MORSE CODE - HARNESSING ELECTRICITY TO COMMUNICATE

July 01, 2020

HARNESSING ELECTRICITY TO COMMUNICATE - MORSE CODE

Morse code is based on name of its inventor Samuel Morse and was used first in 1844. For well over 100 years it was extensively used for communication including during the World War 1 and World War 2.

UNDERSTANDING MORSE CODE

Here is a video to understand the Morse Code and you can also try a few android apps to get the hang of Morse Code

STARTING THE PROJECT

An excellent resource to understand the Morse Code and execute this project of harnessing electricity to communicate is via the Microsoft Education Workshop site https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/education/education-workshop/telegraph.aspx

Collecting materials for the project was super cool. It's mostly available online via Amazon or other web portals. A simple Google search and would suffice. I used an Arduino Uno micro controller for the project but you can use a Microbit micro controller also.

PROCESS

Lets get started.....first and foremost we need to make a Switch which will act as the input for the Analog Morse Code machine. It was easy to make and is a simple electric circuit. But my first switch was flimsy and needed to be redone. A commercial switch can also be used would be better

Electromagnet was made using a screw and copper coil by me but if the concept is understood then this step can be skipped altogether

Making the speaker was interesting; I got to know the principle behind how a speaker actually works. If your speaker doesn't work then you can try increasing the number of coils of copper wire or/and utilising a magnet bigger in size. This will increase the intensity of the magnetic current and the speaker would then be efficient

Now our Analog Morse Code machine is ready....you can try sending a few messages

Finally now we come to completing the circuit and making a Digital Morse Code machine using the Arduino Uno. Connect the Morse Code circuit using an Arduino UNO with the computer. Launch the Morse Code spreadsheet application and enjoy sending receiving Morse messages. Just one more thing.... I had to upgrade my basic Microsoft Office version to Office 360 for enabling data streaming in excel using Arduino.