5.1 Digital Distance Meter

Time to build your own digital radar! The ultrasonic sensor works like a bat’s echolocation or ship sonar - it sends out sound waves you can’t hear and measures how long they take to bounce back. This gives you precise distance measurements from 2cm to 4 meters!

Perfect for: Parking sensors, automatic doors, robot navigation, water level monitoring, or security systems. Imagine creating a “smart trash can” that opens when you approach, or a device that tells you how full your water tank is!

Component List

• Raspberry Pi Pico W x1

• MicroUSB cable x1

• 830 Tie-Points Breadboard x1

• Ultrasonic Module x1

• Jumper Wire Several

Component knowledge

Ultrasonic Module

Connect

Code

Note

• Open the 5.1_digital_distance_meter.ino file under the path of Ultimate-Starter-Kit-for-Pico-W\Arduino\1.Project or copy this code into Thonny, then click “Run Current Script” or simply press F5 to run it.

• Or copy this code into Arduino IDE.

• Don’t forget to select the board(Raspberry Pi Pico) and the correct port before clicking the Upload button.

After running the code, move your hand or objects in front of the sensor and watch real-time distance measurements! The sensor updates every 0.5 seconds with precision to 1cm. Try testing different objects, distances, and angles to see how this “electronic measuring tape” responds. It can even detect through thin materials like paper!

The following is the program code:

/*
 * Ultrasonic Distance Sensor Project
 *
 * Measures distance using HC-SR04 ultrasonic sensor with professional
 * error handling and timeout protection. Based on sound wave travel time
 * calculation with accurate physics constants.
 *
 * Hardware: HC-SR04 ultrasonic sensor (Trigger + Echo pins)
 */

// Pin Configuration Constants
#define TRIGGER_PIN           17    // Ultrasonic sensor trigger pin
#define ECHO_PIN              16    // Ultrasonic sensor echo pin

// Physics Constants
#define SOUND_SPEED_CM_PER_US 0.0343 // Speed of sound: 343 m/s = 0.0343 cm/µs
#define PULSE_TRIGGER_US      10     // Trigger pulse duration (microseconds)
#define PULSE_DELAY_US        2      // Pre-trigger delay (microseconds)

// Measurement Constants
#define ECHO_TIMEOUT_US       25000  // Maximum wait time for echo (µs) ≈ 4.3m max range
#define MEASUREMENT_DELAY_MS  500    // Delay between measurements (milliseconds)
#define SERIAL_BAUD_RATE      115200 // Serial communication speed

// Measurement Range Constants
#define MIN_DISTANCE_CM       2.0    // Minimum measurable distance
#define MAX_DISTANCE_CM       400.0  // Maximum measurable distance

void setup() {
  // Initialize serial communication
  Serial.begin(SERIAL_BAUD_RATE);

  // Configure ultrasonic sensor pins
  setupUltrasonicSensor();

  // Display startup information
  Serial.println("=== Ultrasonic Distance Sensor ===");
  Serial.println("Range: 2cm - 400cm");
  Serial.println("Accuracy: ±1cm");
  Serial.println("==================================");
}

void loop() {
  float distance = measureDistance();
  displayMeasurement(distance);
  delay(MEASUREMENT_DELAY_MS);
}

/**
 * Setup Ultrasonic Sensor
 * Initializes the trigger and echo pins for the HC-SR04 sensor.
 */
void setupUltrasonicSensor() {
  pinMode(ECHO_PIN, INPUT);
  pinMode(TRIGGER_PIN, OUTPUT);
  digitalWrite(TRIGGER_PIN, LOW);  // Ensure trigger starts LOW
}

/**
 * Measure Distance
 * Performs ultrasonic distance measurement with timeout protection.
 * Returns -1.0 on timeout or invalid measurement.
 */
float measureDistance() {
  // Send trigger pulse
  sendTriggerPulse();

  // Measure echo pulse duration with timeout protection
  unsigned long pulseDuration = measureEchoPulse();

  // Check for timeout
  if (pulseDuration == 0) {
    return -1.0;  // Measurement failed
  }

  // Calculate distance using physics formula
  float distance = calculateDistanceFromPulse(pulseDuration);

  // Validate measurement range
  if (distance < MIN_DISTANCE_CM || distance > MAX_DISTANCE_CM) {
    return -1.0;  // Out of valid range
  }

  return distance;
}

/**
 * Send Trigger Pulse
 * Sends a 10µs pulse to trigger the ultrasonic measurement.
 */
void sendTriggerPulse() {
  digitalWrite(TRIGGER_PIN, LOW);
  delayMicroseconds(PULSE_DELAY_US);
  digitalWrite(TRIGGER_PIN, HIGH);
  delayMicroseconds(PULSE_TRIGGER_US);
  digitalWrite(TRIGGER_PIN, LOW);
}

/**
 * Measure Echo Pulse
 * Measures the duration of the echo pulse with timeout protection.
 * Returns 0 on timeout, pulse duration in microseconds on success.
 */
unsigned long measureEchoPulse() {
  // Use pulseIn with timeout for reliable measurement
  unsigned long duration = pulseIn(ECHO_PIN, HIGH, ECHO_TIMEOUT_US);
  return duration;  // Returns 0 if timeout occurred
}

/**
 * Calculate Distance From Pulse
 * Converts pulse duration to distance using sound speed.
 * Distance = (Pulse_Duration * Sound_Speed) / 2
 */
float calculateDistanceFromPulse(unsigned long pulseDuration) {
  // Convert microseconds to distance in centimeters
  // Divide by 2 because sound travels to object and back
  return (pulseDuration * SOUND_SPEED_CM_PER_US) / 2.0;
}

/**
 * Display Measurement
 * Shows measurement result with appropriate error handling.
 */
void displayMeasurement(float distance) {
  if (distance > 0) {
    Serial.print("Distance: ");
    Serial.print(distance, 1);  // Show 1 decimal place
    Serial.println(" cm");
  } else {
    Serial.println("Measurement failed (Timeout or Out of Range)");
  }
}

Phenomenon