# Proximity Based Lighting ## Overview ![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/055/421/medium800thumb/proximity_dastels_004.jpg?1528922921) I stumble out to my cafe area (originally designed to be a dining area, I’m sure) first thing each morning to make coffee. As I step up to the counter, a localized spotlight turns on so I can see what I’m doing, even though the overhead light is behind me so that the counter where I’m working is in my shadow.  That’s done by the smarthome node that handles the cafe area. I was in my office at the bookcase one evening and the room wasn’t overly bright. I thought “I could use more light so I can better see the books.” It occurred to me that I had just the thing. I decided to extract the relevant part of my node design into a standalone auto-light. This is a quick and simple project that you can wire up on prototyping board very quickly. It has the potential to be a fun gadget. An interesting side note is that my first exposure to Adafruit was with the original Trinket and Neopixels. That was about 5 years ago. The Neopixels are the same, but the Trinket has evolved an incredible amount. ## Parts List ### Part: Adafruit Trinket M0 quantity: 1 For use with CircuitPython & Arduino IDE [Adafruit Trinket M0](https://www.adafruit.com/product/3500) ### Part: Adafruit VL53L0X Time of Flight Distance Sensor quantity: 1 Detects distance from about 30 to 1000mm [Adafruit VL53L0X Time of Flight Distance Sensor](https://www.adafruit.com/product/3317) ### Part: NeoPixel Stick quantity: 1 String of 8 5050 RGB LED with Integrated Drivers [NeoPixel Stick](https://www.adafruit.com/product/1426) ### Part: 7805 Linear Voltage Regulator quantity: 1 5V 1.5A, Package TO-220 [7805 Linear Voltage Regulator](https://www.adafruit.com/product/2164) ### Part: 100uF 16V Electrolytic Capacitor quantity: 1 Pack of 10 [100uF 16V Electrolytic Capacitor](https://www.adafruit.com/product/2193) ### Part: 10uF 50V Electrolytic Capacitor quantity: 1 Pack of 10 [10uF 50V Electrolytic Capacitor](https://www.adafruit.com/product/2195) ### Part: 2.1mm DC barrel jack quantity: 1 Breadboard-friendly [2.1mm DC barrel jack](https://www.adafruit.com/product/373) ### Part: 0.1uF ceramic capacitor quantity: 1 10 pack [0.1uF ceramic capacitor](https://www.adafruit.com/product/753) - [Next Page](https://learn.adafruit.com/proximity-based-lighting/hardware.md) ## Featured Products ### Adafruit Trinket M0 - for use with CircuitPython & Arduino IDE [Adafruit Trinket M0 - for use with CircuitPython & Arduino IDE](https://www.adafruit.com/product/3500) The Adafruit Trinket M0 may be small, but do not be fooled by its size! It's a tiny microcontroller board, built around the Atmel ATSAMD21, a little chip with _a lot_ of power. We wanted to design a microcontroller board that was small enough to fit into any project, and low... In Stock [Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/3500) [Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/3500/guides) ### Adafruit VL53L0X Time of Flight Distance Sensor - ~30 to 1000mm [Adafruit VL53L0X Time of Flight Distance Sensor - ~30 to 1000mm](https://www.adafruit.com/product/3317) The **VL53L0X** is a _Time of Flight_ distance sensor like no other you've used! The sensor contains a very tiny invisible laser source, and a matching sensor. The VL53L0X can detect the "time of flight", or how long the light has taken to bounce... In Stock [Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/3317) [Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/3317/guides) ### NeoPixel Stick - 8 x 5050 RGB LED with Integrated Drivers [NeoPixel Stick - 8 x 5050 RGB LED with Integrated Drivers](https://www.adafruit.com/product/1426) Make your own little LED strip arrangement with this stick of NeoPixel LEDs. We crammed 8 of the tiny 5050 (5mm x 5mm) smart RGB LEDs onto a PCB with mounting holes and a chainable design. Use only one microcontroller pin to control as many as you can chain together! Each LED is addressable as... In Stock [Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/1426) [Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/1426/guides) ### 5V 1.5A Linear Voltage Regulator - 7805 TO-220 [5V 1.5A Linear Voltage Regulator - 7805 TO-220](https://www.adafruit.com/product/2164) Ah, the venerable 7805, who amongst us has not used this popular linear regulator? This big chunky regulator will help you get your 7-35V battery or wall adapter down to a nice clean 5.0V with 2% regulation. Perfect for just about all electronics!  This is the TO-220 version, with up to... In Stock [Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/2164) [Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/2164/guides) ### 100uF 16V Electrolytic Capacitors - Pack of 10 [100uF 16V Electrolytic Capacitors - Pack of 10](https://www.adafruit.com/product/2193) We like capacitors so much we made a [kids' show about them.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy_G1oYRQmM)   They're super handy and it's really helpful to have a variety lying around to pick and choose from. In Stock [Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/2193) [Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/2193/guides) ### 10uF 50V Electrolytic Capacitors - Pack of 10 [10uF 50V Electrolytic Capacitors - Pack of 10](https://www.adafruit.com/product/2195) We like capacitors so much we made a [kids' show about them.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy_G1oYRQmM)   They're super handy and it's really helpful to have a variety lying around to pick and choose from. In Stock [Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/2195) [Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/2195/guides) ### Breadboard-friendly 2.1mm DC barrel jack [Breadboard-friendly 2.1mm DC barrel jack](https://www.adafruit.com/product/373) This power jack is designed to fit 2.1mm power plugs snugly and securely. Perfect for adding a power connector to your project. We went for the more expensive "thin pin" type which snap into breadboards or perfboards. They will work where "thick pin" types go also, just... In Stock [Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/373) [Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/373/guides) ### 0.1uF ceramic capacitors - 10 pack [0.1uF ceramic capacitors - 10 pack](https://www.adafruit.com/product/753) As any engineer will tell you, 0.1uF ceramic capacitors are the magic fairy dust of electronics - sprinkle them over your circuit schematics for good luck! But seriously, a 0.1uF capacitor right next to the VCC pin of your chips will improve stability by filtering out power supply spikes and... In Stock [Buy Now](https://www.adafruit.com/product/753) [Related Guides to the Product](https://learn.adafruit.com/products/753/guides) ## Related Guides - [Adafruit Trinket M0](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-trinket-m0-circuitpython-arduino.md) - [Star Fragment IoT Lamp](https://learn.adafruit.com/star-fragment-iot-lamp.md) - [How to Choose a Microcontroller](https://learn.adafruit.com/how-to-choose-a-microcontroller.md) - [CircuitPython Hardware: ILI9341 TFT & FeatherWing](https://learn.adafruit.com/micropython-hardware-ili9341-tft-and-featherwing.md) - [NeoPixie Dust Bag](https://learn.adafruit.com/neopixel-pixie-dust-bag.md) - [Trinket / Gemma Blinky Eyes](https://learn.adafruit.com/trinket-gemma-blinky-eyes.md) - [Knobby Sequencer](https://learn.adafruit.com/knobby-sequencer.md) - [Clockwork Goggles](https://learn.adafruit.com/gemma-m0-clockwork-goggles.md) - [LLM Agent Embodiment Kit](https://learn.adafruit.com/llm-agent-embodiment-kit.md) - [Adafruit VL53L0X Time of Flight Micro-LIDAR Distance Sensor Breakout](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-vl53l0x-micro-lidar-distance-sensor-breakout.md) - [Adafruit NeoPixel Überguide](https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-neopixel-uberguide.md) - [Esenciales para CircuitPython](https://learn.adafruit.com/esenciales-para-circuitpython.md) - [CircuitPython Hardware: PCA9685 PWM & Servo Driver](https://learn.adafruit.com/micropython-hardware-pca9685-pwm-and-servo-driver.md) - [NeoPixel Cyber Falls Wig](https://learn.adafruit.com/neopixel-cyber-falls.md) - [CircuitPython Hardware: SSD1306 OLED Display](https://learn.adafruit.com/micropython-hardware-ssd1306-oled-display.md) - [CircuitPython Hardware: Charlieplex LED Matrix](https://learn.adafruit.com/micropython-hardware-charlieplex-led-matrix.md)