sparkfun_distance_vl53l1x

VL53L1X - Distance Sensor Breakout (Sparkfun)

Summary

This project shows the integration of the ST's VL53L1x distance sensor ultra-lite driver APIs using Silicon Labs platform.

VL53L1X is a state-of-the-art, Time-of-Flight (ToF), laser-ranging sensor. It is the fastest miniature ToF sensor on the market with accurate ranging up to 4 m and fast ranging frequency up to 50 Hz. It is housed in a miniature and reflowable package, which integrates an SPAD receiving array from a 940 nm invisible Class1 laser emitter. It incorporates physical infrared filters and optics to achieve the best ranging performance in various ambient lighting conditions. By combining this sensor with Silicon Labs wireless technology, you can make your own applications, such as distance monitoring, people counting and so on.

Hardware Required

• BGM220 Explorer Kit board or SiWx917 Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth LE 8 MB Flash SoC Pro Kit (BRD4002 + BRD4338A)
• SparkFun Distance Sensor Breakout - 4 Meter, VL53L1X (Qwiic) or MikroE LIGHTRANGER 4 Click

Connections Required

A VL53L1X sensor board can be easily connected up with two I2C wires (SDA and SCL) along with 3v3 and GND. For the designated boards, SparkFun Qwiic compatible STEMMA QT connectors can be used.

• If the BGM220P Explorer Kit is used:

  The hardware connection is shown in the image below:

  

• If the SiWx917 Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth LE 8 MB Flash SoC Pro Kit is used:

  Description	BRD4338A GPIO	BRD4002 EXP Header	Sparkfun AK9753 sensor board
  I2C_SDA	ULP_GPIO_6	EXP_16	SDA
  I2C_SCL	ULP_GPIO_7	EXP_15	SCL

Setup

You can either create a project based on an example project or start with an empty example project.

Create a project based on an example project

1. From the Launcher Home, add used board BRD4314A(BGM220) or BRD4338A(SiWx917) to My Products, click on it, and click on the EXAMPLE PROJECTS & DEMOS tab. Find the example project filtering by vl53l1x.

2. Click Create button on the Third Party Hardware Drivers - VL53L1X - Distance Sensor (Sparkfun) example. Example project creation dialog pops up -> click Create and Finish and Project should be generated.

   

3. Build and flash this example to the board.

Start with an empty example project

1. Create an "Empty C Project" for your board using Simplicity Studio v5. Use the default project settings.

2. Copy the file app/example/sparkfun_distance_vl53l1x/app.c into the project root folder (overwriting the existing file).

3. Install the software components:

   • Open the .slcp file in the project.

   • Select the SOFTWARE COMPONENTS tab.

   • Install the following components

     • If the BGM220P Explorer Kit is used:

       • [Services] → [Timers] → [Sleep Timer]
       • [Services] → [IO Stream] → [IO Stream: USART] → instance name: vcom
       • [Application] → [Utility] → [Log]
       • [Platform] → [Driver] → [I2C] → [I2CSPM] → default instance name: qwiic
       • [Third Party Hardware Drivers] → [Sensors] → [VL53L1X - Distance Sensor Breakout (Sparkfun)]

     • If the SiWx917 Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth LE 8 MB Flash SoC Pro Kit is used:

       • [WiSeConnect 3 SDK] → [Device] → [Si91x] → [MCU] → [Service] → [Sleep Timer for Si91x]
       • [WiSeConnect 3 SDK] → [Device] → [Si91x] → [MCU] → [Peripheral] → [I2C] → [i2c2]
       • [Third Party Hardware Drivers] → [Sensors] → [VL53L1X - Distance Sensor Breakout (Sparkfun)]

4. Build and flash the project to your device.

Note:

• Make sure that the Third Party Hardware Drivers extension is installed. If not, follow this documentation.

• SDK Extension must be enabled for the project to install VL53L1X - Distance Sensor Breakout (Sparkfun) - I2C component.

How It Works

API Overview

The driver is divided into three layers, a platform, a core, and an interface layer. The core layer implements the key features, the platform layer provides integration to the host microcontroller hardware-dependent codes. (In practice it integrates the I2CSPM platform service.). Above these levels, the upper layer provides an interface with standard Silabs return codes and complies with Silicon Labs coding standards.

sparkfun_vl53l1_platform.c: Integrates the Silabs I2CSPM driver for I2C communication.

sparkfun_vl53l1x_core.c: ST Ultra-Lite Driver Core API, implements VL53L1X sensor core features.

sparkfun_vl53l1x_calibration.c: ST Ultra-Lite Driver Calibration API, implements VL53L1X sensor calibration features.

sparkfun_vl53l1x.c: Implements public interfaces to interact with ST ULD Core features.

Testing

Use Putty or another program to read the serial output. Configure right baudrate for the connection. You should expect a similar output to the one below.

Report Bugs & Get Support

To report bugs in the Application Examples projects, please create a new "Issue" in the "Issues" section of third_party_hw_drivers_extension repo. Please reference the board, project, and source files associated with the bug, and reference line numbers. If you are proposing a fix, also include information on the proposed fix. Since these examples are provided as-is, there is no guarantee that these examples will be updated to fix these issues.

Questions and comments related to these examples should be made by creating a new "Issue" in the "Issues" section of third_party_hw_drivers_extension repo.