12.9. Example I²C code for Linux in Python

The example Python code below uses the smbus2 library to send and receive data from a Tic via I²C. It demonstrates how to set the target position of the Tic and how to read variables from it. This example works on Linux with either Python 2 or Python 3.

If you are using a Raspberry Pi, please see the notes about setting up I²C for the Raspberry Pi in Section 12.8.

If you run the code and get the error “ImportError: No module named smbus2” or “ModuleNotFoundError: No module named ‘smbus2’”, it means that the smbus2 library is not installed, and you should follow the instructions on the smbus2 web page to install it.

You might notice that the Tic only performs the desired movement for about a second before it stops moving and the red LED turns on, indicating an error. This is because of the Tic’s command timeout feature: by default, the Tic’s “Command timeout” error will happen if it does not receive certain commands periodically (see Section 5.4 for details), causing the motor to stop. You can send a “Reset command timeout” command every second to get around this, or you can disable the command timeout feature using the Tic Control Center: uncheck the “Enable command timeout” checkbox in the “Serial” box.

# Uses the smbus2 library to send and receive data from a Tic.
# Works on Linux with either Python 2 or Python 3.
#
# NOTE: The Tic's control mode must be "Serial / I2C / USB".
# NOTE: For reliable operation on a Raspberry Pi, enable the i2c-gpio
#   overlay and use the I2C device it provides (usually /dev/i2c-3).
# NOTE: You might nee to change the 'SMBus(3)' line below to specify the
#   correct I2C device.
# NOTE: You might need to change the 'address = 11' line below to match
#   the device number of your Tic.

from smbus2 import SMBus, i2c_msg

class TicI2C(object):
  def __init__(self, bus, address):
    self.bus = bus
    self.address = address

  # Sends the "Exit safe start" command.
  def exit_safe_start(self):
    command = [0x83]
    write = i2c_msg.write(self.address, command)
    self.bus.i2c_rdwr(write)

  # Sets the target position.
  #
  # For more information about what this command does, see the
  # "Set target position" command in the "Command reference" section of the
  # Tic user's guide.
  def set_target_position(self, target):
    command = [0xE0,
      target >> 0 & 0xFF,
      target >> 8 & 0xFF,
      target >> 16 & 0xFF,
      target >> 24 & 0xFF]
    write = i2c_msg.write(self.address, command)
    self.bus.i2c_rdwr(write)

  # Gets one or more variables from the Tic.
  def get_variables(self, offset, length):
    write = i2c_msg.write(self.address, [0xA1, offset])
    read = i2c_msg.read(self.address, length)
    self.bus.i2c_rdwr(write, read)
    return list(read)

  # Gets the "Current position" variable from the Tic.
  def get_current_position(self):
    b = self.get_variables(0x22, 4)
    position = b[0] + (b[1] << 8) + (b[2] << 16) + (b[3] << 24)
    if position >= (1 << 31):
      position -= (1 << 32)
    return position

# Open a handle to "/dev/i2c-3", representing the I2C bus.
bus = SMBus(3)

# Select the I2C address of the Tic (the device number).
address = 14

tic = TicI2C(bus, address)

position = tic.get_current_position()
print("Current position is {}.".format(position))

new_target = -200 if position > 0 else 200
print("Setting target position to {}.".format(new_target));
tic.exit_safe_start()
tic.set_target_position(new_target)