Using AltSoftSerial with Mayfly

Tagged: AltSoftSerial, Atlas Scientific

This topic has 3 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 2021-08-18 at 4:50 PM by Scott Ensign.

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2019-02-25 at 11:05 AM #12824
Adam Gold
Participant
I’m currently using NeoSWSerial to take water level measurements using a Maxbotix 7383 HRXL-WRLST sensor (pins: neoSSerial1Rx = 11, neoSSerial1Tx = -1), but I am interested in using AtlSoftSerial because it is more accurate. Does anyone know the Mayfly pin designations for AltSoftSerial? Is it possible to use one of the Grove ports like I am currently using with NeoSWSerial? Thanks in advance for any advice!
2019-02-25 at 11:10 AM #12825
Sara Damiano
Moderator
With AltSoftSerial, data in to the Mayfly goes on pin 6, out from Mayfly on pin 5. It’s kind-of a pain because the Tx and Rx are broken into different Grove ports, but for something like the Maxbotix that you only need Rx for, it’s fine.

2021-08-18 at 1:19 PM #15837

Scott Ensign

Participant

I’m struggling to use AltSoftSerial in place of Software Serial to connect an Atlas-Scientific Color sensor to a Mayfly. The script below successfully communicates and reports sensor data as expected with Software Serial (with lines 21 and 26 active instead of lines 22 and 27 as shown below). As shown below I don’t get any data from the sensor. Any advice?

/** =========================================================================
 * RGBsensorAutoMode.ino
 * Example of using the Atlas Scientific RGB sensor modified from
 * code provided by Atlas Scientific: 
 * https://atlas-scientific.com/probes/ezo-rgb-embedded-color-sensor/
 *
 * author: Scott Ensign <ensign@stroudcenter.org>
 * Build Environment: Arduino IDE
 * Hardware Platform: EnviroDIY Mayfly Arduino Datalogger V0.5
 *
 * DISCLAIMER:
 * THIS CODE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" - NO WARRANTY IS GIVEN.
 * 
 * The wiring from the RGB sensor was spliced to a Grove cable as follows:
 * black wire from RGB sensor to black Grove wire to grd on Mayfly Grove connection
 * red wire from RGB sensor to red Grove wire to V on Mayfly Grove connection
 * white wire from RGB sensor to white Grove wire to D6 on Mayfly Grove connection
 * green wire from RGB sensor to yellow Grove wire to D5 on Mayfly Grove connection
 * ======================================================================= */

//#include <SoftwareSerial.h>                          //include the SoftwareSerial library
#include <AltSoftSerial.h>                           //this is the alternative to SoftwareSerial
#define rx 5                                         //define Mayfly pin 5 as the receive pin 
#define tx 6                                         //define Mayfly pin 6 as the transmit pin

//SoftwareSerial RGBserial(rx, tx);                      //define how the software serial port is going to work
AltSoftSerial RGBserial(rx, tx);                     //this is the alternative to SoftwareSerial

void setup() {                                        //set up the hardware
  Serial.begin(9600);                                 //set baud rate for the hardware serial port_0 to 9600
  RGBserial.begin(9600);                               //set baud rate for the software serial port to 9600
  pinMode(22, OUTPUT);                                //On the Mayfly Data Logger, pin 22 supplies power to the Grove ports
  digitalWrite(22, LOW);
  }

void loop() {                                         //
    digitalWrite(22, HIGH);                           //turn on power to the Mayfly's Grove ports
    delay(500);                                       //wait 500 milliseconds
    RGBserial.readStringUntil("\r");                   //holds for 1 second; this and the subsequent two commands remove the introductory returns from the RGB sensor
    RGBserial.readStringUntil("\r");                   //holds for 1 second
    RGBserial.readStringUntil("\r");                   //holds for 1 second
    RGBserial.print('R');                              //send that string to the Atlas Scientific product
    RGBserial.print('\r');                             //add a <CR> to the end of the string
    delay(500);                                       //wait 500 milliseconds
  
int red = RGBserial.parseInt();                        //myserial.parseFloat is an alternative, but unnecessary here
int green = RGBserial.parseInt();
int blue = RGBserial.parseInt();
int lux = RGBserial.parseInt();

while (RGBserial.available() > 0) {                    // this gets ride of the "*OK" or anything else trailing at the end
  RGBserial.read();
}

Serial.print("Red: ");                                // print "Red: " to the serial monitor
Serial.println(red);                                  // print the red value from the sensor
Serial.print("Green: ");                              // ...
Serial.println(green);
Serial.print("Blue: ");
Serial.println(blue);
Serial.print("Lux: ");
Serial.println(lux);

  delay(1000);                                        // wait ___ milliseconds; adjust this value to set the sampling interval for the sensor
}

/** =========================================================================

* RGBsensorAutoMode.ino

* Example of using the Atlas Scientific RGB sensor modified from

* code provided by Atlas Scientific:

* https://atlas-scientific.com/probes/ezo-rgb-embedded-color-sensor/

* author: Scott Ensign <ensign@stroudcenter.org>

* Build Environment: Arduino IDE

* Hardware Platform: EnviroDIY Mayfly Arduino Datalogger V0.5

* DISCLAIMER:

* THIS CODE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" - NO WARRANTY IS GIVEN.

* The wiring from the RGB sensor was spliced to a Grove cable as follows:

* black wire from RGB sensor to black Grove wire to grd on Mayfly Grove connection

* red wire from RGB sensor to red Grove wire to V on Mayfly Grove connection

* white wire from RGB sensor to white Grove wire to D6 on Mayfly Grove connection

* green wire from RGB sensor to yellow Grove wire to D5 on Mayfly Grove connection

* ======================================================================= */

//#include <SoftwareSerial.h> //include the SoftwareSerial library

#include <AltSoftSerial.h> //this is the alternative to SoftwareSerial

#define rx 5 //define Mayfly pin 5 as the receive pin

#define tx 6 //define Mayfly pin 6 as the transmit pin

//SoftwareSerial RGBserial(rx, tx); //define how the software serial port is going to work

AltSoftSerial RGBserial(rx, tx); //this is the alternative to SoftwareSerial

void setup() { //set up the hardware

Serial.begin(9600); //set baud rate for the hardware serial port_0 to 9600

RGBserial.begin(9600); //set baud rate for the software serial port to 9600

pinMode(22, OUTPUT); //On the Mayfly Data Logger, pin 22 supplies power to the Grove ports

digitalWrite(22, LOW);

}

void loop() { //

digitalWrite(22, HIGH); //turn on power to the Mayfly's Grove ports

delay(500); //wait 500 milliseconds

RGBserial.readStringUntil("\r"); //holds for 1 second; this and the subsequent two commands remove the introductory returns from the RGB sensor

RGBserial.readStringUntil("\r"); //holds for 1 second

RGBserial.print('R'); //send that string to the Atlas Scientific product

RGBserial.print('\r'); //add a <CR> to the end of the string

delay(500); //wait 500 milliseconds

int red = RGBserial.parseInt(); //myserial.parseFloat is an alternative, but unnecessary here

int green = RGBserial.parseInt();

int blue = RGBserial.parseInt();

int lux = RGBserial.parseInt();

while (RGBserial.available() > 0) { // this gets ride of the "*OK" or anything else trailing at the end

RGBserial.read();

}

Serial.print("Red: "); // print "Red: " to the serial monitor

Serial.println(red); // print the red value from the sensor

Serial.print("Green: "); // ...

Serial.println(green);

Serial.print("Blue: ");

Serial.println(blue);

Serial.print("Lux: ");

Serial.println(lux);

delay(1000); // wait ___ milliseconds; adjust this value to set the sampling interval for the sensor

}

2021-08-18 at 4:50 PM #15838

Scott Ensign

Participant

Problem solved. As Sara has noted before, the AltSoftSerial can only use pin 6 on the Mayfly for receiving and pin 5 for transmitting. So, while the sketch worked with Software Serial as shown above (and would have worked by defining pin 6 for transmitting and pin 5 for receiving), my pairing of the sensor rx and tx wires to the Grove jack was wrong. See lines 17 and 18 above; I swapped the wiring from the sensor to the Grove jack and now get data from the sensor. This is what the portion of the sketch in question should look like to work with AltSoftSerial:

 * white wire from RGB sensor to yellow Grove wire to D5 on Mayfly Grove connection
 * green wire from RGB sensor to white Grove wire to D6 on Mayfly Grove connection
 * ======================================================================= */

//#include <SoftwareSerial.h>                          //include the SoftwareSerial library
#include <AltSoftSerial.h>                           //this is the alternative to SoftwareSerial
#define rx 6                                         //define Mayfly pin 6 as the receive pin 
#define tx 5                                         //define Mayfly pin 5 as the transmit pin

* white wire from RGB sensor to yellow Grove wire to D5 on Mayfly Grove connection

* green wire from RGB sensor to white Grove wire to D6 on Mayfly Grove connection

* ======================================================================= */

//#include <SoftwareSerial.h> //include the SoftwareSerial library

#include <AltSoftSerial.h> //this is the alternative to SoftwareSerial

#define rx 6 //define Mayfly pin 6 as the receive pin

#define tx 5 //define Mayfly pin 5 as the transmit pin

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