waveshare Laser Receiver Module Laser Sensor Module Transmitter Module for AVR PIC, Compatible with Raspberry Pi 5/4B/3B/Zero/Zero W/Zero 2W/Pico/Pico W/Pico WH

Item arrived on time and works as expected!

Nice product. Detection distance is as described in other reviews. 4 stars since I could not find a Python program to drive this, so I wrote my own, posted below. Here's how to get this functioning with a Raspberry Pi and Python. Much more can be done once you see how to get it working. It's much easier if you have a breakout board connected to a breadboard, but these are not absolutely necessary. Keep in mind the output of the laser module is just a 0 or 1. Output is 1 until the laser beam is broken, then is begins to output a 0 until the beam is unbroken. This may be opposite of what you might expect at first.Hardware setup is as follows. The laser module has 3 pins: VCC, GND, and DOUT. Connect VCC to 3V3 on the GPIO pins of the Raspberry Pi. Then connect GND on the laser module to GND on the Pi. Finally, connect DOUT on the laser module to pin 18 on the Pi.Use the following Python code to detect when the beam is interrupted. Once the beam is broken 10 separate times, the program will quit. Great way to test is to wave your finger up and down slowly about 1-2 ft in front of the module. Program output will show you the count. Use this as a starting point to create your own project. Copy and paste into an editor, then save the file as 'laser.py'. If not installed already, install the Rpi.GPIO Python library by typing 'sudo apt-get install python-dev', then 'sudo apt-get install python-rpi.gpio' in the terminal window while connected to the internet. Hook up your laser module to the Pi, then run this software using 'python laser.py'. The fun will never end.(NOTE: just in case the indents are not properly posted, the first 'if' and 'else' statements are indented. The final 'print' statement is not. That should help you properly indent the code according to Python protocol.)#-----Python code begins#!/usr/bin/env python# purpose:# drives the WaveShare laser module# importsimport RPi.GPIO as GPIOGPIO.setmode(GPIO.BCM)# define data pins on breakout board of Raspberry Pi Model B# ... corresponds to 'dout' pin on laser moduledata_input_pin = 18# define data_input_pin as input to Raspberry PiGPIO.setup(data_input_pin,GPIO.IN)icount=0icount_signal = 0while icount_signal < 10:if GPIO.input(data_input_pin):icount += 1input_save=1else:if input_save==1:icount_signal += 1print("\n GPIO.input(data_input_pin) = 0!")print(' icount_signal = %s' % icount_signal)input_save=0print('\n -- end --\n')#----- end of Python codeHave fun!

Simple with stupid long range. At night around 70 yards!

I like it however I wish there was a way included to calibrate the sensor reading. This is effective for ranges of .5" inches to about 4-5 feet. It can work for longer distances if the beam and the collision/bounce surface are parallel with minimum beam disruption but usually fails at distances greater than 4 feet. Sample rate is incredibly high, can detect fast moving objects. Keep in mind this is NOT A DISTANCE SENSOR. It returns a value of 1 or 0.

this is a action trigger, not a range finder, not what I was looking for

Worked well for 5 minutes then failed. The unit became extremely hot, started to smoke slightly then stopped working. Shorted out. Luckily my Rpi shut itself down to prevent being damaged. Be careful - could potentially be a fire safety issue.

Works as described, I used this with an arduino board. It detects a broken laser line within 10". This was very easy to setup and program.

Works fine for measuring whether or not there's an object about 1 to 4 feet away. But doesn't tell you how far away. There are many other IR/detectors/sensors that do this for quite a bit cheaper.