What Is Ledunia?
Simply put, Ledunia is a compact development board encased in the plastic housing that can be used in rapid prototyping of various IoT devices, owing to its integrated Wi-Fi module. For this, it employs an ESP8622 microcontroller unit - a go-to MCU for when you need to add a wireless support to your device. The board also includes full TCP/IP stack, which enables updating your program on-the-fly without having to plug the Ledunia into your computer.
With Ledunia, you can not only make prototypes of simple things like smart lamps or smart plugs but also full-fledged programmable multi-sensor thermostats or even Wi-Fi range extenders by attaching specific sensors or a Wi-Fi antenna to the board. Your imagination is the limit here.
Breaking Language Barriers
This microcontroller unit has a USB plug to hook it up to your PC or laptop. It’s worth mentioning that you don’t have to install any drivers on your computer to let it recognize the Ledunia because this software is already on board. As for the language support, it is fully compatible with Arduino IDE and Java. But it doesn’t stop there. The board also recognizes Micro Python, Java Processing, Basic, Lua, Mongoose OS, and, of course, Javascript.
Furthermore, the free Arduino knowledge database contains the libraries on almost every modern IoT sensor that you can hook up to the Ledunia, which widens the spectrum of the board’s applicability in IoT development even further.
What's on the Plate?
Let's take a closer look inside the Ledunia. Its 2.54 mm grid dimensions allow you to take the board out of its plastic casing and pair it up with most of the standard breadboards. Thanks to this, you can either start a new project using only this MCU board or complement an existing one with it.
Additionally, when the Wi-Fi stack is on, it takes only 20% of the processing power, which was made possible due to the integrated low-power 32-bit CPU (80-160 Mhz) processor. Another vivid difference from any comparable MCU boards is that Ledunia is equipped with 32 MB chip, offering you more memory for more complex tasks and designs.
This board features female controllers. Therefore, you can easily attach several sensors or a display to it for achieving your goal in creating a properly working prototype or even a complete product to show the investors or stakeholders.
If you are interested in such device, you may be happy to know that the Ledunia project on Kickstarter has already been fully funded by 192 backers. Yet, the estimated shipping date of the complete product is planned for August 2017. Thus, you still have time to contact the Ledunia team and find out how you can order your own copy.