I’ve had this Shelly sensor for a long time. But never posted anything about this. Last weekend we had a -situation- in our kitchen, so what better time to test this device again!
This little disc shaped device has three metal points on its bottom side, those are the flood (water) sensors. It stay’s in sleep mode when all’s good. It does several things when it detects water.
Emits a alarm signal
Wakes-up wifi
Sends a MQTT message (when not connected to the cloud like i have) MQTT is a alarm message AND it wil send the temperature of the device!
After a while (when dry) goes back to sleep
There are connection point on the print you can use .. happy hacking!
My node-red configuration
Above is the part where the mqtt messages gets processed by Node-Red Sending it to PushOver and my little MqttLcdNotifier
Above is the MqttLcdNotifer .. there are several parts to this
Top line is from shelly flood and other notifications
Text input puts text from the NR GUI on my TV and the LCDDisplay
same parts are being used by my 3D printer when the print tool is getting TO hot, or printing is finished
Trigger at work WAS a notification for work .. nonfunc
mqttlcd-button is the mqtt message send from the display (the one that i was pushing) to stop the beeping and clears the display
Bash notify, is as previously posted a flow which i can control from my linux machines notify “compiling complete” for example. This is also being broadcast from my livingroom using speakers. (See separate post about this)
Wellll, put this in place 2 years ago, never looked at it again .. still works
I had a crash recently on one of my raspberry-pi’s .. SDcard failure, they are not made for a lot of write actions. In the past i’ve changed some images to read only and with a r/w overlay. Also tmp filesystems in memory .. all not ideal.
So i’ve started to make every RPi ssd bootable.
I’ve got several ssd already from other projects. Sata to USB adaptors are cheap, only a few euro’s.
Steps to take:
Download Raspberry Pi Imager tool
Choose OS > Misc Utility Images > Bootloader > USB Boot
Select storage and write to a temporary sd-card (Not needed any more after flashing for normal operations)
Boot USB with this Micro-SDcard .. i didn’t have a screen connected .. So i just waited a few minutes
While i was waiting i wrote a OS image to the SSD using the same imager tool
Choose OS > select sata/ssd drive
Change options (cog), enable ssh, choose hostname and set password
Write to drive
Remove sdcard from RPi attach ssd/sata and boot
My 3D printed sdcard case, luckily there was still one in there (32GB kindda big, but it was only for temporary use .. 16GB was broken ..
So .. without attaching a screen or keyboard, just a network cable. I have a running OS on a RPi from SSD
Having a lot of devices and running a Lab wil use a lot of energy. Now with the energy crisis in Europe, i had to take a closer look at whats using power in my house.
I notished some weird usage patterns while measuring.
I’m using a few shelly power plugs, to measure devices and powerstrips.
With these devices you can control devices connected to it. On/Off/Timer etcetera. It wil measure the power usage in watts, and it even got a temperature sensor. I like the fact that it perfectly integrates into your home automation using an extensive API. curl commands to controll, and even MQTT messaging. Intergrating in Home Assistant is a breeze.
So i was monitoring a bunch of stuff using Nodered/Grafana/Homeassistant and saw some recurring usage. But being always late to check things, i made use of my ledserver i’ve build a long time ago.
This ledserver consists of a Raspberry Pi Zero, with a led string and a API written in python.
Below is autostarted on the Raspberry
( I made this ledserver for work, it showed the status of servers and services. Beside that every colleage had a range which he could use for his own scripts. I made some little bash script templates to have led funtions standard in your bash profile.
#!/usr/bin/python
# apt-get install python-flask
#
import Adafruit_WS2801
import Adafruit_GPIO.SPI as SPI
import struct
from flask import Flask, render_template, request
app = Flask(__name__)
PIXEL_COUNT = 32
SPI_PORT = 0
SPI_DEVICE = 0
pixels = Adafruit_WS2801.WS2801Pixels(PIXEL_COUNT, spi=SPI.SpiDev(SPI_PORT, SPI_DEVICE))
pixels.clear()
pixels.show()
@app.route("/led/<deviceName>/<color>")
def action(deviceName, color):
if deviceName == 'reset':
print ("reset")
pixels.clear()
print (deviceName)
led = int(deviceName)
s = color
r = int(s[ :2], 16)
b = int(s[2:4], 16)
g = int(s[4: ], 16)
pixels.set_pixel_rgb(led, r,g,b)
pixels.show()
templateData = {
'rled' : r,
'bled' : b,
'gled' : g,
'deviceName' : deviceName,
}
return render_template('index.html', **templateData)
@app.route("/control/<controlcommand>")
def actioncommand(controlcommand):
if controlcommand == 'clear':
print("clear")
pixels.clear()
pixels.show()
templateData = {
'controlcommand' : controlcommand,
}
return render_template('index.html', **templateData)
@app.route("/range/<start>/<stop>/<color>")
def rangecommand(start,stop,color):
s = color
r = int(s[ :2], 16)
b = int(s[2:4], 16)
g = int(s[4: ], 16)
startled = int(start)
stopled = int(stop)
while (startled < stopled):
pixels.set_pixel_rgb(startled, r,g,b)
startled=startled + 1
pixels.show()
templateData = {
'rangecommand' : rangecommand,
}
return render_template('index.html', **templateData)
if __name__ == "__main__":
app.run(host='0.0.0.0', port=8080, debug=True)
Now you can control the leds with a simple curl command:
So today i made a little script to show power usage.
I’m reading the current power usage from a LS120 Youless
Youless LS120 device, which you can connect to your P1 connector.
With below bash script i’m reading the webinterface and update the ledstring. I was using this ledserver for general notification usage. Below a 2 minute hack ..
It’s a little device you can place on your watermeter.
You get a plastic clip/holder which you can use to place the device on your watermeter. You can easily remove the device to read the values.
The device measures the little round gauge, so it has no idea what the current values are. Add the current values of your meter to the output of the device.
The device works by measuring the rotation of the red part.
By default it sends the information over the internet to a server. Your phone connects to this server and the app wil give you the graphs.
If you want your own intergration, you have to enable “local api” See image on the right. When you want realtime data, you have to connect a usb-c power supply. When using batteries, the device wil only connect to wifi once per 5 minutes, and you can’t use the API.
I wrote a little test script in bash to draw graphs using mqtt and Nodered.
When i play around with Arduino’s which i have flashed and start with their own access points. It’s sometimes not clear which remote IP is connected.
Applications like Tasmota,Wled and Easyesp startup with their own Access Point, which you can use to connect to and configure them to your real accesspoint. So you connect to this temporary AP, and want to remote access it with your phone’s browser. Not all apps (certainly not my apps) have a captive portal. Most won’t .. Which ip to use to connect?
Install JuiceSSH of you don’t have it .. it’s a must have really
Select quick connect – local device
Enter command “ip neigh”, It wil show devices connected to your android phone or which where broadcasting in your network-neighbourhood
Most of the times it also your default gw .. which can be found in settings. But above gives you more information.
Way back in 2018 i was playing around with i2c and touch.
CAP1188 Multi touch sensor
I remembered that VGA was using i2c to get information from monitors like brand/type and connection information.
I managed to access the cap1188 up to my Laptop via VGA.
2018 Schematic i used to abuse vga …
The final python code i used to play with the variables and playing sound i can’t find. But below is the test code
#!/usr/bin/python
# NOTE: i did a address scan, now i have 3v3 connected to AD, so probably the address is 0x28 !!
import smbus
bus = smbus.SMBus(1) # 0 = /dev/i2c-0 (port I2C0), 1 = /dev/i2c-1 (port I2C1)
DEVICE_ADDRESS = 0x29
DEVICEx = 0x10
DEVICE_REG_MODE1 = 0x00
DEVICE_REG_LEDOUT0 = 0x1d
#Write a single register
bus.write_byte_data(DEVICE_ADDRESS, 0x1f, 0x3F)
#Write an array of registers
#ledout_values = [0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff, 0xff]
#bus.write_i2c_block_data(DEVICE_ADDRESS, DEVICE_REG_LEDOUT0, ledout_values)
while True:
print bus.read_byte_data(DEVICE_ADDRESS,0x10), bus.read_byte_data(DEVICE_ADDRESS,0x11) , bus.read_byte_data(DEVICE_ADDRESS,0x12), bus.read_byte_data(DEVICE_ADDRESS,0x13), bus.read_byte_data(DEVICE_ADDRESS,0x14), bus.read_byte_dat
a(DEVICE_ADDRESS,0x15), bus.read_byte_data(DEVICE_ADDRESS,0x16), bus.read_byte_data(DEVICE_ADDRESS,0x17)
Today i connected the cap1188 to a ESP32 and a piezo buzzer.
ESP FuzzahBuzzerCAP1188CAP1188
/*** Based on below library ***/
/*** Changed pins and added sound ***/
/***************************************************
This is a library for the CAP1188 I2C/SPI 8-chan Capacitive Sensor
Designed specifically to work with the CAP1188 sensor from Adafruit
----> https://www.adafruit.com/products/1602
These sensors use I2C/SPI to communicate, 2+ pins are required to
interface
Adafruit invests time and resources providing this open source code,
please support Adafruit and open-source hardware by purchasing
products from Adafruit!
Written by Limor Fried/Ladyada for Adafruit Industries.
BSD license, all text above must be included in any redistribution
****************************************************/
#include <Wire.h>
#include <SPI.h>
#include <Adafruit_CAP1188.h>
const int TONE_OUTPUT_PIN = 26;
const int TONE_PWM_CHANNEL = 0;
int freq = 0;
// Reset Pin is used for I2C or SPI
#define CAP1188_RESET 9
// CS pin is used for software or hardware SPI
#define CAP1188_CS 10
// These are defined for software SPI, for hardware SPI, check your
// board's SPI pins in the Arduino documentation
#define CAP1188_MOSI 11
#define CAP1188_MISO 12
#define CAP1188_CLK 13
// For I2C, connect SDA to your Arduino's SDA pin, SCL to SCL pin
// On UNO/Duemilanove/etc, SDA == Analog 4, SCL == Analog 5
// On Leonardo/Micro, SDA == Digital 2, SCL == Digital 3
// On Mega/ADK/Due, SDA == Digital 20, SCL == Digital 21
// Use I2C, no reset pin!
Adafruit_CAP1188 cap = Adafruit_CAP1188();
// Or...Use I2C, with reset pin
//Adafruit_CAP1188 cap = Adafruit_CAP1188(CAP1188_RESET);
// Or... Hardware SPI, CS pin & reset pin
// Adafruit_CAP1188 cap = Adafruit_CAP1188(CAP1188_CS, CAP1188_RESET);
// Or.. Software SPI: clock, miso, mosi, cs, reset
//Adafruit_CAP1188 cap = Adafruit_CAP1188(CAP1188_CLK, CAP1188_MISO, CAP1188_MOSI, CAP1188_CS, CAP1188_RESET);
void setup() {
Serial.begin(9600);
Serial.println("CAP1188 test!");
ledcAttachPin(TONE_OUTPUT_PIN, TONE_PWM_CHANNEL);
// Initialize the sensor, if using i2c you can pass in the i2c address
if (!cap.begin(0x28)){
//if (!cap.begin()) {
Serial.println("CAP1188 not found");
while (1);
}
Serial.println("CAP1188 found!");
}
void loop() {
uint8_t touched = cap.touched();
if (touched == 0) {
// No touch detected
return;
}
for (uint8_t i=0; i<8; i++) {
if (touched & (1 << i)) {
Serial.print(touched); Serial.print("\t");
freq = (i * 100);
ledcWriteTone(TONE_PWM_CHANNEL, freq);
delay(100);
}
}
Serial.println();
delay(50);
}
Finding the right pins or above pinout was the hardest part. The sketch reads the pins binary so value 129 is first and last bit.
Now i have to get the sound sounding a little better and add frequencies and fingersettings to the sketch to get a minimal electronic bagpipe. (V3 it is .. )
Download from https://micropython.org/resources/firmware/esp32-20220618-v1.19.1.bin
Test with
screen /dev/ttyUSB0 115200
Enter import machine or help()
Great up and running
Now we have to install a boot loader Use ampy to list files
#list boot
ampy -p /dev/ttyUSB0 ls
/boot.py
#get boot.py
ampy -p /dev/ttyUSB0 get boot.py
vi boot.py (create new)
#import esp
#esp.osdebug(None)
#import webrepl
#webrepl.start()
def connect():
import network
sta_if = network.WLAN(network.STA_IF)
if not sta_if.isconnected():
print('connecting to network...')
sta_if.active(True)
sta_if.connect('WIFISSID', 'WIFIPASS')
while not sta_if.isconnected():
pass
print('network config:', sta_if.ifconfig())
Push the file
ampy -p /dev/ttyUSB0 put boot.py
Usage: ampy [OPTIONS] COMMAND [ARGS]...
ampy - Adafruit MicroPython Tool
Ampy is a tool to control MicroPython boards over a serial connection.
Using ampy you can manipulate files on the board's internal filesystem and
even run scripts.
Options:
-p, --port PORT Name of serial port for connected board. Can optionally
specify with AMPY_PORT environment variable. [required]
-b, --baud BAUD Baud rate for the serial connection (default 115200).
Can optionally specify with AMPY_BAUD environment
variable.
-d, --delay DELAY Delay in seconds before entering RAW MODE (default 0).
Can optionally specify with AMPY_DELAY environment
variable.
--version Show the version and exit.
--help Show this message and exit.
Commands:
get Retrieve a file from the board.
ls List contents of a directory on the board.
mkdir Create a directory on the board.
put Put a file or folder and its contents on the board.
reset Perform soft reset/reboot of the board.
rm Remove a file from the board.
rmdir Forcefully remove a folder and all its children from the board.
run Run a script and print its output.
Connect to serial console using screen
sudo screen /dev/ttyUSB0 115200
(use CTRL-A \ to exit)
Connect to wifi
import boot
connect()
Led blinky test, with below file named ledtest.py
import time
from machine import Pin
led=Pin(2,Pin.OUT) #Internal led pin
while True:
led.value(1) #Set led turn on
time.sleep(0.5)
led.value(0) #Set led turn off
time.sleep(0.5)
Upload and run script
ampy -p /dev/ttyUSB0 put ledtest.py
import ledtest (without .py!)
Next todo: boot.py @boot ?!? Run custom python after booting. Connect display and play with drawing.
Tip: Install rshell !
sudo pip3 install rshell
fash@zspot:~$ rshell
Welcome to rshell. Use Control-D (or the exit command) to exit rshell.
No MicroPython boards connected - use the connect command to add one
/home/fash> autoconnect: /dev/ttyUSB0 action: add
/home/fash> ?
Documented commands (type help <topic>):
========================================
args cat connect date edit filesize help mkdir rm shell
boards cd cp echo exit filetype ls repl rsync
Use Control-D (or the exit command) to exit rshell.
Connecting the display
I’ve connected the display as above. Note the different connections on the display. Above fritzing part has connections for touch screen! The 4 or 5 pins on the other side are for sdcard functionallity.
Now you can use the library by editing a example like demo_bouncing_boxes.py
Add and change
# At the beginning of the file
import setupmydisplay.py
Futher down comment two lines and add your own setup
# Baud rate of 40000000 seems about the max
#spi = SPI(1, baudrate=40000000, sck=Pin(14), mosi=Pin(13))
#display = Display(spi, dc=Pin(4), cs=Pin(16), rst=Pin(17))
display = setup.createMyDisplay()
Upload to ESP32 and testing!
ampy -p /dev/ttyUSB0 put demo_bouncing_boxes.py
ampy -p /dev/ttyUSB0 put setupmydisplay.py
# connect and start
sudo screen /dev/ttyUSB0 115200
import demo_bouncing_boxes.py
I got a vintage racetrack from a colleage a while back.
In the past i had some ideas controlling train or race tracks. For train tracks i wanted to write intelligent maneuver software. For a racetrack a web controllable race. Maybe with a webcam mounted on the car??
L298N – DC motor controller
So i bought a little DC motor controller (2 channels) and took a esp32.
https://arduino.esp8266.com/stable/package_esp8266com_index.json,https://raw.githubusercontent.com/damellis/attiny/ide-1.6.x-boards-manager/package_damellis_attiny_index.json
After that go to the Board manager.
Tools > Board: ..... > Board Manager
Search board, click and install.
NOTE: Some sketches require a specific version!
Select your board, and write/open you sketch.
First thing to do is test compiling your sketch
Press the little button on the left
Libraries:
When you get a compile error like below, you are missing those libraries
Goto tools > Manage libraries
Search for your needed library, sometimes there are multiple which look alike. This is a trial and error approach. Sometimes it doesn’t exists and you need to upload a zip containing the library. (Sketch > Include Library > Add .zip library
Downloading a zip containing the library
Adding the library zip file
When looking at the first lines of you sketch, there are include statements like:
But sometimes there are statements without the < > characters. Then it will be a included file just for your sketch.
Note the second tab MPU6050x.h which contains specific code only for this sketch.
Redo a test recompile using the tic icon again.
Everything okay? .. Select the correct port in Tools > Port And press the Arrowright icon to upload/flash. Note: sometimes you have to hold a button or press a little flash button on your device to flash.
esptool.py v3.3
Serial port COM8
Connecting.....
Chip is ESP32-D0WDQ6-V3 (revision 3)
Features: WiFi, BT, Dual Core, 240MHz, VRef calibration in efuse, Coding Scheme None
Crystal is 40MHz
MAC: c8:c9:a3:f9:02:d0
Uploading stub...
Running stub...
Stub running...
Changing baud rate to 921600
Changed.
Configuring flash size...
Flash will be erased from 0x00001000 to 0x00005fff...
Flash will be erased from 0x00008000 to 0x00008fff...
Flash will be erased from 0x0000e000 to 0x0000ffff...
Flash will be erased from 0x00010000 to 0x000c7fff...
Flash params set to 0x022f
Compressed 18880 bytes to 12992...
Writing at 0x00001000... (100 %)
Wrote 18880 bytes (12992 compressed) at 0x00001000 in 0.3 seconds (effective 482.8 kbit/s)...
Hash of data verified.
Compressed 3072 bytes to 128...
Writing at 0x00008000... (100 %)
Wrote 3072 bytes (128 compressed) at 0x00008000 in 0.0 seconds (effective 627.7 kbit/s)...
Hash of data verified.
Compressed 8192 bytes to 47...
Writing at 0x0000e000... (100 %)
Wrote 8192 bytes (47 compressed) at 0x0000e000 in 0.1 seconds (effective 1087.9 kbit/s)...
Hash of data verified.
Compressed 750976 bytes to 477779...
Writing at 0x00010000... (3 %)
...
...
...
Writing at 0x000bb633... (93 %)
Writing at 0x000c0acd... (96 %)
Writing at 0x000c6649... (100 %)
Wrote 750976 bytes (477779 compressed) at 0x00010000 in 6.3 seconds (effective 947.4 kbit/s)...
Hash of data verified.
Leaving...
Hard resetting via RTS pin...
Most of the boards you can connect via micro-usb. Sometimes you need adaptors like:
Attiny programmerttl uart interface
TIPS ‘n tricks:
Open same file in another editor, so you can compare for example the top (declarations) and futher down the code. Else you could be ending up scolling up/down all day long. And probably forgetting how a variablename was exacly spelled.
Use serial monitor! When debugging this is a valuable tool. Enter statements into you code, which prints debugging info to a serial monitoring window when your device is still hookedup to your PC.
Example printing connected IP and values registered
Other obvious tips: Add comment lines (documentation) Use variable names which make sense! ( Hard to find what aaaa() does, or what tmp-a is, but LastTempValue says a lot more)
Almost … friday will be the day i’ll attend May Contain Hackers. Besides the awesome villages and talks.
UPDATE: 20220727 UPDATE: 20220812
You get a hackable badge, this one is more amazing as previous versions.
I can’t wait to have a go at this cool gadget. I personally could do without the pcb fancy design.
Espressif ESP32 Wrover-E with 16MB of flash storage and paired with 8MB of PSRAM, for front-end badge computing and compatibility with the badge.team ecosystem back to the 2017 SHA badge.
Lattice ICE40UP5K FPGA for hardware-accelerated graphics and user FPGA hardware designs.
Raspberry Pi RP2040 for advanced USB communication and board management.
2Ah LiPo battery to give you a full day of fun on a charge.
16-bit DAC with stereo output to headphone socket, onboard mono speaker.
ILI9341 2.2 inch TFT display with a 240 by 320 pixel resolution.
Bosch BNO055 orientation sensor.
Bosch BME680 environmental sensor.
The usual array of addressable LEDs.
SAO and Qwiic expansion connectors, FPGA PMOD expansion, plus onboard prototyping area.
Downloadable apps, micro python, Arduino ide programming. All kinds of GPIO pins, leds buttons, sound. Check out https://hatchery.badge.team/
You can play with this virtually here! https://wokwi.com/projects/335445228923126356
So much potential! Great start for a DIY project.
I won’t post about the workings, thats all well documented online. I shall post about the hacks/findings i personally did.
UPDATE: 20220727 Made a micropython program to keep your NameTag level to the ground (Better version)
UPDATE: 20220812
Someone made a 8bit logic analyser using the pmod connector !
"If something is worth doing, it's worth overdoing."
