Qwiic PIR Hookup Guide

Contributors:

El Duderino,

Introduction

Passive Infrared (PIR) sensors are great for detecting motion in a specific area around the sensor. The SparkFun Qwiic PIR - 170uA (EKMC4607112K) and SparkFun Qwiic PIR - 1uA (EKMB1107112) use two versions of the EKM-series PIR sensors from Panasonic^® to offer low profile motion-sensing options over I²C for both battery powered and continuously powered applications.

SparkFun Qwiic PIR - 170uA (EKMC4607112K)

SEN-17374

$22.50

Favorited Favorite 6

SparkFun Qwiic PIR - 1uA (EKMB1107112)

SEN-17375

Favorited Favorite 2

PIR sensors do not return specific distance data like distance sensors. Instead, the sensors measure IR light coming from objects in their detection area making them perfect for applications such as controlling power to devices like lights, cameras, screens, etc. automatically when motion is detected.

The Qwiic versions of these PIR breakouts feature an ATTiny84 with firmware that handles monitoring the sensor's output signal, debouncing that signal along with a configurable interrupt and translates it all to the I²C interface; making it easy to add a PIR to an existing Qwiic/I²C project.

In this guide we'll cover the hardware present on the Qwiic PIRs, how to connect them to your circuit and we'll finish things up covering both the Arduino Library and Python Package we have written for these sensors along with the examples included in both code packages.

If you would prefer to monitor the output of the sensors directly, check out our basic breakouts of the 170uA PIR and 1uA PIR.

Required Materials

In order to follow along with this tutorial you'll need a few items along with your Qwiic PIR. First, you'll need a microcontroller to communicate with the board. Below are a few options that come Qwiic-enabled out of the box:

SparkFun Thing Plus - ESP32 WROOM (Micro-B)

WRL-15663

$22.50

Favorited Favorite 60

SparkFun RedBoard Qwiic

DEV-15123

$21.50

Favorited Favorite 63

SparkFun RedBoard Artemis

DEV-15444

$21.50

Favorited Favorite 39

SparkFun Qwiic Micro - SAMD21 Development Board

DEV-15423

$22.50

Favorited Favorite 22

We also have a Python package available for the Qwiic PIRs so you can use a single-board computer (SBC) like a Raspberry Pi or Jetson Nano as your controller as well.