Robot Framework I2C Library

Robot Framework library for interfacing I2C devices on Raspberry Pi and other embedded systems.

Installation

pip install robotframework-i2c

Requirements

• Robot Framework (>=3.2.2)
• smbus2 (>=0.4.0)
• I2C enabled on the system

Quick Start

*** Settings ***
Library    robotframework_i2c.I2CLibrary.I2CLibrary

*** Test Cases ***
Test I2C Communication
    Open I2C Bus    1
    ${devices}=    Scan I2C Bus
    Log    Found devices: ${devices}
    Close I2C Bus

Keywords

Bus Management

• Open I2C Bus - Opens an I2C bus for communication
• Close I2C Bus - Closes the currently open I2C bus
• Scan I2C Bus - Scans the I2C bus for connected devices

Device Communication

• Read I2C Register - Reads data from a device register
• Write I2C Register - Writes data to a device register
• Read I2C Block - Reads a block of data from a device
• Write I2C Block - Writes a block of data to a device
• I2C Device Present - Checks if a device is present at an address

Utility

• Set I2C Delay - Sets a delay between I2C operations

Examples

Basic Device Communication

*** Settings ***
Library    robotframework_i2c.I2CLibrary.I2CLibrary

*** Test Cases ***
Read Temperature Sensor
    Open I2C Bus    1
    ${present}=    I2C Device Present    0x48
    Should Be True    ${present}
    ${temp_raw}=    Read I2C Register    0x48    0x00
    Log    Raw temperature: ${temp_raw}
    Close I2C Bus

Block Data Operations

*** Settings ***
Library    robotframework_i2c.I2CLibrary.I2CLibrary

*** Test Cases ***
Read Configuration Block
    Open I2C Bus    1
    ${config_data}=    Read I2C Block    0x48    0x10    4
    Log    Configuration: ${config_data}
    
    ${new_config}=    Create List    0x01    0x02    0x03    0x04
    Write I2C Block    0x48    0x10    ${new_config}
    Close I2C Bus

Device Discovery

*** Settings ***
Library    robotframework_i2c.I2CLibrary.I2CLibrary

*** Test Cases ***
Discover I2C Devices
    Open I2C Bus    1
    ${devices}=    Scan I2C Bus
    Log    Found ${devices.__len__()} devices
    FOR    ${device}    IN    @{devices}
        Log    Device found at: ${device}
    END
    Close I2C Bus

Supported Platforms

• Raspberry Pi (all models)
• Other Linux-based embedded systems with I2C support
• Any system with /dev/i2c-* device files

Hardware Setup

Before using this library, ensure I2C is enabled on your system:

Raspberry Pi

1. Enable I2C via raspi-config or add dtparam=i2c_arm=on to /boot/config.txt
2. Reboot the system
3. Verify I2C is working: ls /dev/i2c-*

General Linux

1. Load I2C kernel modules: modprobe i2c-dev
2. Ensure your user has access to I2C devices (usually in i2c group)

Error Handling

The library provides detailed error messages for common issues:

• Bus not open: Ensure you call Open I2C Bus before other operations
• Device not found: Check wiring and device address
• Permission denied: Ensure proper user permissions for I2C devices
• smbus2 not available: Install with pip install smbus2

License

MIT License. See LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Support

For issues and questions, please use the GitHub issue tracker.