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Raspberry Pi Pico Hardware Overview

Run the Raspberry Pi Pico Hardware Overview MicroSim Fullscreen

About This MicroSim

A top-down illustration of the Raspberry Pi Pico board. Labeled regions with click-to-expand info boxes:

Learning objective: Remembering - identify key parts of the Pico board by name.

How to Use

Use the on-screen controls - buttons, sliders, dropdowns, and clickable regions - to explore the idea. Every change updates the canvas immediately, so you can predict an outcome and then check it.

Iframe Embed Code

You can place this MicroSim on any web page by adding the following HTML:

<iframe src="https://dmccreary.github.io/moving-rainbow/sims/pico-hardware-overview/main.html"
        height="432px"
        width="100%"
        scrolling="no"></iframe>

Lesson Plan

Grade Level

Grades 6-12

Duration

10-15 minutes

Learning Objective

Remembering - identify key parts of the Pico board by name.

Activities

  1. Explore (5 min): Open the MicroSim and try every control. Notice what changes on screen.
  2. Predict (5 min): Before each change, predict what will happen, then test your prediction.
  3. Discuss (5 min): Explain the idea in your own words and connect it to the LED code in Chapter 5.

Assessment

Ask students to describe, in one or two sentences, the relationship the MicroSim demonstrates and how it shows up when programming the LED strip.

References

  1. Chapter 5: Raspberry Pi Pico Hardware and Development Environment - the chapter where this MicroSim is used.
  2. Moving Rainbow Intelligent Textbook - the full course this MicroSim belongs to.
  3. MicroSims Reference - the standards behind these interactive simulations.

Original Specification

Full specification used to generate this MicroSim 
Type: interactive-infographic
**sim-id:** pico-hardware-overview
**Library:** p5.js
**Status:** Specified

A top-down illustration of the Raspberry Pi Pico board. Labeled regions with click-to-expand info boxes:
- RP2040 chip (center): "The RP2040 microcontroller — dual ARM Cortex M0+ cores at up to 133 MHz"
- USB connector (top): "Micro-USB port — connects to your computer for power and programming"
- BOOTSEL button (top-left): "Hold this while plugging in USB to enter firmware-flash mode"
- LED (near USB): "Built-in green LED connected to GPIO 25"
- Left GPIO bank: "Pins GP0–GP14 — general-purpose input/output"
- Right GPIO bank: "Pins GP15–GP28 — more GPIO, plus ADC inputs"
- GND pins: "Ground — the common reference for all circuits"
- 3.3V OUT pin: "Regulated 3.3 V output for sensors and small components"
- VSYS pin: "Raw supply voltage from USB or battery (4.5–5.5 V)"

Canvas: 700 × 420 px. Clicking any labeled region opens an overlay card with name, description, and a relevant fact. Responds to window resize.

Learning objective: Remembering — identify key parts of the Pico board by name.