Check out the new MappyDot Plus with 4 meter distance measurements, 100Hz measurement rate and adjustable field of view - https://www.tindie.com/products/blecky/mappydot-plus-a-smarter-micro-lidar-vl53l1x/

MappyDot is a smart ranging sensor which provides system designers with the ability to measure accurate distances on drones and robotic platforms for collision avoidance, area mapping, distance measurement, gesture recognition and motion sensing. The MappyDot uses the VL53L0X laser time-of-flight ranging sensor from STMicroelectronics, which is a tried and tested 940nm Class 1 (eye-safe; IEC 6082501:2014) laser sensor, in conjunction with an on-board ATmega328PB microcontroller to provide a huge range of features. MappyDots can be used to prevent your drone from colliding with objects or optimise its landing, make star trek like door sensors to open doors automatically or even create unique musical instruments.

Please Note: New firmware features are constantly being developed. For a full list of these features please visit the firmware repository. The boards will ship with the latest release firmware version available on the Github repository.

Also note that the MST pin needs to be shorted to ground or the MST solder pads on the board need to be shorted, on the first device in the chain, or if you are using them standalone. For more information visit the getting started page.

Be sure to remove the plastic tape cover on the sensor before use. The plastic tape isn't calibrated for and will interfere with the readings.

A Long List of Features

Each MappyDot can provide distance measurements (in mm) up to 2 meters and a non-interpolated rate up to 50Hz, with a 25 degree field of view without additional optics. Multiple MappyDots (or other SensorDots boards) can also be chained together easily to gather multi-dimentional data about an area much like radar, without reducing sampling rate due to processing overheads. They are also calibrated out-of-the-box to within ±1mm and can be easily re-calibrated if integrated into a commercial enclosure (with a glass cover). The MappyDot also performs low pass filtering on the motion data that arrives from the sensor, to provide you with the clearest picture of the environment around it. While distance measurement is the name of the game, the MappyDot also offers the following features:

• Auto addressed bus scheme for chaining up to 112 devices.
• A 2.8-5V signalling and operating voltage range which will work with your platform of choice.
• A simplified I2C interface for easy integration into new or existing projects with next to zero code and processing requirements.
• Reduced device initialisation and upkeep times. Many devices can now share the same bus with the fastest possible update rates. For example, you can poll 112 MappyDots, 50 times each, every second for a total of 5600 measurements per second (depending on your host processing speed).
• Inter-sensor crosstalk reduction and measurement synchronisation to reduce measurement errors.
• Low pass, real-time filtering to reduce background noise effects.
• Automatic mode switching to get optimal measurements depending on the environment.
• More advanced features for complex applications.
• In-service firmware upgradability via I2C. There’s no need to disconnect already deployed and integrated devices.
• Open source sensor firmware.
• Threshold controlled, PWM or interrupt output from an onboard GPIO pin for standalone or distributed applications.
• A tiny footprint - 13x17.8mm (0.51x0.70").
• An easy to solder standard 2.54mm (0.1") pinout that can be used for either soldering directly to production boards or to header pins or wires for prototyping and breadboarding.
• A user controllable LED (PWM, threshold, measurement or manual modes).
• Device naming for easy recognition.
• Precalibration for plug and play use, as well as auto user calibration.

MappyDot footprint scale compared to an Australian $1 coin ($1AUD is the same size as a US Quarter).

Easy to Use

While the MappyDot provides a nice, easy to use footprint for developers with many features, it also makes it easy for you to develop for. Upon first power up, the MappyDot allows users to obtain an accurate, up to date position with two lines of Arduino code at any time:

• Wire.requestFrom(address, 2);
• distance = Wire.read() << 8; distance |= Wire.read();

It's really that simple. No special libraries to load, just read a value. The distance measurement leg work is done entirely by the module. Leave all the extra CPU cycles and code writing to the important things.

Please note the MST pin is grounded on the first device in the chain. This is the "master" MappyDot for addressing purposes.

Different Modes for Different Applications

Each MappyDot also offers the following user selectable distance measurement modes, in single or continuous modes (through additional I2C commands):

• Highly Accurate - 1.2m - 5Hz
• Long Range - 2m - 30Hz
• High Speed - 1.2m - 50Hz
• VL53L0X Default - 1.2m - 30Hz
• Custom Modes Support

However, if your application requires something more complicated, more lower level I2C commands are available, or you can always tweak and update the open-source firmware as you please via the, I2C bootloader, even after soldering or mounting the modules.

Development Board

The SensorDots development board is a breakout board for use with the MappyDot. It gives you the option to either connect 2.54mm (0.1") headers to the MappyDots for easy removal, or to solder the MappyDot directly to the board. It brings out the ISP programming headers and has a reset button, master select jumper, optional I2C resistors and mounting holes for development use.

The development board schematic and production files are located on the GitHub repository. They are also available for sale as a kit with headers on the SensorDots store here.

Mounting Board

The SensorDots mounting board provides two 3.6mm mounting holes that give you the flexibility to place the boards in many arrangements for the best possible accuracy. It is available for sale on the SensorDots store here.

Manufacture

The MappyDots are assembled in Australia with our own in house reflow capability using a lead-free solder process. The components, boards, solder and our process meet current RoHS compliance requirements. Boards are being made based on demand, so if you miss out on current stock, there will be more on the way very soon. Add to your wishlist if you want to be notified when there's more stock.

Shipping

There are two options for shipping, one is tracked parcel post and the other is standard letter post without tracking (the MappyDot ships in a rigid 16mm mailer box). If you are ordering 6 or more MappyDots, the item will be upgraded with tracking in a larger box for no extra cost to the standard shipping option.

If you would like something shipped urgently please contact us before ordering and we can arrange an express option.

While every effort has been made to get the best tracked shipping price for most countries around the world, we may have missed a few (you will see a "Tracked Everywhere Rate" for countries not covered under a custom shipping rate). If you contact us before ordering, we might be able to work out a cheaper tracked shipping rate for your country.

Issues

If you find something not right upon receipt of your order, please contact us straight away. We will do our best to help you out or work out a solution for you.