APDS9960 Proximity, Gesture, RGB And Ambient Light Sensor

 

As part of my research for a larger project (coming soon), I stumbled across this small $5 sensor that can provide proximity, gesture sensing and RGB + ambient light levels.  And all this with only 3 GPIO pins on the ESP32.  And it can be used with both Arduino/C++ sketches or in ESPHome for you Home Assistant users.

ESP Microcontrollers: An Introduction

 

A number of my projects use an ESP microcontroller.  And in those projects, I show wiring diagrams and talk about things like GPIO pins, power options, etc. but if you are new to the ESP boards, you might be wondering why I make some of the decisions that I do or want to know more about the ESPx so that you can start designing and building your own projects.  This article will provide an introduction and overview of the ESP family of microcontrollers.

An ESP32 LED Matrix Clock, Scoreboard, Timer and more with FULL WLED

 

This is an upgraded version of the original matrix clock I built over five years ago.  This version has substantial upgrades. In addition to being around 35% smaller than the original with the same number of LEDs, it no longer requires Home Assistant to control as it has its own web interface.  Plus it has the option for a secondary controller with auto-switching to provide all the additional features of WLED.

How to Ask for Help

Today's post is a bit different... consider it a bit of a public service announcement.