts. However, to interface an analog circuit with a digital circuit, we need a special mechanism called an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and a digital-to-analog converter (DAC).
2. Software
The software consists of instructions and data in a predefined structure, which are stored in memory in binary format. To run software, hardware must have some kind of memory (e.g., flash, magnetic tape, hard disks, etc.) and a central processing unit (CPU). The CPU reads the instructions from memory and operates on the data.
Some devices, such as microcontrollers and microprocessors, have memory and CPU. However, microprocessors only have a CPU, and we need to add memory externally. Now that you know how to design an embedded system, you first need to create a circuit. So, we will first learn how to design a circuit.
If you are a complete beginner and don't even know how electricity works, follow these steps.
Steps Involved in Designing Circuit
- Proper power supply: Plan an appropriate power supply. You need to understand the circuit's voltage and current requirements.
- Circuit Functionality and Features: Decide the circuit's functionality behavior under different cases.
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