How to Run a 5V Device On a 3.3V System With Qwiic

Introduction

The SparkFun Qwiic AP3012K 5V Boost converts the logic-level and boost the voltage or power supply of the Qwiic connect system from 3.3V, to 5V on its PTH pins. This is handy for connecting any I²C device that requires a higher supply voltage, such as super bright LEDs or mechanisms like a DC fan on our air quality sensors. On the board, we also provide 3V3/5V jumpers, which can be used to configure the logic-levels of the I²C PTH pins. Therefore, this board can be utilized to connect an I²C device that requires any combination of 3.3V/5V for its power and/or signals.

SparkFun Qwiic 5V Boost - AP3012K

PRT-28203

The SparkFun Qwiic 5V Boost simplifies interfacing 5V I2C devices with the 3.3V Qwiic ecosystem. It takes the 3.3V I2C signal…

$8.95

In this guide we'll cover the hardware and how to utilize the Qwiic 5V Boost with the Sensirion SEN55 Sensor (but you can use the SEN54 or SPS30, instead). To follow along with this tutorial, users will need the following items:

• Thing Plus Development Board
  • We recommend either the ESP32 Thing Plus or the RP2350 Thing Plus.
• SparkFun Qwiic 5V Boost - AP3012K
• SparkFun Qwiic Cable Kit
• Sensirion SEN55 - Particle, VOC, NOx, Humidity, and Temperature Sensor
• Soldering tools
• Headers and jumper Wire
• USB cable

SparkFun Qwiic Cable Kit

KIT-15081

To make it even easier to get started, we've assembled this Qwiic Cable Kit with a variety of Qwiic cables from 50mm to 500mm…

$12.95

SparkFun Thing Plus - ESP32 WROOM (USB-C)

WRL-20168

The USB-C variant of ESP32 Thing Plus is a development board with WiFi, SPP, BLE, Qwiic connector, 21 I/O pins, RGB status LE…

$33.73

Sensirion Particle, VOC, Humidity, and Temperature Sensor - SEN55

SEN-23715

The SEN55 environmental node is a straightforward, all-in-one sensor solution platform for the accurate measurement of variou…

$36.95

SparkFun Qwiic 5V Boost - AP3012K

PRT-28203

The SparkFun Qwiic 5V Boost simplifies interfacing 5V I2C devices with the 3.3V Qwiic ecosystem. It takes the 3.3V I2C signal…

$8.95

Topics

This guide contains two main sections: Hardware Assembly and Quickstart Guide sub-sections.

• The Hardware Assembly section provides instructions to utilize this product with the Sensirion SEN55 Sensor.
• The Project Setup covers the basic hardware information and assembly instructions users would need to get started with this product.

If you are looking for the full Hookup Guide for the SparkFun Qwiic 5V Boost - AP3012K, click the button bellow. This basic tutorial only covers utilizing this Qwiic AP3012K 5V Boost to attach a SEN55 sensor to our Qwiic connect system.

Hardware Assembly

Breakout Pins

The PTH pins on the Qwiic 5V Boost are broken out into six 0.1"-pitched pins on the edge of the board. These pins are used to connect a 5V I2C device to the Qwiic connect system.

Headers are versatile option testing and development.	Users can also connect a device directly to the board.
Soldering headers to the Qwiic 5V Boost.	Soldering wires to the Qwiic 5V Boost.

Qwiic Connector

The simplest method to connect the Qwiic 5V Boost board to a microcontroller and/or other Qwiic devices, is through the Qwiic connector.

Project Setup

Board Layout

This is the basic layout of the Qwiic 5V Boost board.

SEN55 Particle Sensor

In this demo, we'll connect the Sensirion SEN55 particulate matter, VOC, NO_x, humidity, and temperature sensor to the Qwiic 5V Boost board; and read data from it with an ESP32 Thing Plus development board, utilizing the Arduino IDE.

Connect the Sensirion SEN55 Sensor

Soldering is required to connect the SEN55 sensor to the Qwiic 5V Boost board. In the example below, we used headers and a Qwiic jumper cable to make the necessary pin connections shown in the tables.

Once the sensor is attached, users will need to connect the Qwiic 5V Boost board to their development board with a Qwiic cable.

Example Code

With the hardware assembled, users will need to program their development board to retrieve data from the SEN5X sensor. In the Arduino IDE, upload the exampleUsage example sketch from the Sensirion I2C SEN5X Arduino library. This example will read the particulate matter, VOC, NO_x, humidity, and temperature values from the SEN5X sensor and output them in the Serial Monitor.

Follow the steps below to upload the example code:

• Open the Arduino IDE.
• Open the Library Manager tool, search for the Sensirion I²C SEN5X Arduino library and install the latest version.
• Open exampleUsage example sketch from the Sensirion I²C SEN5X Arduino library.
• Select your board and serial port; then, upload the sketch.
• Once the code compiles and uploads to the development board, open the serial monitor with the baud rate set to 115200 bps.
• The example sketch prints out the particulate matter, VOC, NO_x, humidity, and temperature values from the SEN55 sensor.

Source Files

• Sensirion SEN5X Arduino Library

• exampleUsage.ino Example Sketch

  /*
   * I2C-Generator: 0.3.0
   * Yaml Version: 2.1.3
   * Template Version: 0.7.0-112-g190ecaa
   */
  /*
   * Copyright (c) 2021, Sensirion AG
   * All rights reserved.
   *
   * Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
   * modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are met:
   *
   * * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, this
   *   list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
   *
   * * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright notice,
   * *   this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the documentation
   *   and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
   *
   * * Neither the name of Sensirion AG nor the names of its
   *   contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from
   *   this software without specific prior written permission.
   *
   * THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS IS"
   * AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
   * IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE
   * ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT HOLDER OR CONTRIBUTORS BE
   * LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR
   * CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF
   * SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS
   * INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN
   * CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE)
   * ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE
   * POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
   */
  
  #include <Arduino.h>
  #include <SensirionI2CSen5x.h>
  #include <Wire.h>
  
  // The used commands use up to 48 bytes. On some Arduino's the default buffer
  // space is not large enough
  #define MAXBUF_REQUIREMENT 48
  
  #if (defined(I2C_BUFFER_LENGTH) &&                 \
   (I2C_BUFFER_LENGTH >= MAXBUF_REQUIREMENT)) || \
  (defined(BUFFER_LENGTH) && BUFFER_LENGTH >= MAXBUF_REQUIREMENT)
  #define USE_PRODUCT_INFO
  #endif
  
  SensirionI2CSen5x sen5x;
  
  void printModuleVersions() {
  uint16_t error;
  char errorMessage[256];
  
  unsigned char productName[32];
  uint8_t productNameSize = 32;
  
  error = sen5x.getProductName(productName, productNameSize);
  
  if (error) {
      Serial.print("Error trying to execute getProductName(): ");
      errorToString(error, errorMessage, 256);
      Serial.println(errorMessage);
  } else {
      Serial.print("ProductName:");
      Serial.println((char*)productName);
  }
  
  uint8_t firmwareMajor;
  uint8_t firmwareMinor;
  bool firmwareDebug;
  uint8_t hardwareMajor;
  uint8_t hardwareMinor;
  uint8_t protocolMajor;
  uint8_t protocolMinor;
  
  error = sen5x.getVersion(firmwareMajor, firmwareMinor, firmwareDebug,
                           hardwareMajor, hardwareMinor, protocolMajor,
                           protocolMinor);
  if (error) {
      Serial.print("Error trying to execute getVersion(): ");
      errorToString(error, errorMessage, 256);
      Serial.println(errorMessage);
  } else {
      Serial.print("Firmware: ");
      Serial.print(firmwareMajor);
      Serial.print(".");
      Serial.print(firmwareMinor);
      Serial.print(", ");
  
      Serial.print("Hardware: ");
      Serial.print(hardwareMajor);
      Serial.print(".");
      Serial.println(hardwareMinor);
  }
  }
  
  void printSerialNumber() {
  uint16_t error;
  char errorMessage[256];
  unsigned char serialNumber[32];
  uint8_t serialNumberSize = 32;
  
  error = sen5x.getSerialNumber(serialNumber, serialNumberSize);
  if (error) {
      Serial.print("Error trying to execute getSerialNumber(): ");
      errorToString(error, errorMessage, 256);
      Serial.println(errorMessage);
  } else {
      Serial.print("SerialNumber:");
      Serial.println((char*)serialNumber);
  }
  }
  
  void setup() {
  
  Serial.begin(115200);
  while (!Serial) {
      delay(100);
  }
  
  Wire.begin();
  
  sen5x.begin(Wire);
  
  uint16_t error;
  char errorMessage[256];
  error = sen5x.deviceReset();
  if (error) {
      Serial.print("Error trying to execute deviceReset(): ");
      errorToString(error, errorMessage, 256);
      Serial.println(errorMessage);
  }
  
  // Print SEN55 module information if i2c buffers are large enough
  #ifdef USE_PRODUCT_INFO
  printSerialNumber();
  printModuleVersions();
  #endif
  
  // set a temperature offset in degrees celsius
  // Note: supported by SEN54 and SEN55 sensors
  // By default, the temperature and humidity outputs from the sensor
  // are compensated for the modules self-heating. If the module is
  // designed into a device, the temperature compensation might need
  // to be adapted to incorporate the change in thermal coupling and
  // self-heating of other device components.
  //
  // A guide to achieve optimal performance, including references
  // to mechanical design-in examples can be found in the app note
  // “SEN5x – Temperature Compensation Instruction” at www.sensirion.com.
  // Please refer to those application notes for further information
  // on the advanced compensation settings used
  // in `setTemperatureOffsetParameters`, `setWarmStartParameter` and
  // `setRhtAccelerationMode`.
  //
  // Adjust tempOffset to account for additional temperature offsets
  // exceeding the SEN module's self heating.
  float tempOffset = 0.0;
  error = sen5x.setTemperatureOffsetSimple(tempOffset);
  if (error) {
      Serial.print("Error trying to execute setTemperatureOffsetSimple(): ");
      errorToString(error, errorMessage, 256);
      Serial.println(errorMessage);
  } else {
      Serial.print("Temperature Offset set to ");
      Serial.print(tempOffset);
      Serial.println(" deg. Celsius (SEN54/SEN55 only");
  }
  
  // Start Measurement
  error = sen5x.startMeasurement();
  if (error) {
      Serial.print("Error trying to execute startMeasurement(): ");
      errorToString(error, errorMessage, 256);
      Serial.println(errorMessage);
  }
  }
  
  void loop() {
  uint16_t error;
  char errorMessage[256];
  
  delay(1000);
  
  // Read Measurement
  float massConcentrationPm1p0;
  float massConcentrationPm2p5;
  float massConcentrationPm4p0;
  float massConcentrationPm10p0;
  float ambientHumidity;
  float ambientTemperature;
  float vocIndex;
  float noxIndex;
  
  error = sen5x.readMeasuredValues(
      massConcentrationPm1p0, massConcentrationPm2p5, massConcentrationPm4p0,
      massConcentrationPm10p0, ambientHumidity, ambientTemperature, vocIndex,
      noxIndex);
  
  if (error) {
      Serial.print("Error trying to execute readMeasuredValues(): ");
      errorToString(error, errorMessage, 256);
      Serial.println(errorMessage);
  } else {
      Serial.print("MassConcentrationPm1p0:");
      Serial.print(massConcentrationPm1p0);
      Serial.print("\t");
      Serial.print("MassConcentrationPm2p5:");
      Serial.print(massConcentrationPm2p5);
      Serial.print("\t");
      Serial.print("MassConcentrationPm4p0:");
      Serial.print(massConcentrationPm4p0);
      Serial.print("\t");
      Serial.print("MassConcentrationPm10p0:");
      Serial.print(massConcentrationPm10p0);
      Serial.print("\t");
      Serial.print("AmbientHumidity:");
      if (isnan(ambientHumidity)) {
          Serial.print("n/a");
      } else {
          Serial.print(ambientHumidity);
      }
      Serial.print("\t");
      Serial.print("AmbientTemperature:");
      if (isnan(ambientTemperature)) {
          Serial.print("n/a");
      } else {
          Serial.print(ambientTemperature);
      }
      Serial.print("\t");
      Serial.print("VocIndex:");
      if (isnan(vocIndex)) {
          Serial.print("n/a");
      } else {
          Serial.print(vocIndex);
      }
      Serial.print("\t");
      Serial.print("NoxIndex:");
      if (isnan(noxIndex)) {
          Serial.println("n/a");
      } else {
          Serial.println(noxIndex);
      }
  }
  }
  

Troubleshooting Tips

Need Help?

If you need technical assistance or more information on a product that is not working as you expected, we recommend heading over to the SparkFun Technical Assistance page for some initial troubleshooting.

If you can't find what you need there, the SparkFun Forums is a great place to search product forums and ask questions.

Getting Started with the Arduino IDE

This guide assumes users are utilizing the latest version of the Arduino IDE on your desktop. If this is your first time using Arduino IDE, library, or board add-on, please review the following tutorials:

• Installing the Arduino IDE
• Installing an Arduino Library
• Installing Board Definitions in the Arduino IDE

5V Power Limitation

We recommend users limit the load current on the 5V output supply voltage to a maximum of ~100mA.

This should not be considered as a limitation dictated by the junction temperature of the AP3012. The limitation is driven by the power supply for the Qwiic connect system and the load being placed on the boost circuit. In order to compensate for the increased current, the supply voltage from the AP3012 boost converter will begin to drop as the current draw increases.