Arduino project · LEDs and lights · Medium
Button Brightness Steps (Off, Low, Medium, High)
Each press makes the lamp brighter in four steps and then back to off.
What you will learn
- How a variable remembers a number between presses
- How to make a counter that wraps back to 0
- Why we wait for the button to be released
How it works
The variable "level" goes up by 25 each press. After it passes 100 it starts again at 0. The LED shows the level as its brightness. The last step waits for you to let go, so one press counts once.
Try this next
- Change the step to 10 for ten brightness levels.
- Add a second button to go down.
- Show the level on an LCD.
The simulator program and explanation on this page are original. The idea follows a classic Arduino project that students have built for years.
Parts: sensors and actuators (tap to show or hide)
Try the inputs (virtual sensors)
Pins (you can change them)
| Part | Arduino pin (change it here) | How to wire it |
|---|
Every wire, one by one
Red rail = 5 V from the Arduino 5V pin. Black rail = GND. The coloured wires carry signals. Match the wire colours on the drawing to this list.
| # | Colour | From (part and leg) | To |
|---|
Steps run from top to bottom, then start again. While the simulation runs, the active step is highlighted in green.
Quantities come from the parts you added. The store links open a search for that item on Robu.in, Amazon.in and ThinkRobotics, so you always see what is in stock today. Check the model, voltage and price before you order.
| # | Item | Qty | Search term | Buy / compare |
|---|
The PDF has the circuit sketch, pin table, every wire, sequence, full code, the parts list with store links, do’s and don’ts for each part, and the safety notes. The project file lets you come back and keep editing.
In the real world
A lamp you can dim
Your dimmable LED sets how bright the lamp in the real room glows.
Tip: use the gold tab at the bottom of the circuit drawing to pull the real-world view up over the Arduino board. Your parts stay visible above it, so you can press a button and watch the real scene react.
- Dimmable LED = the brightness of the lamp