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PyPortal LIFX Lighting Controller

PyPortal LIFX Lighting Controller

Image for user brubell
by Brent Rubell
published April 11, 2019, last updated April 11, 2019
posted in Internet of Things - IOT LCDs & Displays/ Graphic LCDs Programming/ MicroPython / CircuitPython
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16
Intermediate
Project guide

Overview

Want to add unique lighting to your room? 

A simple solution would be adding a couple of WiFi-enabled LED smart-bulbs. These bulbs are energy efficient and come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors to fit your space. Smaller bulbs can be used for accent-lighting or lamps, while larger bulbs are more powerful and can light up an entire room!

These types of bulbs are incredibly popular - and are sold in most major electronics brick-and-mortar retailers. 

In this guide, you'll be turning your PyPortal into a smart lighting controller capable of selecting and setting multiple light sources.

internet_of_things___iot_ProductLineUpAbout.jpg
The LIFX family of smart-bulbs (src: https://www.lifx.com/pages/about)

Unlike a more complicated smart-lighting system like the popular Phillips Hue, LIFX lights are incredibly simple to setup. each light has its own wifi radio (possibly something ESP32 or ESP8266-based? We can't tell from the teardown photo) and connects to your WiFi network.

Most notable about the LIFX lights is they provide a well-documented HTTP API, similar to the Adafruit IO HTTP API. This means you can easily interface with it using your PyPortal.

If you're looking for a way to interactively control a room's lighting using your PyPortal, follow along!

internet_of_things___iot_updated_code.png

CircuitPython Code

CircuitPython is perfect for building Internet-of-Things projects. This project uses the ESP32SPI CircuitPython library, which can use the ESP32 as a WiFi-coprocessor to send web requests to the LIFX HTTP Remote Control API.

We've also built a LIFX helper module for CircuitPython to make interfacing with these lights incredibly easy. 

You can rapidly update your code without having to compile and store WiFi and API secret keys on the device. This means that there's no editing code and re-uploading whenever you move the PyPortal to another network - just update a file and you're set. 

internet_of_things___iot_3d_printing_hero_(1).jpg

PyPortal

Say hello to PyPortal! The easiest way to build your IoT projects with a touchscreen display! Make sure to walk through the PyPortal introduction guide and walkthrough the pages. It'll get you setup with CircuitPython and a handful of demo code to play with!

Prerequisite Guides

If you're new to CircuitPython, take a moment to walk through the following guides to get you started and up-to-speed:

Parts

You only need a PyPortal for this guide - no other sensors or external circuitry required!

Front view of a Adafruit PyPortal - CircuitPython Powered Internet Display with a pyportal logo image on the display.
PyPortal, our easy-to-use IoT device that allows you to create all the things for the “Internet of Things” in minutes. Make custom touch screen interface...
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$54.95
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1 x USB Cable
USB cable - USB A to Micro-B - 3 foot long

You can get both of these and a PyPortal stand in AdaBox 011:

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PyPortal CircuitPython Setup

To use all the amazing features of your PyPortal with CircuitPython, you must first install a number of libraries. This page covers that process.

Adafruit CircuitPython Bundle

Download the Adafruit CircuitPython Library Bundle. You can find the latest release here:

Download the adafruit-circuitpython-bundle-*.x-mpy-*.zip bundle zip file where *.x MATCHES THE VERSION OF CIRCUITPYTHON YOU INSTALLED, and unzip a folder of the same name. Inside you'll find a lib folder. You have two options:

  • You can add the lib folder to your CIRCUITPY drive. This will ensure you have all the drivers. But it will take a bunch of space on the 8 MB disk
  • Add each library as you need it, this will reduce the space usage but you'll need to put in a little more effort.

At a minimum we recommend the following libraries, in fact we more than recommend. They're basically required. So grab them and install them into CIRCUITPY/lib now!

  • adafruit_esp32spi - This is the library that gives you internet access via the ESP32 using (you guessed it!) SPI transport. You need this for anything Internet
  • adafruit_requests - This library allows us to perform HTTP requests and get responses back from servers. GET/POST/PUT/PATCH - they're all in here!
  • adafruit_connection_manager - used by adafruit_requests.
  • adafruit_pyportal - This is our friendly wrapper library that does a lot of our projects, displays graphics and text, fetches data from the internet. Nearly all of our projects depend on it!
  • adafruit_portalbase - This library is the base library that adafruit_pyportal library is built on top of.
  • adafruit_touchscreen - a library for reading touches from the resistive touchscreen. Handles all the analog noodling, rotation and calibration for you.
  • adafruit_io - this library helps connect the PyPortal to our free datalogging and viewing service
  • adafruit_imageload - an image display helper, required for any graphics!
  • adafruit_display_text - not surprisingly, it displays text on the screen
  • adafruit_bitmap_font - we have fancy font support, and its easy to make new fonts. This library reads and parses font files.
  • adafruit_slideshow - for making image slideshows - handy for quick display of graphics and sound
  • neopixel - for controlling the onboard neopixel
  • adafruit_adt7410 - library to read the temperature from the on-board Analog Devices ADT7410 precision temperature sensor (not necessary for Titano or Pynt)
  • adafruit_bus_device - low level support for I2C/SPI
  • adafruit_fakerequests - This library allows you to create fake HTTP requests by using local files.

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Create Your settings.toml File

CircuitPython works with WiFi-capable boards to enable you to make projects that have network connectivity. This means working with various passwords and API keys. As of CircuitPython 8, there is support for a settings.toml file. This is a file that is stored on your CIRCUITPY drive, that contains all of your secret network information, such as your SSID, SSID password and any API keys for IoT services. It is designed to separate your sensitive information from your code.py file so you are able to share your code without sharing your credentials.

CircuitPython previously used a secrets.py file for this purpose. The settings.toml file is quite similar.

Your settings.toml file should be stored in the main directory of your CIRCUITPY drive. It should not be in a folder.

CircuitPython settings.toml File

This section will provide a couple of examples of what your settings.toml file should look like, specifically for CircuitPython WiFi projects in general.

The most minimal settings.toml file must contain your WiFi SSID and password, as that is the minimum required to connect to WiFi. Copy this example, paste it into your settings.toml, and update:

  • your_wifi_ssid
  • your_wifi_password
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CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID = "your_wifi_ssid"
CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD = "your_wifi_password"

Many CircuitPython network-connected projects on the Adafruit Learn System involve using Adafruit IO. For these projects, you must also include your Adafruit IO username and key. Copy the following example, paste it into your settings.toml file, and update:

  • your_wifi_ssid
  • your_wifi_password
  • your_aio_username
  • your_aio_key
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CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID = "your_wifi_ssid"
CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD = "your_wifi_password"
ADAFRUIT_AIO_USERNAME = "your_aio_username"
ADAFRUIT_AIO_KEY = "your_aio_key"

Some projects use different variable names for the entries in the settings.toml file. For example, a project might use ADAFRUIT_AIO_ID in the place of ADAFRUIT_AIO_USERNAME. If you run into connectivity issues, one of the first things to check is that the names in the settings.toml file match the names in the code.

Not every project uses the same variable name for each entry in the settings.toml file! Always verify it matches the code.

settings.toml File Tips

Here is an example settings.toml file.

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# Comments are supported
CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID = "guest wifi"
CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD = "guessable"
CIRCUITPY_WEB_API_PORT = 80
CIRCUITPY_WEB_API_PASSWORD = "passw0rd"
test_variable = "this is a test"
thumbs_up = "\U0001f44d"

In a settings.toml file, it's important to keep these factors in mind:

  • Strings are wrapped in double quotes; ex: "your-string-here"
  • Integers are not quoted and may be written in decimal with optional sign (+1, -1, 1000) or hexadecimal (0xabcd).
    • Floats, octal (0o567) and binary (0b11011) are not supported.
  • Use \u escapes for weird characters, \x and \ooo escapes are not available in .toml files
    • Example: \U0001f44d for 👍 (thumbs up emoji) and \u20ac for € (EUR sign)
  • Unicode emoji, and non-ASCII characters, stand for themselves as long as you're careful to save in "UTF-8 without BOM" format
adafruit_products_dotToml.jpg

 

 

When your settings.toml file is ready, you can save it in your text editor with the .toml extension.

Accessing Your settings.toml Information in code.py

In your code.py file, you'll need to import the os library to access the settings.toml file. Your settings are accessed with the os.getenv() function. You'll pass your settings entry to the function to import it into the code.py file.

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import os

print(os.getenv("test_variable"))
adafruit_products_tomlOutput.jpg

In the upcoming CircuitPython WiFi examples, you'll see how the settings.toml file is used for connecting to your SSID and accessing your API keys.

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Internet Connect!

Connect to WiFi

OK, now that you have your settings.toml file set up - you can connect to the Internet.

To do this, you need to first install a few libraries, into the lib folder on your CIRCUITPY drive. Then you need to update code.py with the example script.

Thankfully, we can do this in one go. In the example below, click the Download Project Bundle button below to download the necessary libraries and the code.py file in a zip file. Extract the contents of the zip file, open the directory examples/ and then click on the directory that matches the version of CircuitPython you're using and copy the contents of that directory to your CIRCUITPY drive.

Your CIRCUITPY drive should now look similar to the following image:

CIRCUITPY

If you are using CircuitPython 9.0.x on a board with frozen libraries, such the Matrix Portal M4, use this version of the "Internet Connect" program. If you are using CircuitPython 9.1.0 or later, use the second version below.
Download Project Bundle
Copy Code 
# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2019 ladyada for Adafruit Industries
# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT

from os import getenv
import board
import busio
from digitalio import DigitalInOut
import adafruit_connection_manager
import adafruit_requests
from adafruit_esp32spi import adafruit_esp32spi

# Get wifi details and more from a settings.toml file
# tokens used by this Demo: CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID, CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD
secrets = {
    "ssid": getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID"),
    "password": getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD"),
}
if secrets == {"ssid": None, "password": None}:
    try:
        # Fallback on secrets.py until depreciation is over and option is removed
        from secrets import secrets
    except ImportError:
        print("WiFi secrets are kept in settings.toml, please add them there!")
        raise

print("ESP32 SPI webclient test")

TEXT_URL = "http://wifitest.adafruit.com/testwifi/index.html"
JSON_URL = "http://api.coindesk.com/v1/bpi/currentprice/USD.json"


# If you are using a board with pre-defined ESP32 Pins:
esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_CS)
esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_BUSY)
esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_RESET)

# If you have an AirLift Shield:
# esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.D10)
# esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.D7)
# esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.D5)

# If you have an AirLift Featherwing or ItsyBitsy Airlift:
# esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.D13)
# esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.D11)
# esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.D12)

# If you have an externally connected ESP32:
# NOTE: You may need to change the pins to reflect your wiring
# esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.D9)
# esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.D10)
# esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.D5)

# Secondary (SCK1) SPI used to connect to WiFi board on Arduino Nano Connect RP2040
if "SCK1" in dir(board):
    spi = busio.SPI(board.SCK1, board.MOSI1, board.MISO1)
else:
    spi = busio.SPI(board.SCK, board.MOSI, board.MISO)
esp = adafruit_esp32spi.ESP_SPIcontrol(spi, esp32_cs, esp32_ready, esp32_reset)

pool = adafruit_connection_manager.get_radio_socketpool(esp)
ssl_context = adafruit_connection_manager.get_radio_ssl_context(esp)
requests = adafruit_requests.Session(pool, ssl_context)

if esp.status == adafruit_esp32spi.WL_IDLE_STATUS:
    print("ESP32 found and in idle mode")
print("Firmware vers.", esp.firmware_version.decode("utf-8"))
print("MAC addr:", ":".join("%02X" % byte for byte in esp.MAC_address))

for ap in esp.scan_networks():
    print("\t%-23s RSSI: %d" % (str(ap["ssid"], "utf-8"), ap["rssi"]))

print("Connecting to AP...")
while not esp.is_connected:
    try:
        esp.connect_AP(secrets["ssid"], secrets["password"])
    except OSError as e:
        print("could not connect to AP, retrying: ", e)
        continue
print("Connected to", str(esp.ssid, "utf-8"), "\tRSSI:", esp.rssi)
print("My IP address is", esp.pretty_ip(esp.ip_address))
print(
    "IP lookup adafruit.com: %s" % esp.pretty_ip(esp.get_host_by_name("adafruit.com"))
)
print("Ping google.com: %d ms" % esp.ping("google.com"))

# esp._debug = True
print("Fetching text from", TEXT_URL)
r = requests.get(TEXT_URL)
print("-" * 40)
print(r.text)
print("-" * 40)
r.close()

print()
print("Fetching json from", JSON_URL)
r = requests.get(JSON_URL)
print("-" * 40)
print(r.json())
print("-" * 40)
r.close()

print("Done!")
View on GitHub

If you are using CircuitPython 9.1.0, or using the latest version of the ESP32SPI library, using the version below. If you are using CircuitPython 9.0.x on a board with frozen libraries, such as the Matrix Portal M4, use the first version above.
Download Project Bundle
Copy Code 
# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2019 ladyada for Adafruit Industries
# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT

from os import getenv
import board
import busio
from digitalio import DigitalInOut
import adafruit_connection_manager
import adafruit_requests
from adafruit_esp32spi import adafruit_esp32spi

# Get wifi details and more from a settings.toml file
# tokens used by this Demo: CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID, CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD
secrets = {
    "ssid": getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID"),
    "password": getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD"),
}
if secrets == {"ssid": None, "password": None}:
    try:
        # Fallback on secrets.py until depreciation is over and option is removed
        from secrets import secrets
    except ImportError:
        print("WiFi secrets are kept in settings.toml, please add them there!")
        raise

print("ESP32 SPI webclient test")

TEXT_URL = "http://wifitest.adafruit.com/testwifi/index.html"
JSON_URL = "http://api.coindesk.com/v1/bpi/currentprice/USD.json"


# If you are using a board with pre-defined ESP32 Pins:
esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_CS)
esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_BUSY)
esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_RESET)

# If you have an AirLift Shield:
# esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.D10)
# esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.D7)
# esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.D5)

# If you have an AirLift Featherwing or ItsyBitsy Airlift:
# esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.D13)
# esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.D11)
# esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.D12)

# If you have an externally connected ESP32:
# NOTE: You may need to change the pins to reflect your wiring
# esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.D9)
# esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.D10)
# esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.D5)

# Secondary (SCK1) SPI used to connect to WiFi board on Arduino Nano Connect RP2040
if "SCK1" in dir(board):
    spi = busio.SPI(board.SCK1, board.MOSI1, board.MISO1)
else:
    spi = busio.SPI(board.SCK, board.MOSI, board.MISO)
esp = adafruit_esp32spi.ESP_SPIcontrol(spi, esp32_cs, esp32_ready, esp32_reset)

pool = adafruit_connection_manager.get_radio_socketpool(esp)
ssl_context = adafruit_connection_manager.get_radio_ssl_context(esp)
requests = adafruit_requests.Session(pool, ssl_context)

if esp.status == adafruit_esp32spi.WL_IDLE_STATUS:
    print("ESP32 found and in idle mode")
print("Firmware vers.", esp.firmware_version)
print("MAC addr:", ":".join("%02X" % byte for byte in esp.MAC_address))

for ap in esp.scan_networks():
    print("\t%-23s RSSI: %d" % (ap.ssid, ap.rssi))

print("Connecting to AP...")
while not esp.is_connected:
    try:
        esp.connect_AP(secrets["ssid"], secrets["password"])
    except OSError as e:
        print("could not connect to AP, retrying: ", e)
        continue
print("Connected to", esp.ap_info.ssid, "\tRSSI:", esp.ap_info.rssi)
print("My IP address is", esp.ipv4_address)
print(
    "IP lookup adafruit.com: %s" % esp.pretty_ip(esp.get_host_by_name("adafruit.com"))
)
print("Ping google.com: %d ms" % esp.ping("google.com"))

# esp._debug = True
print("Fetching text from", TEXT_URL)
r = requests.get(TEXT_URL)
print("-" * 40)
print(r.text)
print("-" * 40)
r.close()

print()
print("Fetching json from", JSON_URL)
r = requests.get(JSON_URL)
print("-" * 40)
print(r.json())
print("-" * 40)
r.close()

print("Done!")
View on GitHub

And save it to your board, with the name code.py.

Don't forget you'll also need to create the settings.toml file as seen above, with your WiFi ssid and password.

In a serial console, you should see something like the following. For more information about connecting with a serial console, view the guide Connecting to the Serial Console.

circuitpython_image.png

In order, the example code...

Initializes the ESP32 over SPI using the SPI port and 3 control pins:

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esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_CS)
esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_BUSY)
esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_RESET)

#...

else:
    spi = busio.SPI(board.SCK, board.MOSI, board.MISO)
esp = adafruit_esp32spi.ESP_SPIcontrol(spi, esp32_cs, esp32_ready, esp32_reset)

Gets the socket pool and the SSL context, and then tells the adafruit_requests library about them.

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pool = adafruit_connection_manager.get_radio_socketpool(esp)
ssl_context = adafruit_connection_manager.get_radio_ssl_context(esp)
requests = adafruit_requests.Session(pool, ssl_context)

Verifies an ESP32 is found, checks the firmware and MAC address

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if esp.status == adafruit_esp32spi.WL_IDLE_STATUS:
    print("ESP32 found and in idle mode")
print("Firmware vers.", esp.firmware_version)
print("MAC addr:", [hex(i) for i in esp.MAC_address])

Performs a scan of all access points it can see and prints out the name and signal strength:

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for ap in esp.scan_networks():
    print("\t%s\t\tRSSI: %d" % (str(ap['ssid'], 'utf-8'), ap['rssi']))

Connects to the AP we've defined here, then prints out the local IP address, attempts to do a domain name lookup and ping google.com to check network connectivity (note sometimes the ping fails or takes a while, this isn't a big deal)

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print("Connecting to AP...")
while not esp.is_connected:
    try:
        esp.connect_AP(secrets["ssid"], secrets["password"])
    except RuntimeError as e:
        print("could not connect to AP, retrying: ", e)
        continue
print("Connected to", str(esp.ssid, "utf-8"), "\tRSSI:", esp.rssi)
print("My IP address is", esp.pretty_ip(esp.ip_address))
print(
    "IP lookup adafruit.com: %s" % esp.pretty_ip(esp.get_host_by_name("adafruit.com"))

OK now we're getting to the really interesting part. With a SAMD51 or other large-RAM (well, over 32 KB) device, we can do a lot of neat tricks. Like for example we can implement an interface a lot like requests - which makes getting data really really easy

To read in all the text from a web URL call requests.get - you can pass in https URLs for SSL connectivity

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TEXT_URL = "http://wifitest.adafruit.com/testwifi/index.html"
print("Fetching text from", TEXT_URL)
r = requests.get(TEXT_URL)
print('-'*40)
print(r.text)
print('-'*40)
r.close()

Or, if the data is in structured JSON, you can get the json pre-parsed into a Python dictionary that can be easily queried or traversed. (Again, only for nRF52840, M4 and other high-RAM boards)

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JSON_URL = "http://api.coindesk.com/v1/bpi/currentprice/USD.json"
print("Fetching json from", JSON_URL)
r = requests.get(JSON_URL)
print('-'*40)
print(r.json())
print('-'*40)
r.close()

Requests

We've written a requests-like library for web interfacing named Adafruit_CircuitPython_Requests. This library allows you to send HTTP/1.1 requests without "crafting" them and provides helpful methods for parsing the response from the server.

To use with CircuitPython, you need to first install a few libraries, into the lib folder on your CIRCUITPY drive. Then you need to update code.py with the example script.

Thankfully, we can do this in one go. In the example below, click the Download Project Bundle button below to download the necessary libraries and the code.py file in a zip file. Extract the contents of the zip file, open the directory examples/ and then click on the directory that matches the version of CircuitPython you're using and copy the contents of that directory to your CIRCUITPY drive.

Your CIRCUITPY drive should now look similar to the following image:

CIRCUITPY
Download Project Bundle
Copy Code 
Temporarily unable to load content:
View on GitHub

The code first sets up the ESP32SPI interface. Then, it initializes a request object using an ESP32 socket and the esp object.

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import board
import busio
from digitalio import DigitalInOut
import adafruit_esp32spi.adafruit_esp32spi_socket as socket
from adafruit_esp32spi import adafruit_esp32spi
import adafruit_connection_manager
import adafruit_requests as requests

# If you are using a board with pre-defined ESP32 Pins:
esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_CS)
esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_BUSY)
esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_RESET)

# If you have an externally connected ESP32:
# esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.D9)
# esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.D10)
# esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.D5)

spi = busio.SPI(board.SCK, board.MOSI, board.MISO)
esp = adafruit_esp32spi.ESP_SPIcontrol(spi, esp32_cs, esp32_ready, esp32_reset)

print("Connecting to AP...")
while not esp.is_connected:
    try:
        esp.connect_AP(b'MY_SSID_NAME', b'MY_SSID_PASSWORD')
    except RuntimeError as e:
        print("could not connect to AP, retrying: ",e)
        continue
print("Connected to", str(esp.ssid, 'utf-8'), "\tRSSI:", esp.rssi)

pool = adafruit_connection_manager.get_radio_socketpool(esp)
ssl_context = adafruit_connection_manager.get_radio_ssl_context(esp)
requests = adafruit_requests.Session(pool, ssl_context)

HTTP GET with Requests

The code makes a HTTP GET request to Adafruit's WiFi testing website - http://wifitest.adafruit.com/testwifi/index.html.

To do this, we'll pass the URL into requests.get(). We're also going to save the response from the server into a variable named response.

Having requested data from the server, we'd now like to see what the server responded with. Since we already saved the server's response, we can read it back. Luckily for us, requests automatically decodes the server's response into human-readable text, you can read it back by calling response.text.

Lastly, we'll perform a bit of cleanup by calling response.close(). This closes, deletes, and collect's the response's data. 

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print("Fetching text from %s"%TEXT_URL)
response = requests.get(TEXT_URL)
print('-'*40)

print("Text Response: ", response.text)
print('-'*40)
response.close()

While some servers respond with text, some respond with json-formatted data consisting of attribute–value pairs.

CircuitPython_Requests can convert a JSON-formatted response from a server into a CPython dict. object.

We can also fetch and parse json data. We'll send a HTTP get to a url we know returns a json-formatted response (instead of text data). 

Then, the code calls response.json() to convert the response to a CPython dict. 

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print("Fetching JSON data from %s"%JSON_GET_URL)
response = requests.get(JSON_GET_URL)
print('-'*40)

print("JSON Response: ", response.json())
print('-'*40)
response.close()

HTTP POST with Requests

Requests can also POST data to a server by calling the requests.post method, passing it a data value.

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data = '31F'
print("POSTing data to {0}: {1}".format(JSON_POST_URL, data))
response = requests.post(JSON_POST_URL, data=data)
print('-'*40)

json_resp = response.json()
# Parse out the 'data' key from json_resp dict.
print("Data received from server:", json_resp['data'])
print('-'*40)
response.close()

You can also post json-formatted data to a server by passing json_data into the requests.post method.

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    json_data = {"Date" : "July 25, 2019"}
print("POSTing data to {0}: {1}".format(JSON_POST_URL, json_data))
response = requests.post(JSON_POST_URL, json=json_data)
print('-'*40)

json_resp = response.json()
# Parse out the 'json' key from json_resp dict.
print("JSON Data received from server:", json_resp['json'])
print('-'*40)
response.close()

Advanced Requests Usage

Want to send custom HTTP headers, parse the response as raw bytes, or handle a response's http status code in your CircuitPython code?

We've written an example to show advanced usage of the requests module below.

To use with CircuitPython, you need to first install a few libraries, into the lib folder on your CIRCUITPY drive. Then you need to update code.py with the example script.

Thankfully, we can do this in one go. In the example below, click the Download Project Bundle button below to download the necessary libraries and the code.py file in a zip file. Extract the contents of the zip file, open the directory examples/ and then click on the directory that matches the version of CircuitPython you're using and copy the contents of that directory to your CIRCUITPY drive.

Your CIRCUITPY drive should now look similar to the following image:

CIRCUITPY
Download Project Bundle
Copy Code 
Temporarily unable to load content:
View on GitHub

WiFi Manager

That simpletest example works but it's a little finicky - you need to constantly check WiFi status and have many loops to manage connections and disconnections. For more advanced uses, we recommend using the WiFiManager object. It will wrap the connection/status/requests loop for you - reconnecting if WiFi drops, resetting the ESP32 if it gets into a bad state, etc.

Here's a more advanced example that shows the WiFi manager and also how to POST data with some extra headers:

To use with CircuitPython, you need to first install a few libraries, into the lib folder on your CIRCUITPY drive. Then you need to update code.py with the example script.

Thankfully, we can do this in one go. In the example below, click the Download Project Bundle button below to download the necessary libraries and the code.py file in a zip file. Extract the contents of the zip file, open the directory examples/ and then click on the directory that matches the version of CircuitPython you're using and copy the contents of that directory to your CIRCUITPY drive.

Your CIRCUITPY drive should now look similar to the following image:

CIRCUITPY
Download Project Bundle
Copy Code 
# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2019 ladyada for Adafruit Industries
# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT

import time
from os import getenv
import board
import busio
from digitalio import DigitalInOut
import neopixel
from adafruit_esp32spi import adafruit_esp32spi
from adafruit_esp32spi import adafruit_esp32spi_wifimanager

print("ESP32 SPI webclient test")

# Get wifi details and more from a settings.toml file
# tokens used by this Demo: CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID, CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD
#                           CIRCUITPY_AIO_USERNAME, CIRCUITPY_AIO_KEY
secrets = {}
for token in ["ssid", "password"]:
    if getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_" + token.upper()):
        secrets[token] = getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_" + token.upper())
for token in ["aio_username", "aio_key"]:
    if getenv("CIRCUITPY_" + token.upper()):
        secrets[token] = getenv("CIRCUITPY_" + token.upper())

if not secrets:
    try:
        # Fallback on secrets.py until depreciation is over and option is removed
        from secrets import secrets
    except ImportError:
        print("WiFi secrets are kept in settings.toml, please add them there!")
        raise

# If you are using a board with pre-defined ESP32 Pins:
esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_CS)
esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_BUSY)
esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_RESET)

# If you have an externally connected ESP32:
# esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.D9)
# esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.D10)
# esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.D5)

# Secondary (SCK1) SPI used to connect to WiFi board on Arduino Nano Connect RP2040
if "SCK1" in dir(board):
    spi = busio.SPI(board.SCK1, board.MOSI1, board.MISO1)
else:
    spi = busio.SPI(board.SCK, board.MOSI, board.MISO)
esp = adafruit_esp32spi.ESP_SPIcontrol(spi, esp32_cs, esp32_ready, esp32_reset)
"""Use below for Most Boards"""
status_light = neopixel.NeoPixel(board.NEOPIXEL, 1, brightness=0.2)
"""Uncomment below for ItsyBitsy M4"""
# status_light = dotstar.DotStar(board.APA102_SCK, board.APA102_MOSI, 1, brightness=0.2)
"""Uncomment below for an externally defined RGB LED (including Arduino Nano Connect)"""
# import adafruit_rgbled
# from adafruit_esp32spi import PWMOut
# RED_LED = PWMOut.PWMOut(esp, 26)
# GREEN_LED = PWMOut.PWMOut(esp, 27)
# BLUE_LED = PWMOut.PWMOut(esp, 25)
# status_light = adafruit_rgbled.RGBLED(RED_LED, BLUE_LED, GREEN_LED)

wifi = adafruit_esp32spi_wifimanager.ESPSPI_WiFiManager(esp, secrets, status_light)

counter = 0

while True:
    try:
        print("Posting data...", end="")
        data = counter
        feed = "test"
        payload = {"value": data}
        response = wifi.post(
            "https://io.adafruit.com/api/v2/"
            + secrets["aio_username"]
            + "/feeds/"
            + feed
            + "/data",
            json=payload,
            headers={"X-AIO-KEY": secrets["aio_key"]},
        )
        print(response.json())
        response.close()
        counter = counter + 1
        print("OK")
    except OSError as e:
        print("Failed to get data, retrying\n", e)
        wifi.reset()
        continue
    response = None
    time.sleep(15)
View on GitHub

You'll note here we use a secrets.py file to manage our SSID info. The wifimanager is given the ESP32 object, secrets and a neopixel for status indication.

Note, you'll need to add a some additional information to your secrets file so that the code can query the Adafruit IO API:

  • aio_username
  • aio_key

You can go to your adafruit.io View AIO Key link to get those two values and add them to the secrets file, which will now look something like this:

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Copy Code 
# This file is where you keep secret settings, passwords, and tokens!
# If you put them in the code you risk committing that info or sharing it

secrets = {
    'ssid' : '_your_ssid_',
    'password' : '_your_wifi_password_',
    'timezone' : "America/Los_Angeles", # http://worldtimeapi.org/timezones
    'aio_username' : '_your_aio_username_',
    'aio_key' : '_your_aio_key_',
    }

Next, set up an Adafruit IO feed named test

We can then have a simple loop for posting data to Adafruit IO without having to deal with connecting or initializing the hardware!

Take a look at your test feed on Adafruit.io and you'll see the value increase each time the CircuitPython board posts data to it!

circuitpython_feedstest.jpg

For more information on the basics of doing networking in CircuitPython, see this guide:

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Code PyPortal with CircuitPython

Obtain your LIFX Access Token

All requests to the LIFX bulbs require an access token. Obtaining one is simple!

internet_of_things___iot_LIFX_Cloud.png
internet_of_things___iot_LIFX_Cloud.png
internet_of_things___iot_TOKEN.png

Navigate to the LIFX account settings page, name your access token something unique, and click generate.

Then, copy this token to a file or somewhere safe - you will not be able to view it again when you navigate away from this page.

CircuitPython Library Installation

First make sure you are running the latest version of Adafruit CircuitPython for your board.

Next you'll need to install the necessary libraries to use the hardware--carefully follow the steps to find and install these libraries from Adafruit's CircuitPython library bundle matching your version of CircuitPython. PyPortal requires at least CircuitPython version 4.0.0.

Before continuing make sure your board's lib folder has the following files and folders copied over.

  • adafruit_lifx
  • adafruit_bitmap_font
  • adafruit_bus_device
  • adafruit_button
  • adafruit_display_shapes
  • adafruit_display_text
  • adafruit_esp32spi
  • adafruit_touchscreen
  • neopixel

Add the LIFX Access Token you generated to to your settings.toml file:

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CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID = "your_wifi_ssid"
CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD = "your_wifi_password"
LIFX_TOKEN = "_your_really_long_lifx_token_"

Add CircuitPython Code and Project Assets

In the embedded code element below, click on the Download Project Bundle button, and save the .zip archive file to your computer.

Then, uncompress the .zip file, it will unpack to a folder named pyportal_lifx_controller.

Copy the contents of the pyportal_lifx_controller directory to your PyPortal CIRCUITPY drive.

Download Project Bundle
Copy Code 
# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2019 Brent Rubell for Adafruit Industries
#
# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT

"""
PyPortal Smart Lighting Controller
-------------------------------------------------------------
https://learn.adafruit.com/pyportal-smart-lighting-controller

Brent Rubell for Adafruit Industries, 2019
"""
import os

import board
import displayio
from adafruit_bitmap_font import bitmap_font
from adafruit_button import Button
import adafruit_touchscreen
from digitalio import DigitalInOut

import busio
import neopixel
from adafruit_esp32spi import adafruit_esp32spi
from adafruit_esp32spi import adafruit_esp32spi_wifimanager

# import lifx library
import adafruit_lifx

secrets = {
  "ssid" : os.getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_SSID"),
  "password" : os.getenv("CIRCUITPY_WIFI_PASSWORD"),
}

# ESP32 SPI
esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_CS)
esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_BUSY)
esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_RESET)
spi = busio.SPI(board.SCK, board.MOSI, board.MISO)
esp = adafruit_esp32spi.ESP_SPIcontrol(spi, esp32_cs, esp32_ready, esp32_reset)
status_light = neopixel.NeoPixel(board.NEOPIXEL, 1, brightness=0.2)
wifi = adafruit_esp32spi_wifimanager.ESPSPI_WiFiManager(esp, secrets, status_light)

# These pins are used as both analog and digital! XL, XR and YU must be analog
# and digital capable. YD just need to be digital
ts = adafruit_touchscreen.Touchscreen(board.TOUCH_XL, board.TOUCH_XR,
                                      board.TOUCH_YD, board.TOUCH_YU,
                                      calibration=((5200, 59000), (5800, 57000)),
                                      size=(320, 240))

# Set this to your LIFX personal access token in settings.toml
# (to obtain a token, visit: https://cloud.lifx.com/settings)
lifx_token = os.getenv("LIFX_TOKEN")

# Initialize the LIFX API Helper
lifx = adafruit_lifx.LIFX(wifi, lifx_token)

# Set these to your LIFX light selector (https://api.developer.lifx.com/docs/selectors)
lifx_lights = ['label:Lamp', 'label:Bedroom']
# set default light properties
current_light = lifx_lights[0]
light_brightness = 1.0

# Make the display context
button_group = displayio.Group()
board.DISPLAY.root_group = button_group
# preload the font
print('loading font...')
font = bitmap_font.load_font("/fonts/Arial-12.bdf")
glyphs = b'0123456789abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ-,.: '
font.load_glyphs(glyphs)
# button properties
BUTTON_WIDTH = 60
BUTTON_HEIGHT = 60
buttons = []

# button fill colors (from https://api.developer.lifx.com/docs/colors)
button_colors = {'red':0xFF0000, 'white':0xFFFFFF,
                 'orange':0xFF9900, 'yellow':0xFFFF00,
                 'green':0x00FF00, 'blue':0x0000FF,
                 'purple':0x9900FF, 'pink': 0xFF00FF}

print('loading buttons...')

# list of color buttons and their properties
color_btn = [
    {'name':'red', 'pos':(15, 80), 'color':button_colors['red']},
    {'name':'white', 'pos':(85, 80), 'color':button_colors['white']},
    {'name':'orange', 'pos':(155, 80), 'color':button_colors['orange']},
    {'name':'yellow', 'pos':(225, 80), 'color':button_colors['yellow']},
    {'name':'pink', 'pos':(15, 155), 'color':button_colors['pink']},
    {'name':'green', 'pos':(85, 155), 'color':button_colors['green']},
    {'name':'blue', 'pos':(155, 155), 'color':button_colors['blue']},
    {'name':'purple', 'pos':(225, 155), 'color':button_colors['purple']}
]

# generate color buttons from color_btn list
for i in color_btn:
    button = Button(x=i['pos'][0], y=i['pos'][1],
                    width=BUTTON_WIDTH, height=BUTTON_HEIGHT, name=i['name'],
                    fill_color=i['color'], style=Button.ROUNDRECT)
    buttons.append(button)

# light property buttons and their properties
prop_btn = [
    {'name':'onoff', 'pos':(15, 15), 'label':'on/off'},
    {'name':'up', 'pos':(75, 15), 'label':'+'},
    {'name':'down', 'pos':(135, 15), 'label':'-'},
    {'name':'lamp', 'pos':(195, 15), 'label':'lamp'},
    {'name':'room', 'pos':(245, 15), 'label':'room'}
]

# generate property buttons from prop_btn list
for i in prop_btn:
    button = Button(name=i['name'], x=i['pos'][0], y=i['pos'][1],
                    width=40, height=40, label=i['label'],
                    label_font=font, style=Button.SHADOWROUNDRECT)
    buttons.append(button)

# add buttons to the group
for b in buttons:
    button_group.append(b.group)

while True:
    touch = ts.touch_point
    if touch:
        for i, button in enumerate(buttons):
            if button.contains(touch):
                button.selected = True
                if button.name == 'lamp':
                    current_light = lifx_lights[0]
                    print('Switching to ', current_light)
                elif button.name == 'room':
                    current_light = lifx_lights[1]
                    print('Switching to ', current_light)
                elif button.name == 'onoff':
                    print('Toggling {0}...'.format(current_light))
                    lifx.toggle_light(current_light)
                elif button.name == 'up':
                    light_brightness += 0.25
                    print('Setting {0} brightness to {1}'.format(current_light, light_brightness))
                    lifx.set_brightness(current_light, light_brightness)
                elif button.name == 'down':
                    light_brightness -= 0.25
                    print('Setting {0} brightness to {1}'.format(current_light, light_brightness))
                    lifx.set_brightness(current_light, light_brightness)
                else:
                    print('Setting {0} color to {1}'.format(current_light, button.name))
                    lifx.set_color(current_light, 'on', button.name, light_brightness)
                button.selected = False
            else:
                button.selected = False
View on GitHub

This is what the final contents of the CIRCUITPY drive will look like:

CIRCUITPY

Setup Code

Before you can use the code, you'll need to modify the code.py file to add a label specifying which light you're controlling.

LIFX uses an identifier called a selector to identify the lights associated with your account. With a selector, you can use the light's unique identifier, location (bedroom, workbench, living room) or lighting groups. For simplicity, this guide assumes that you will be using a label as a selector.

internet_of_things___iot_Pasted_Image_3_22_19__11_38_AM.png
internet_of_things___iot_Pasted_Image_3_22_19__11_38_AM.png
internet_of_things___iot_IMG_3419.png

To find the bulb's label:

Navigate to the LIFX app and select the light you'd like to control.

Tap the gear icon to reveal the detailed settings of the light.

The Name of the light is the light's label. 

Next, modify the lifx_lights variable within code.py to include the label from the App.

For example, if you're adding a new LIFX bulb called workbench, change the code from

lifx_lights = ['label:lamp', 'label:Main Room']

to

lifx_lights = ['label:lamp', 'label:workbench']

Be sure to include label: before the name of your light.

For more information on using LIFX light selectors, check out their API documentation on this topic here.

Code Usage

internet_of_things___iot_IMG_7651.jpg

From the Mu Editor, click the Serial button to open the REPL. You should see the REPL display the code's status as it loads the interface.

Select a light by tapping the name of the light you'd like to control. If none is selected, the code will default to the first light specified within the lifx_lights list.

Tap the on/off button to toggle the power of the light you selected. Keep in mind that LIFX lights save state - if your light was previously set to red and turned off, it'll turn on with the same color.

  • Buttons invert their color while they make a request to the LIFX API. Once the request is complete, the button changes back to its original color. 
  • If you're having issues with your light not responding: scroll down to the Diagnosing Errors section below.

Tapping a color button will set the light to the button's fill color with the brightness specified by the + or - buttons.

Next up, we'll take a look at the code you loaded onto your PyPortal

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Code Walkthrough

Importing Libraries

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import board
import displayio
from adafruit_bitmap_font import bitmap_font
from adafruit_button import Button
import adafruit_touchscreen
from digitalio import DigitalInOut

import busio
import neopixel
from adafruit_esp32spi import adafruit_esp32spi
from adafruit_esp32spi import adafruit_esp32spi_wifimanager

# import lifx library
import adafruit_lifx

The code first imports all of the libraries required to run the Smart Lighting Controller. 

Note that the code imports a special adafruit_lifx library. To communicate with the LIFX API, we wrote a CircuitPython helper module called CircuitPython_LIFX. This module makes HTTP requests ( or, "talks") to the LIFX API server in order to interact with the bulbs.

Configuring the PyPortal

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# ESP32 SPI
esp32_cs = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_CS)
esp32_ready = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_BUSY)
esp32_reset = DigitalInOut(board.ESP_RESET)
spi = busio.SPI(board.SCK, board.MOSI, board.MISO)
esp = adafruit_esp32spi.ESP_SPIcontrol(spi, esp32_cs, esp32_ready, esp32_reset)
status_light = neopixel.NeoPixel(board.NEOPIXEL, 1, brightness=0.2)
wifi = adafruit_esp32spi_wifimanager.ESPSPI_WiFiManager(esp, secrets, status_light)

# These pins are used as both analog and digital! XL, XR and YU must be analog
# and digital capable. YD just need to be digital
ts = adafruit_touchscreen.Touchscreen(board.TOUCH_XL, board.TOUCH_XR,
                                      board.TOUCH_YD, board.TOUCH_YU,
                                      calibration=((5200, 59000), (5800, 57000)),
                                      size=(320, 240))

The next chunk of code grabs information from a secrets.py file including wifi configuration and your LIFX Access Token. Then, it sets up the ESP32's SPI connections for use with the PyPortal. The wifi object is set up here too - it's used later in the code to communicate with the LIFX API. 

Configuring the LIFX Helper Module

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# Set this to your LIFX personal access token in secrets.py
# (to obtain a token, visit: https://cloud.lifx.com/settings)
lifx_token = secrets['lifx_token']

# Initialize the LIFX API Helper
lifx = adafruit_lifx.LIFX(wifi, lifx_token)

# Set these to your LIFX light selector (https://api.developer.lifx.com/docs/selectors)
lifx_lights = ['label:Lamp', 'label:Bedroom']
# set default light properties
current_light = lifx_lights[0]
light_brightness = 1.0

The lifx_token entry within secrets is set to a new variable, lifx_token, and passed into the LIFX helper along with the wifi object created earlier.

Then, the code sets up a list of two lights (identified by their selectors). Later in this code, these lights are linked to buttons so the code can identify which light is being toggled. 

Also, a default light brightness of 100% is set, along with a current_light variable used to track the light being addressed.

Button Setup

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# Make the display context
button_group = displayio.Group()
board.DISPLAY.root_group = button_group
# preload the font
print('loading font...')
font = bitmap_font.load_font("/fonts/Arial-12.bdf")
glyphs = b'0123456789abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ-,.: '
font.load_glyphs(glyphs)
# button properties
BUTTON_WIDTH = 60
BUTTON_HEIGHT = 60
buttons = []

Before the code can create buttons, it needs to create a displayio group to hold them. Here - the code selects a font, preloads it with glyphs, and sets button properties for BUTTON_WIDTH and BUTTON_HEIGHT.

Button Generation

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# list of color buttons and their properties
color_btn = [
    {'name':'red', 'pos':(15, 80), 'color':button_colors['red']},
    {'name':'white', 'pos':(85, 80), 'color':button_colors['white']},
    {'name':'orange', 'pos':(155, 80), 'color':button_colors['orange']},
    {'name':'yellow', 'pos':(225, 80), 'color':button_colors['yellow']},
    {'name':'pink', 'pos':(15, 155), 'color':button_colors['pink']},
    {'name':'green', 'pos':(85, 155), 'color':button_colors['green']},
    {'name':'blue', 'pos':(155, 155), 'color':button_colors['blue']},
    {'name':'purple', 'pos':(225, 155), 'color':button_colors['purple']}
]

# generate color buttons from color_btn list
for i in color_btn:
    button = Button(x=i['pos'][0], y=i['pos'][1],
                    width=BUTTON_WIDTH, height=BUTTON_HEIGHT, name=i['name'],
                    fill_color=i['color'], style=Button.ROUNDRECT)
    buttons.append(button)

# light property buttons and their properties
prop_btn = [
    {'name':'onoff', 'pos':(15, 15), 'label':'on/off'},
    {'name':'up', 'pos':(75, 15), 'label':'+'},
    {'name':'down', 'pos':(135, 15), 'label':'-'},
    {'name':'lamp', 'pos':(195, 15), 'label':'lamp'},
    {'name':'room', 'pos':(245, 15), 'label':'room'}
]

# generate property buttons from prop_btn list
for i in prop_btn:
    button = Button(name=i['name'], x=i['pos'][0], y=i['pos'][1],
                    width=40, height=40, label=i['label'],
                    label_font=font, style=Button.SHADOWROUNDRECT)
    buttons.append(button)

# add buttons to the group
for b in buttons:
    button_group.append(b.group)

The next chunk of code creates buttons for the light colors and properties.

First, a list of dictionary items is created corresponding to button properties. The color_btn list contains information for the button such as the button's name, position on the display, and hex color value. The prop_btn list contains the button's name, position and text label.

Then, buttons are generated from the list and appended to a button list. When all the buttons have been added to button list, they are appended to the displayio button_group one-by-one.

Main Loop

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while True:
    touch = ts.touch_point
    if touch:
        for i, button in enumerate(buttons):
            if button.contains(touch):
              button.selected = True

The main loop checks for if the screen was touched. If it was, it searches for which button in the button list was touched.

Once the button was determined, the button's selected property is toggled - inverting the button's color until the action is performed. By doing this, you are creating a visual status indicator.

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                if button.name == 'lamp':
                    current_light = lifx_lights[0]
                    print('Switching to ', current_light)
                elif button.name == 'room':
                    current_light = lifx_lights[1]
                    print('Switching to ', current_light)

Then, the code checks the button's name against its function (what it does). If the button's name is lamp or room, current_light is toggled to the value of the button.

Whenever the code in the main loop sends data to the LIFX API to perform an action on a light, it uses the current_light variable to select the light.

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                elif button.name == 'onoff':
                    print('Toggling {0}...'.format(current_light))
                    lifx.toggle_light(current_light)
                elif button.name == 'up':
                    light_brightness += 0.25
                    print('Setting {0} brightness to {1}'.format(current_light, light_brightness))
                    lifx.set_brightness(current_light, light_brightness)
                elif button.name == 'down':
                    light_brightness -= 0.25
                    print('Setting {0} brightness to {1}'.format(current_light, light_brightness))
                    lifx.set_brightness(current_light, light_brightness)
                else:
                    print('Setting {0} color to {1}'.format(current_light, button.name))
                    lifx.set_color(current_light, 'on', button.name, light_brightness)
                button.selected = False

The rest of the code performs an action based on the button's name by using the adafruit_lifx helper module. 

When the on/off button is pressed - the code calls lifx.toggle_light and passes in the current_light.

When the brightness button (+ or -) is pressed, the code passes the current_light and light_brightness into lifx.set_brightness. Also, the light_brightness increments or decrements by 1/4 each time the button is pressed.

If the button's name doesn't correspond to a predefined name, we set the color using the button's name as the color passed into lifx.set_color.

Finally, the code sets its selected property to false, returning it to its original color to indicate an action has been performed.

Going further!

This guide has only scratched the surface of the LIFX Light Remote HTTP API. There are lots more endpoints, options, and effects to play around with. If you are interested in seeing how this works (in a deeper level) - take a look at the adafruit_lifx.py file located in the helper library's repository. It might be helpful to keep the LIFX API website open in another tab, for reference. 

If you end up adding a feature to the library - pull requests on the GitHub repository are appreciated!

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PyPortal Twitter Follows Trophy
By John Park
4
Beginner
PyPortal Astronauts in Space
By John Park
3
Beginner
CircuitPython Twitter Viewer Using the Twitter API
By Dave Astels
8
Beginner
PyPortal Email Display with Zapier and Adafruit IO
By Brent Rubell
10
Beginner
PyPortal Philips Hue Lighting Controller
By Brent Rubell
28
Beginner
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