Reference

This page describes all of the functionality in the libraries we make use of throughout the tutorials.

GPIO access

In order to access the GPIO pins, you will need to import the RPi.GPIO library. To do this, insert import RPi.GPIO at the top of your Python source code. You will then need to prepend any method or value names from the library with RPi.GPIO..

setmode(mode)
Set the numbering scheme for the GPIO pins. For all tutorials on this website, BCM is used as mode.
setup(pin, direction, pull_up_down=PUD_OFF)
Configure a particular GPIO pin as an input or output, optionally with a pull up/down resistor. direction is either IN or OUT. pull_up_down can be PUD_OFF, PUD_UP or PUD_DOWN. Our modified version of RPi.GPIO allows pin 4 to be set up as a general purpose clock using setup(4, ALT0).
setclock(pin, frequency)
Use the chosen pin as a clock of the given frequency. Only works with pin 4.
input(pin)
Receive the current state of the chosen pin.
output(pin, state)
Write the given state to a pin. state can be HIGH, LOW, 1, 0, True or False.

I2C

In order to communicate with servos (amongst other things), you will need to import the I2C library. To do this, insert import i2c at the top of your Python source code. You will then need to prepend any method or value names from the library with i2c..

Important: This method of controlling servos requires additional hardware but allows higher precision and less jitter than direct GPIO control. Our provided I2C library assumes you have a PCA9685 PWM driver chip connected to the Raspberry Pi (see wiring schematic) using the I2C bus at its default address of 0x40 (it is possible to change this address in software). This is a surface mount chip, but our custom shield provides one, as does this Adafruit breakout board.

I2C(frequency=50)
Create an I2C instance which communicates at a given frequency. 50Hz is good for controlling servos, but anything between 40 and 1000Hz can be used. Higher frequencies give more control and avoid flicker.
I2C.setSpeeds(left, right)
When combined with our robot chassis, set the speeds of the two motors. Values range from -100 to 100, with 0 being stationary.
I2C.setPWM(pin, duty_cycle)
Used to set servos to particular speeds, or LEDs to particular brightnesses. A duty_cycle of 0 will give no brightness on an LED, 2047 will give half brightness, and 4095 will give full brightness.

Image processing

SimpleCV is a library used for efficient computer vision tasks. Documentation can be found here. For the rest of the methods described here, you will need to import imgproc.

waitTime(msec)
Delay execution for msec milliseconds.
handleEvents()
Continually poll for events. Returns True on success, and False on quit.
class Viewer
Viewer class, handles the creation and manipulation of a window; you may only have one window open at a time.
Viewer(width, height, title)
Open an SDL window, ready to display an image.
Viewer.displayImage(image)
Display an image in the window.
del viewer
Close the view.
class Image
A container for image data, with pixel level access as well as high level functionality.
Image(image_ptr)
Initialises an image based on a C pointer.
Image.copy()
Create a copy of an image container and its data, and return it.
Image.drawRect(x, y, w, h, r, g, b)
Draw a unfilled coloured rectangle on an image.
Image.chromaKey(r_key, g_key, b_key, threshold)
Test the image against a Chroma key, setting non-passing pixels to black.
Image.detectBlobs()
Detect blobs in the image, returning a list of tuples of (x, y, width, height) of the rectangle bounds of the discovered blob.
Image.detectFaces()
Detect faces in the image, returning a list of tuples of (x, y, width, height) of the rectangle bounds of the discovered face.
Image[index]
Get a tuple of the red, green and blue values of a pixel. Co-ordinates are provided as a tuple of their x and y position. Example: red, green, blue = img[x, y] will set red, green and blue to the respective intensities of the pixel.
Image[key] = value
Set the value of a pixel at a given co-ordinate provided in the tuple key. key is a tuple of the x and y position, and value is a 3 component tuple of the red, green and blue intensities. Example: img[64, 32] = 255, 128, 0 sets the pixel at position x: 64 and y: 32 to a bright orange colour.
del image
Handles the destruction of the image data.
class Camera
Camera capture device: interfaces with a webcam allowing the user to grab images.
Camera(width, height)
Initialise the camera, setting the size of the capture to width pixels wide and height pixels high.
Camera.grabImage()
Grab a single image from the camera.
del camera
Free the camera capture device.