In this post I will discuss about Top 10 Best Simulators for Arduino. The most popular software for simulating the circuits and embedded systems based on the Arduino microcontroller development board. In my previous posts I have discussed and involved the simulation of the Arduino based circuits in which I was used the Proteus software as the simulation software. Here in this post I will discuss about other useful software for simulating the Arduino based embedded systems.
After reading this post you will learn the importance of the simulation and about the commonly used software for simulating Arduino based systems. So sit back, keep reading and enjoy learning.[otw_is sidebar=otw-sidebar-2]
What is Simulation?
Before diving deep into the discussion on to the Simulation software let us first learn what is meant by simulation? Speaking broadly, simulation means to imitate the behavior of the circuit. In other words simulation means to analyze the behavior of the circuit using the software without actually implementing it in the Physical form.
Simulation Models:
Simulation model is an important concept in the discussion of simulation because just like the way that the electronic components are the building blocks of the electrical circuit the simulation models are the building blocks of the circuit for simulation. Every component that is be used in the circuit whose simulation is to be performed must be associated to the well-designed simulation model. The simulation model of the electronic component compliances the information about the behavior of the electronic component. If you want to use any component in your circuit for simulation you must make sure that the simulation model of that component is present in the library of the software. The simulation models of some of the commonly used components are usually present in almost every software by default.[otw_is sidebar=otw-sidebar-3]
Advantages of Simulation:
It is always beneficial to simulate the circuit before you develop the hardware of the system physically. By simulating the system one can easily look for any glitches in the code or error in the circuit of the system which can save your both time and money.
Top Ten Arduino Simulators:
It would no exaggeration if I mention that Arduino microcontroller development board is the most commonly and widely used development board among the students and hobbyists. There are a wide variety of applications in which we can employ the Arduino to serve the purpose. In addition to this a large number of sensors and actuators are available which can easily be interfaced with the Arduino development board. This wide availability of Arduino and its peripheral eases the embedded designers to develop the prototype of their product. But as we saw in the previous section that it is always beneficial that you simulate the system before its hardware development. So in order to serve this purpose a large number of Arduino simulators are available online. Here I am discussing only a few of them. It is important to mention here that I strongly recommend the Proteus as the standard software for simulating the Arduino microcontroller boards.
Arduino Simulator
The list of the Top 10 Best Simulators for Arduino is shown in the following.
- Paul Ware’s Arduino simulator.
- Simduino.
- ArduinoSim
- Arduino Simulator for PC.
- Emulare Arduino simulator.
- Simulator for Arduino.
- Autodesk Eagle.
- Proteus.
- Autodesk Circuits.
- Virtronics Simulator for Arduino
Notice here that the list is arranged at random and the numbering has nothing to do with the ranking or popularity of the Simulators. Let us have brief introduction of each of the simulators.
Paul Ware’s Arduino Simulator
The simulator is named after the man who developed it that is Paul Ware. It is very easy to use Arduino simulator which has built in library for most of the sensors and actuators. The simulator has a user friendly graphical user interface and you can easily manipulate the changes in the Arduino and its sensors and actuators to realize the working code and circuit.
SimDuino:
SimDuino is another simulator for simulating the code and circuit based on the Arduino development board. This Arduino simulator is paid and is designed to operate on the Apple devices. With the help of this simulator you can learn about the coding and electronics that is used in the Arduino project development.
arduino sim simulator
ArduinoSim:
It is also the useful simulator for simulating the Arduino code and hardware based on Arduino microcontroller development. It provides a good platform and a user friendly learning environment. You can have good learning experience using this Arduino simulator as it allows to easily manipulate the circuit and code. ArduinoSim is not the open source and has a good amount of users. It was created using Python which is commonly used language and has a wide database available online. ArduinoSim is totally free and easily downloaded.
Arduino Simulator for PC:
This simulator is also among the best Arduino simulators. It has all the benefits and advantages that all the Arduino Simulators have. It has its base on both Windows and Linux. This Arduino simulator allows the user to use any type of Arduino development board that is Arduino UNO, Arduino MEGA,Arduino nano etc also it can simulate the code and hardware for the liquid circuit display.
Emulare Arduino Simulator:
This Arduino simulator stands at prominent among other Simulators due t0 its unique features. This Arduino Simulator is capable of simulating multiple projects in the Arduino without any issue that is you can carry out various functions using this Simulator simultaneously. Another plus point of this simulator is that it can be used with either Windows or Linux.
Simulator for Arduino:
This Arduino simulator is developed by the Virtronics and is used by many students and hobbyists. It serves as the good teaching platform for students and beginners who want to learn about coding and circuit designing.
Autodesk Eagle:
Although all of the above mentioned Arduino simulators have their own specific design and use but Autodesk Eagle enjoys the best position among all the Arduino simulators as it is recommended software by many of the experts. Autodesk is also the standard simulation software that can also be used to design the printed circuit boards. Although you need to download the simulation model of the Arduino for this Software but the simulation files are readily available online so that is not an issue.
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Arduino Proteus Simulator:
Among other Arduino simulators Proteus also holds very unique position. This software can also be used for Printed circuit board designing. Although you need to download the simulation model files for this software but these are readily available online so that is not an issue. The bloggers of ProjectIoT123.com recommend this software as they have fully mature tutorials for this software.
Autodesk Circuits:
Autodesk circuits like the Proteus is also very popular among the engineers and students. This software is not only used for Arduino simulation but also can be used for passive and active electronic circuit simulations.
Virtronics Simulator for Arduino:
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It is also the popular Arduino simulator used by many engineers and students. It provides a user friendly platform for learning and designing Arduino based circuits. This circuit is also used for learning the coding.
That is all for now. In the next posts I will come up more interesting applications of the Arduino and Proteus. Till then stay connected, keep reading and enjoy learning.
Top 10 Best Simulators for Arduino:
Arduino pro mini
Arduino Duemilanove[otw_is sidebar=otw-sidebar-3]
Arduino
Arduino