Laser Distance Measurement with ESP32 for Experiments

Owner: Kaveesha Abeysundara (SID: 201578163)

Project: Automated Tracking of Assembly Line-Side Flow Rack Parts

School of Mechanical Engineering
University of Leeds
LS2 9JT

Arduino code and experimental setup for measuring distances using a VL53L1X laser time-of-flight sensor on an ESP32 board.

Table of Contents

• About
• Hardware Setup
• Prerequisites
• Installation
• Usage
• Experimentation & Data Logging
• Repository Structure
• License
• Contact

About

This repository contains sketches and documentation for experiments with the VL53L1X laser time-of-flight (ToF) sensor on an ESP32. The code demonstrates how to initialize the sensor, perform range measurements and output timestamped distance readings over serial.

Full source code and wiring diagrams are available at laserexperimentcode on GitHub.

Hardware Setup

Connect the VL53L1X sensor to an ESP32 as follows:

Sensor Pin	ESP32 Pin	Description
VIN	5V	Sensor power
GND	GND	Ground
SDA	21	I2C data line
SCL	22	I2C clock line
XSHUT	19	Optional reset

Ensure 5 V and ground rails are common between sensor and ESP32.

Prerequisites

• Arduino IDE v1.8.10 or later
• ESP32 board support installed via Board Manager
• VL53L1X Arduino library (e.g., from Pololu or Adafruit)
• USB cable and ESP32 development board

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/kav12ab/laserexperimentcode.git
cd laserexperimentcode

2. Open laser_experiment.ino in the Arduino IDE.
3. Install the VL53L1X library if not already installed (Sketch → Include Library → Manage Libraries). Search for "VL53L1X" and install.

Usage

1. Select your ESP32 board and COM port in Arduino IDE.
2. Upload laser_experiment.ino to the board.
3. Open the Serial Monitor at 115200 baud.
4. Observe output lines in the format:

   <timestamp_ms>,<distance_mm>
   

5. Press the XSHUT pin low (via a jumper) to reset the sensor mid-run.

Experimentation & Data Logging

• Readings are printed every 100 ms by default. You can change the interval in the loop() function.
• To log data, copy the serial output to a CSV file or use a serial-to-file tool (e.g., PlatformIO Serial Monitor).

Repository Structure

laserexperimentcode/
├── .vscode/                           # JSON files for VSCODE Arduino Configuration
├── build/                             # Build logs, libraries and other files
├── laser.ino               # Main Arduino sketch
├── ESP32_VL53L1X_Wiring_Diagram.png   # Wiring Diagram
└── README.md                          # This file

License

All rights reserved.

This code and documentation are proprietary. You may not copy, modify, or distribute without permission.

Contact

Author: Kaveesha Abeysundara (SID: 201578163)

Open an issue at laserexperimentcode issues.