APDS-9960 Light Sensor

This documentation includes installation guidelines and sample code for your hardware.

Windows 10 IoT Core Library

APDS9960Sensor library is responsible for communicating with the APDS-9960 sensor.

To use the library, add the following using statement to the top of your C# code.

using TurtaIoTHAT;

Then, create an instance of the APDS9960Sensor class.

APDS9960Sensor apds;

Now you're ready to access the library by calling the apds instance.

Initialization

APDS9960Sensor

Initiates the APDS-9960 sensor to get ambient light, RGB light, proximity and gesture direction.

APDS9960Sensor(bool ambientAndRGBLightEnabled, bool proximityDetectionEnabled, bool gestureRecognitionEnabled)

• Parameters

  • Bool ambientAndRGBLightEnabled: Ambient light and RGB light sense.

  • Bool proximityDetectionEnabled: Proximity detection.

  • Bool gestureRecognitionEnabled: Gesture recognition. (Not implemented.)

Basic Members

Read Ambient Light

Reads the ambient light value.

int ReadAmbientLight()

• Parameters

  • None

• Returns

  • Int: Ambient light.

Read RGB Light

Reads the RGB light values.

int[] ReadRGBLight()

• Parameters

  • None

• Returns

  • Int[]: Red, green and blue light values respectively.

Read Proximity

Reads the proximity value.

int ReadProximity()

• Parameters

  • None

• Returns

  • Int: Proximity value.

Disposal

To clean up the resources used by the class, call the Dispose() method it when the application is closing.

void Dispose()

This method stops the timers and cleans the resources used by the class.

Samples

You can copy the example codes from https://github.com/Turta-io/IoTHAT/tree/master/Samples/Windows10IoTCore address. There are two examples of this library.

APDS9960 Ambient Light Sample App

This application demonstrates reading ambient light from the sensor.

To run the example:

1. Open the sample project you downloaded.

2. Make sure "ARM" is selected from the solution platforms selection.

3. Deploy the sample to the Raspberry Pi using the "F5" key.

Sample Code

MainPage.xaml.cs

using System.Diagnostics;
using System.Threading;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
using Windows.UI.Xaml.Controls;
using TurtaIoTHAT;

namespace APDS9960AmbientLightSampleApp
{
    public sealed partial class MainPage : Page
    {
        // APDS-9960 Sensor
        static APDS9960Sensor apds;

        // Sensor timer
        Timer sensorTimer;

        public MainPage()
        {
            this.InitializeComponent();

            // Initialize sensor and timer
            Initialize();
        }

        private async void Initialize()
        {
            // Initialize and configure sensor
            await InitializeAPDS9960();

            // Configure timer to 2000ms delayed start and 2000ms interval
            sensorTimer = new Timer(new TimerCallback(SensorTimerTick), null, 2000, 2000);
        }

        private async Task InitializeAPDS9960()
        {
            // Create sensor instance
            // Ambient & RGB light: enabled, proximity: disabled, gesture: disabled
            apds = new APDS9960Sensor(true, false, false);

            // Delay 1ms
            await Task.Delay(1);
        }

        private static void SensorTimerTick(object state)
        {
            // Write sensor data to output / immediate window
            Debug.WriteLine("Ambient Light: " + apds.ReadAmbientLight().ToString());
            Debug.WriteLine("-----");
        }
    }
}

Result

When you run the sample, it prints the ambient light reading to the Visual Studio Output / Immediate Window.

Ambient Light: 287
-----

To stop the application, use the "Stop" button on the Visual Studio.

APDS9960 RGB Light Sample App

This application demonstrates reading RGB light from the sensor.

To run the example:

1. Open the sample project you downloaded.

2. Make sure "ARM" is selected from the solution platforms selection.

3. Deploy the sample to the Raspberry Pi using the "F5" key.

Sample Code

MainPage.xaml.cs

using System.Diagnostics;
using System.Threading;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
using Windows.UI.Xaml.Controls;
using TurtaIoTHAT;

namespace APDS9960RGBLightSampleApp
{
    public sealed partial class MainPage : Page
    {
        // APDS-9960 Sensor
        static APDS9960Sensor apds;

        // Sensor timer
        Timer sensorTimer;

        public MainPage()
        {
            this.InitializeComponent();

            // Initialize sensor and timer
            Initialize();
        }

        private async void Initialize()
        {
            // Initialize and configure sensor
            await InitializeAPDS9960();

            // Configure timer to 2000ms delayed start and 2000ms interval
            sensorTimer = new Timer(new TimerCallback(SensorTimerTick), null, 2000, 2000);
        }

        private async Task InitializeAPDS9960()
        {
            // Create sensor instance
            // Ambient & RGB light: enabled, proximity: disabled, gesture: disabled
            apds = new APDS9960Sensor(true, false, false);

            // Delay 1ms
            await Task.Delay(1);
        }

        private static void SensorTimerTick(object state)
        {
            // Read sensor data
            int[] rgbLight = apds.ReadRGBLight();

            // Write sensor data to output / immediate window
            Debug.WriteLine("Red Light..: " + rgbLight[0].ToString());
            Debug.WriteLine("Green Light: " + rgbLight[1].ToString());
            Debug.WriteLine("Blue Light.: " + rgbLight[2].ToString());
            Debug.WriteLine("-----");
        }
    }
}

Result

When you run the sample, it prints the RGB light readings to the Visual Studio Output / Immediate Window.

Red Light..: 124
Green Light: 345
Blue Light.: 212
-----

To stop the application, use the "Stop" button on the Visual Studio.