Tutorial 10 – Using an LCD with Arduino

Welcome back to the CraftedTech Engineering Arduino tutorial series! In this tutorial, we’ll explore how to use an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) with Arduino. LCDs are a great way to display text, numbers, or sensor data in your projects, and adding one to your project can make it more interactive.

🔌 What You’ll Need

1 Arduino Board (e.g., Arduino UNO)
1 16x2 LCD Display (with I2C adapter)
Jumper wires
Breadboard (optional)
USB cable for Arduino

You can order the required components here:

🧠 What Is an LCD?

An LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) is a screen that can display alphanumeric characters and sometimes graphics. With the 16x2 LCD, you can display 2 lines of text, each with 16 characters. It’s widely used in Arduino projects for its ease of use and ability to present real-time data.

In this tutorial, we’ll use an I2C LCD which simplifies wiring and makes it easier to interface with the Arduino by using only two data pins: SDA (data) and SCL (clock).

🧾 Step-by-Step Instructions

🔧 Step 1: Wiring the LCD

Connect the VCC pin of the LCD to the 5V pin on Arduino.
Connect the GND pin of the LCD to the GND pin on Arduino.
Connect the SDA pin of the LCD to A4 (on Arduino UNO).
Connect the SCL pin of the LCD to A5 (on Arduino UNO).

💻 Step 2: Arduino Code to Display Text

#include <Wire.h>
#include <LiquidCrystal_I2C.h>

// Set the LCD address (0x27 is typical for most I2C LCDs)
LiquidCrystal_I2C lcd(0x27, 16, 2);

void setup() {
  lcd.begin();           // Initialize the LCD
  lcd.backlight();       // Turn on the backlight

  // Print a message to the LCD
  lcd.setCursor(0, 0);   // Set cursor to the first line
  lcd.print("Hello, World!");
  lcd.setCursor(0, 1);   // Set cursor to the second line
  lcd.print("CraftedTech!");
}

void loop() {
  // You can add code here to update the LCD in real-time if needed
}

🔍 Code Breakdown

Wire.h: Library to communicate with I2C devices.
LiquidCrystal_I2C.h: Library to interface with I2C LCDs.
lcd.begin(): Initializes the LCD.
lcd.setCursor(): Sets the cursor’s position on the screen.
lcd.print(): Prints text on the LCD.

🧪 Try This!

Try modifying the text and position it on different rows and columns.
Use sensor data to display real-time values (e.g., temperature, humidity, etc.).

🛠️ Troubleshooting Tips

Ensure you’ve installed the LiquidCrystal_I2C and Wire libraries: Sketch > Include Library > Manage Libraries > Search for "LiquidCrystal_I2C".
Double-check the wiring, especially the SDA and SCL pins.
If the display is blank, try adjusting the contrast potentiometer on the I2C module.

🧭 What You Learned in This Tutorial

✔️ How to wire and use an I2C LCD with Arduino
✔️ How to display text on an LCD using the LiquidCrystal_I2C library
✔️ How to use setCursor() and print() to control the LCD output
✔️ How to troubleshoot common LCD issues

📌 Next Up: Tutorial 11 – Using Buttons with Arduino

In our next tutorial, we will show you how to use push buttons with Arduino to control various functions in your projects. Buttons are an essential component for user interaction!

📣 Don’t forget to follow CraftedTech Engineering for more hands-on tutorials and project ideas!

🔗 Website: craftedtechengineering.com
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