Adafruit MLX90640 IR Thermal Camera Breakout Boards
Adafruit MLX90640 IR Thermal Camera Breakout Boards contain a 24x32 array of IR thermal sensors. When connected to a microcontroller (or Raspberry Pi), the boards will return an array of 768 individual infrared temperature readings over I2C. The board is like a thermal camera but compact and simple enough for easy integration. The 4407 has a narrow 55°x35° field of view, and the 4469 has a wider (110°x70°) field of view. These boards will measure temperatures ranging from -40°C to 300°C with an accuracy of +-2°C (in the 0-100°C range). With a maximum frame rate of 16Hz, it is perfect for creating a human detector or mini thermal camera.
Adafruit has the code for using this sensor on an Arduino or compatible (the sensor communicates over I2C) or on a Raspberry Pi with Python. The user will need a processor with at least 20KB RAM if using an Arduino-compatible device. The SAMD21 (M0) or SAMD51 (M4) chipset is a possible solution. On the Pi, the user can even perform interpolation processing with help from the SciPy Python library and get nice results. This sensor reads the data twice per frame in a checkerboard pattern, so seeing a checkerboard dither effect when moving the sensor around is normal. This effect isn't as noticeable when things move slowly.
It is hand-soldered on a breakout board with a 3.3V regulator and level shifting to make it easy to use. This allows it to be used with any 3V or 5V microcontroller or computer. Also included are SparkFun qwiic compatible STEMMA QT connectors for the I2C bus, so the user does not need to solder. The user can plug-n-play with any Adafruit STEMMA QT (JST SH) cables.
Features
- I2C compatible digital interface
- Programmable refresh rate 0.5Hz to 64Hz (0.25 ~ 32FPS)
- 3.3V-5V supply voltage, regulated to 3.3V on breakout
- Current consumption is less than 23mA
- Field of view
- 4407 - 55°x35°
- 4469 - 110°x70°
- -40°C to 85°C operating temperature
- -40°C to 300°C target temperature
- Product dimensions
- 4407 - 25.7mm x 17.7mm x 16.0mm (1.0" x 0.7" x 0.6")
- 4469 - 25.8mm x 17.8mm x 10.5mm (1.0" x 0.7" x 0.4"
- Product weight
- 4407 - 3.5g (0.1oz)
- 4469 - 3.0g (0.1oz)
Associated Product
Melexis MLX90640 Far Infrared Thermal Sensor
Fully-calibrated 32x24 pixel thermal IR array in a compact, industry-standard, 4-lead TO39 package.