apogee-connect-rpi 1.1.0

Automates data collection with Bluetooth sensors from Apogee Instruments, Inc. using a Raspberry Pi

Apogee Connect for Raspberry Pi

Table of Contents

• Intro
• Command Line Application
  • Installation
  • Basic Example
  • Commands
• Python Module API
  • Installation
  • Functions
• Contact

Intro

Apogee Connect for Raspberry Pi is a lightweight script intended for automating the data collection process with Apogee's Bluetooth sensors.

Apogee Connect can be used in two different ways:

1. As a standalone command line application with straightforward commands for interacting with Apogee's Bluetooth sensors.

2. As a Python module for those looking to implement the application functionality directly into their own Python script (The method assumes an existing familiarity with Python, virtual environments, and pip).

Prerequisite

In order to install, you will need pip (the package installer for Python). Pip is likely already included by default on a Raspberry Pi or if Python was installed from source. You can confirm pip is installed by running the command:

pip --version

If pip isn't already installed, visit the following site for instructions on a simple pip installation:

https://pip.pypa.io/en/stable/installation/

Command Line Application

Installation

Install

1. We will use pipx, which is a tool that runs Python modules as a standalone command line application. In terminal, run the following command (It may be necessary to close and restart the terminal after installing pipx for it to be recognized):

sudo apt install pipx

2. Install Apogee Connect for Raspberry Pi from the Python Package Index by running the following command in terminal:

pipx install apogee-connect-rpi

3. Add the install location to your PATH environment variables so that it can be run from anywhere in the terminal.

pipx ensurepath

4. Verify installation by running the following command (It may be necessary to close and restart the terminal first for the changes to take effect):

apogee --version

Update

To update to the latest version, run the following command in terminal:

pipx upgrade apogee-connect-rpi

Uninstall

To uninstall, run the following command in terminal:

pipx uninstall apogee-connect-rpi

Basic Example

Note: apogee is the command that can be run from the terminal at any location to use the app.

1. Scan for nearby Apogee sensors to obtain sensor's MAC address required for connection.

apogee scan

2. Start collecting data from the sensor with the MAC address of AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF and set a logging interval of 10 minutes.

apogee collect AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF --interval 10

3. See a list of all currently collecting sensors along with the number of logs currently collected, data file location, start/end time, etc.

apogee list

4. Stop data collection from the sensor with the MAC address of AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF, but not until the epoch timestamp of 1726247820 (Unix timestamp in seconds).

apogee stop AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF --end 1726247820

Commands

Key:

apogee command <required_argument> [--optional_arguments (default: value)]

collect

Usage

Collect data from an Apogee sensor and write the data to a csv file.

Automatic collection is the default collection mode, which will turn the sensor's logging on and then automatically collect all available data and record it in a csv file. The frequency with which the Raspberry Pi will "wake up" and check for available data from all sensors can be adjusted through the config command.

If a manual collection mode is needed, add the --manual flag to the command. The first time this command is used for a sensor, the application will turn the sensor's logging on with the included interval, start/end time, etc. Then, use the collect command again with the --manual flag to collect available data from the sensor and add it to the csv file (when collecting data, the --file argument can be included to store the data in a different file than what was originally set but --interval, --start, and --end will be ignored).

Examples

apogee collect D7:52:21:95:5C:6C

apogee collect D7:52:21:95:5C:6C --interval 10 --start 1720647720 --end 1721250915 --file /usr/Documents/greenhouse-data.csv --append

apogee collect D7:52:21:95:5C:6C --interval 10 --file /usr/Documents/greenhouse-data.csv --manual --overwrite

Documentation

apogee collect <MAC address> [--interval (default: 5)] [--start (default: Now)] [--end (default: Never)] [--file (default: ~/Apogee/apogee_connect_rpi/data/<MAC_ADDRESS>.csv)] [--overwrite] [--append] [--manual]

Argument	Default Value	Usage
Mac Address	N/A (required)	MAC address of sensor in the format of AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF
-i, --interval	5 minutes	The interval that sensor will log data (must be a positive integer)
-s, --start	Now	Start time for data collection using epoch time (Unix timestamp in seconds)
-e, --end	Never	End time for data collection using epoch time (Unix timestamp in seconds)
-f, --file	~/Apogee/apogee_connect_rpi/data/<MAC_ADDRESS>.csv	File path to write data to csv file. Will create folders and files if they don’t exist.
-a, --append	False	Add this flag to automatically append to an existing data file.
-o, --overwrite	False	Add this flag to automatically overwrite an existing data file.
-m, --manual	N/A	Add this flag for manual data collection mode.

config

Usage

Change or view the application settings.

Examples

apogee config

apogee config --filepath /usr/documents/live-data --precision 4 --temp F --par-filtering True

apogee config --reset

Documentation

apogee config [--filepath (default: ~/Apogee/apogee_connect_rpi/data/)] [--precision (default: 2)] [--temp (default: C)] [--par-filtering (default: False)] [--collection-frequency (default: 5)]

Argument	Default Value	Usage
(N/A)	(N/A)	If no optional arguments are provided, the current configuration will be displayed.
-f, --filepath	~/Apogee/apogee-connect-rpi/data/	The default folder to save collected data. Adjust to avoid needing to specify full filepath every time data collection is initiated.
--p, --precision	2	Maximum number of decimal places for collected data.
-t, --temp	C	Change preferred temperature units. Enter “C” for Celsius and “F” for Fahrenheit (without quotations).
-pf, --par-filtering	False	Filter negative PAR (PPFD) values to compensate for sensor "noise" in low-light conditions. Enter "True" or "False" (without quotations).
-cf, --collection-frequency	5	Frequency in minutes to check for new data logs and add to .csv data file (This is different than the data logging interval for the sensor). Must be between 5 - 60 minutes.
-r, --reset	N/A	Add this flag to reset configuration back to default values.

list

Usage

List all the sensors currently collecting data.

Example

apogee list

Documentation

apogee list

scan

Usage

Scan for nearby Apogee sensors

Example

apogee scan

apogee scan --time 10

Documentation

apogee scan [--time (default: 5-20)]

Argument	Default Value	Usage
-t, --time	5-20	Number of seconds to scan for Apogee Bluetooth sensors. If not set, scanning will continue until no new sensors are being discovered or a maximum of 20 seconds.

stop

Usage

Stop data collection from an Apogee sensor. Can optionally use the --all flag to stop data collection from all Apogee sensors instead.

Examples

apogee stop D7:52:21:95:5C:6C

apogee stop D7:52:21:95:5C:6C --end 1724428813

apogee stop --all

Documentation

apogee stop <MAC address> [--end (default: now)]

Argument	Default Value	Usage
MAC address	N/A (required)	MAC address of sensor in the format of AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF (Required unless the '--all' flag is used).
-e, --end	Now	End time for data collection using epoch time (Unix timestamp in seconds). Cannot be used when using the '--all' flag.
-a, --all	N/A	Stop data collection for all sensors (Can be used instead of the MAC address requirement).

transfer

Usage

Transfer data from an Apogee sensor for a desired logging interval. This command is separate from the collect command and is just used to obtain a specific time period or previously logged data.

Examples

apogee transfer D7:52:21:95:5C:6C

apogee transfer D7:52:21:95:5C:6C --start 1720647720 --end 1721250915 --file /usr/documents/greenhouse-data.csv --overwrite

Documentation

apogee transfer <MAC address> [--start (default: Now)] [--end (default: Never)] [--file (default: ~/Apogee/apogee_connect_rpi/data/<MAC_ADDRESS>.csv)] [--append] [--overwrite]

Argument	Default Value	Usage
MAC address	N/A (required)	MAC address of sensor in the format of AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF.
-s, --start	Now	Start time for data collection using epoch time (Unix timestamp in seconds)
-e, --end	Never	End time for data collection using epoch time (Unix timestamp in seconds)
-f, --file	~/Apogee/apogee_connect_rpi/data/<MAC_ADDRESS>.csv	File path to write data to csv file. Will create folders and files is they don’t exist.
-a, --append	N/A	Add this flag to automatically append data to a file if it exists instead of overwriting.
-o, --overwrite	False	Add this flag to automatically overwrite an existing data file.

version

Usage

Show current application version

Example

apogee --version

Documentation

apogee --version

help

Usage

Show help menu for entire application or for specific command, depending on usage

Example

apogee --help

apogee collect --help

Documentation

Entering just --help (or -h) will show a high-level overview of available commands. Entering a command followed by --help will show a menu with required and optional arguments. Any unrecognized command will also print the high-level overview help menu.

Python Module API

Install

1. Simply install Apogee Connect for Raspberry Pi from the Python Package Index by running the following command in terminal within an activated virtual environment:

pip install apogee-connect-rpi

Update

To update to the latest version, run the following command in terminal:

pip install apogee-connect-rpi --upgrade

Uninstall

To uninstall, run the following command in terminal:

pip uninstall apogee-connect-rpi

Functions

collect

Usage

Collect data from an Apogee sensor and write the data to a csv file.

Automatic collection is the default collection mode, which will turn the sensor's logging on and then automatically collect all available data and record it in a csv file. The frequency with which the Raspberry Pi will "wake up" and check for available data from all sensors can be adjusted through the config function.

If a manual collection mode is needed, set the manual argument to True. The first time this function is used for a sensor, the sensor's logging will be turned on with the included interval, start/end time, etc. Then, use the collect function again with manual=True to collect available data from the sensor and add it to the csv file (when collecting data, the file argument can be included to store the data in a different file than what was originally set but interval, start, and end will be ignored).

Example

from apogee_connect_rpi import ApogeeConnect

async def main():
    apogee = ApogeeConnect()
    await apogee.collect(address="D7:52:21:95:5C:6C", interval=10, file="~/Desktop/greenhouse-data.csv")

Function Signature

The values in the function signature are defaults used if the corresponding arguments are omitted.

async def collect(
    address,
    interval = 5,
    start = 0,
    end = 4294967295,
    file = '~/Apogee/apogee_connect_rpi/data/<MAC_ADDRESS>.csv',
    append = False,
    overwrite = False,
    manual = False
) -> None
# The values above are defaults used if the corresponding arguments are omitted 

Arguments

Argument	Type	Default Value	Usage
address	str	N/A (required)	MAC address of sensor in the format of AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF
interval	int	5 minutes	The interval that sensor will log data (must be a positive integer)
start	int	Now	Start time for data collection using epoch time (Unix timestamp in seconds)
end	int	Never	End time for data collection using epoch time (Unix timestamp in seconds)
file	str	~/Apogee/apogee_connect_rpi/data/<MAC_ADDRESS>.csv	File path to write data to CSV file. Will create folders and files if they don’t exist.
append	bool	False	Set to True to automatically append to an existing data file.
overwrite	bool	False	Set to True to automatically overwrite an existing data file.
manual	bool	False	Set to True for manual data collection mode.

config

Usage

Change or view the application settings. When no arguments are included with the function call, the config function will return a dictionary of the current configuration parameters.

Example

from apogee_connect_rpi import ApogeeConnect

async def main():
    apogee = ApogeeConnect()
    await apogee.config(precision=5, filepath="/usr/Documents/GreenhouseData")
    updated_config = await apogee.config()
    print(updated_config)

Function Signature

The values in the function signature are defaults used if the corresponding arguments are omitted.

async def config(
    precision = 2,
    filepath = '~/Apogee/apogee-connect-rpi/data/',
    temp = 'C',
    par_filtering = False,
    collection_frequency = 5,
    reset = False
) -> dict

Arguments

Argument	Type	Default Value	Usage
precision	int	2	Maximum number of decimal places for collected data.
filepath	str	~/Apogee/apogee-connect-rpi/data/	The default folder to save collected data. Adjust to avoid needing to specify full filepath every time data collection is initiated.
temp	str	C	Change preferred temperature units. Enter “C” for Celsius and “F” for Fahrenheit (without quotations).
par_filtering	bool	False	Filter negative PAR (PPFD) values to compensate for sensor "noise" in low-light conditions.
collection_frequency	int	5	Frequency in minutes to check for new data logs and add to .csv data file (This is different than the data logging interval for the sensor). Must be between 5 - 60 minutes.
reset	bool	False	Set to True to reset configuration back to default values.

Returns

The function returns a dictionary where:

• Key: A string of the configuration parameter name
• Value: The current value of the configuration parameter

list

Usage

Retreieve a dictionary of all the sensors currently collecting data.

Example

from apogee_connect_rpi import ApogeeConnect

async def main():
    apogee = ApogeeConnect()
    collecting_sensors = await apogee.list()
    print(collecting_sensors)

Function Signature

async def list() -> dict

Returns

The function returns a dictionary where:

• Key: The unique MAC address of the sensor
• Value: A dictionary containing sensor logging information (see table below)

Sensor Info Key	Value
interval	int
start_time	int
end_time	int
logs	int
file	str
sensorID	int
collection_mode	str
last_collection_time	int

scan

Usage

Scan for nearby Apogee sensors and retrieve a dictionary with all discovered sensors.

Example

from apogee_connect_rpi import ApogeeConnect

async def main():
    apogee = ApogeeConnect()
    discovered_sensors = await apogee.scan(time=10)
    print(discovered_sensors)

Function Signature

The values in the function signature are defaults used if the corresponding arguments are omitted.

async def scan(
    time = 20
) -> dict

Arguments

Argument	Type	Default Value	Usage
time	int	5-20	Number of seconds to scan for Apogee Bluetooth sensors. If not set, scanning will continue until no new sensors are being discovered or a maximum of 20 seconds.

Returns

The function returns a dictionary where:

• Key: The unique MAC address of the sensor
• Value: A custom Apogee Sensor class with attributes specific to the sensor (see table below)

Sensor Attributes	Value
sensorID	int
alias	str
serial	str
type	str

stop

Usage

Stop data collection from an Apogee sensor. Can optionally set the all argument to True to stop data collection from all Apogee sensors.

Example

from apogee_connect_rpi import ApogeeConnect

async def main():
    apogee = ApogeeConnect()
    await apogee.stop(address=D7:52:21:95:5C:6C, end=1726247820)

Function Signature

The values in the function signature are defaults used if the corresponding arguments are omitted.

async def stop(
    address,
    end = {current_time},
    all = False
)

Arguments

Argument	Type	Default Value	Usage
address	str	N/A (required)	MAC address of sensor in the format of AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF (Required unless the '--all' flag is used).
end	int	Now	End time for data collection using epoch time (Unix timestamp in seconds). Cannot be used when the 'all' argument is set to True.
all	bool	False	Stop data collection for all sensors (Can be used instead of the address requirement).

transfer

Usage

Transfer data from an Apogee sensor for a desired logging interval. This function is separate from the collect command and is just used to obtain a specific time period or previously logged data.

Example

from apogee_connect_rpi import ApogeeConnect

async def main():
    apogee = ApogeeConnect()
    await apogee.transfer(address="D7:52:21:95:5C:6C", start=1720647720, end=1726247820)

Function Signature

The values in the function signature are defaults used if the corresponding arguments are omitted.

async def transfer(
    address,
    start = 0,
    end = 4294967295,
    file = '~/Apogee/apogee_connect_rpi/data/<MAC_ADDRESS>.csv',
    append = False,
    overwrite = False
)

Arguments

Argument	Type	Default Value	Usage
address	str	N/A (required)	MAC address of sensor in the format of AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF.
start	int	Now	Start time for data collection using epoch time (Unix timestamp in seconds)
end	int	Never	End time for data collection using epoch time (Unix timestamp in seconds)
file	str	~/Apogee/apogee_connect_rpi/data/<MAC_ADDRESS>.csv	File path to write data to csv file. Will create folders and files is they don’t exist.
append	bool	False	Set to True to automatically append data to a file if it exists instead of overwriting.
overwrite	bool	False	Set to True to automatically overwrite an existing data file.

Contact

For more information or additional help, contact Apogee Instruments at: [e-mail] or [phone]