ccs811 - Driver for AMS CCS811 digital gas sensor for monitoring indoor air quality

The driver is for the usage with the ESP-IDF.

About the sensor

The CCS811 is an ultra-low power digital sensor which detects Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) for Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) monitoring that. The sensor allows to

  • convert raw sensor data to Total Volatile Organic Compound (TVOC) and equivalent CO₂ (eCO2),

  • compensate gas readings due to temperature and humidity using an external sensor,

  • trigger interrupts when new measurement results are available or eCO2 value exceeds thresholds,

  • correct baseline automatically or manually

  • connect a NTC thermistor to provide means of calculating the local ambient temperature.

The sensor uses an I2C interface and supports clock stretching. See the notes on clock stretching during I2C interface intialization.

Measurement Process

Sensor modes

The CCS811 can operate in 5 different modes:

Mode

Driver symbol

Period

RAW data

IAQ values

Idle, Low Current Mode

CCS811_MODE_IDLE

n/a

n/a

n/a

Constant Power Mode

CCS811_MODE_1S

1 s

X

X

Pulse Heating Mode

CCS811_MODE_10S

10 s

X

X

Low Power Pulse Heating Mode

CCS811_MODE_60S

60 s

X

X

Constant Power Mode

CCS811_MODE_250MS

250 ms

X

n/a

After power up, the sensor starts automatically in Idle, Low Current Mode (CCS811_MODE_IDLE). To start periodic measurements, the mode of the sensor has to be changed to any measurement mode. Measurement modes with with different rates of periodic measurements are available, see table above.

Note

In Constant Power Mode with measurements every 250 ms (CCS811_MODE_250MS) only raw data are available. In all other measurement modes, the Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) values are available additionally.

The Constant Power Mode with measurements every 250 ms (CCS811_MODE_250ms) is only intended for systems where an external host system wants to run an algorithm with raw data.

Once the sensor is initialized with function ccs811_init(), function ccs811_set_mode() can be used to start periodic measurements with a given period.

ESP_ERROR_CHECK(i2cdev_init());
...
static ccs811_dev_t *sensor;
ESP_ERROR_CHECK(ccs811_init_desc(&sensor, 0, CCS811_I2C_ADDRESS_1, 5, 4);

if (ccs811_init(&sensor) == ESP_OK)
{
   ...
   // start periodic measurement with one measurement per second
   ESP_ERROR_CHECK(ccs811_set_mode(&sensor, CCS811_MODE_1S));
}
...

Note

1. After setting the mode, the sensor is in conditioning period that needs up to 20 minutes, before accurate readings are generated, see the data sheet for more details.

2. During the early-live (burn-in) period, the CCS811 sensor should run for 48 hours in the selected mode of operation to ensure sensor performance is stable, see the datasheet for more details.

3. When the sensor operating mode is changed to a new mode with a lower sample rate, e.g., from Pulse Heating Mode (CCS811_MODE_10S) to Low Power Pulse Heating Mode (CCS811_MODE_60S), it should be placed in Idle, Low Current Mode (CCS811_MODE_IDLE) for at least 10 minutes before enabling the new mode.

When a sensor operating mode is changed to a new mode with a higher sample rate, e.g., from Low Power Pulse Heating Mode (CCS811_MODE_60S) to Pulse Heating Mode (CCS811_MODE_10S), there is no requirement to wait before enabling the new mode.

Measurement results

Once the measurement mode is set, the user task can use function ccs811_get_results() with same rate as the measurement rate to fetch the results. The function returns raw data as well as Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) values.

While raw data represents simply the current through the sensor and the voltage across the sensor with the selected current, IAQ values are the results of the processing these raw data by the sensor. IAQ values consist of the equivalent CO2 (eCO2) with a range from 400 ppm to 8192 ppm and Total Volatile Organic Compound (TVOC) with a range from 0 ppb to 1187 ppb.

uint16_t iaq_tvoc;
uint16_t iaq_eco2;
uint8_t  raw_i;
uint16_t raw_v;
...
// get the results and do something with them
if (ccs811_get_results(&sensor, &tvoc, &eco2, &raw_i, &raw_v) == ESP_OK)
{
    ...
}
...

If some of the results are not needed, the corresponding pointer parameters can be set to NULL.

If the function ccs811_get_results() is called and no new data are available, e.g., due to the sensor mode time tolerance of 2%, the function still returns successfully. In this case, the results of the last measurement are returned and the error code CCS811_ERR_NO_NEW_DATA.

Note

1. In Constant Power Mode with measurements every 250 ms (CCS811_MODE_250MS) only raw data are available.

2. The rate of fetching data must not be greater than the rate of measurement. Due to the sensor mode timing tolerance of 2 %, the rate of fetching data should be lower than the measurement rate.

3. If the function is called and no new data are available, the results of the latest measurement are returned and error code CCS811_ERR_NO_NEW_DATA is set.

Compensation

If information about the environment like temperature and humidity are available from another sensor, they can be used by CCS811 to compensate gas readings due to temperature and humidity changes. Function ccs811_set_environmental_data() can be used to set these environmental data.

float    temperature;
float    humidity;
...
if (sht3x_get_results(sht3x, &temperature, &humidity) == ESP_OK)
    // set CCS811 environmental data with values fetched from SHT3x
ccs811_set_environmental_data(ccs811, temperature, humidity);
...

NTC

CCS811 supports an external interface for connecting a negative thermal coefficient thermistor (R_NTC) to provide a cost effective and power efficient means of calculating the local ambient temperature. The sensor measures the voltage V_NTC across R_NTC as well as the voltage V_REF across a connected reference resistor (R_REF). Function ccs811_get_ntc_resistance() can be used to fetch the current resistance of R_NTC. It uses the resistance of R_REF and measured voltages V_REF and V_NTV with the following equation:

R_NTC = R_REF / V_REF * V_NTC

Using the data sheet of the NTC, the ambient temperature can be calculated. See application note ams AN000372 for more details. For example, with Adafruit CCS811 Air Quality Sensor Breakout the ambienttemperature can be determined as following:

#define CCS811_R_REF        100000      // resistance of the reference resistor
#define CCS811_R_NTC        10000       // resistance of NTC at a reference temperature
#define CCS811_R_NTC_TEMP   25          // reference temperature for NTC
#define CCS811_BCONSTANT    3380        // B constant

// get NTC resistance
uint32_t r_ntc;
ccs811_get_ntc_resistance(&sensor, CCS811_R_REF, &r_ntc);

// calculation of temperature from application note ams AN000372
double ntc_temp;
ntc_temp  = log((double)r_ntc / CCS811_R_NTC);      // 1
ntc_temp /= CCS811_BCONSTANT;                       // 2
ntc_temp += 1.0 / (CCS811_R_NTC_TEMP + 273.15);     // 3
ntc_temp  = 1.0 / ntc_temp;                         // 4
ntc_temp -= 273.15;                                 // 5
...

Interrupts

CCS811 supports two types of interrupts that can be used to fetch data:

  • data ready interrupt (INT_DATA_RDY)

  • threshold interrupt (INT_THRESHOLD)

Data ready interrupt

At the end of each measurement cycle (every 250 ms, 1 second, 10 seconds, or 60 seconds), CCS811 can optionally trigger an interrupt. The signal nINT is driven low as soon as new sensor values are ready to read. It will stop being driven low when sensor data are read with function ccs811_get_results().

The interrupt is disabled by default. It can be enabled with function ccs811_enable_interrupt().

...
// enable the data ready interrupt
ESP_ERROR_CHECK(ccs811_enable_interrupt(&sensor, true));
...

Threshold interrupt

The user task can choose that the data ready interrupt is not generated every time when new sensor values become ready but only if the eCO2 value moves from the current range (LOW, MEDIUM, or HIGH) into another range by more than a hysteresis value. Hysteresis is used to prevent multiple interrupts close to a threshold.

The interrupt is disabled by default and can be enabled with function ccs811_set_eco2_thresholds(). The ranges are defined by parameters low and high as following

  • LOW - below parameter value low

  • MEDIUM - between parameter values low and high

  • HIGH - above parameter value high is range HIGH.

If all parameters have valid values, the function sets the thresholds and enables the data ready interrupt. Using 0 for all parameters disables the interrupt.

...
// set threshold parameters and enable threshold interrupt mode
ESP_ERROR_CHECK(ccs811_set_eco2_thresholds(&sensor, 600, 1100, 40));
...

Baseline

CCS81 supports automatic baseline correction over a minimum time of 24 hours. Using function ccs811_get_baseline(), the current baseline value can be saved before the sensor is powered down. This baseline can then be restored with function ccs811_set_baseline() after sensor is powered up again to continue the automatic baseline process.

Usage

First, the hardware configuration has to be established.

Communication interface settings

Dependent on the hardware configuration, the communication interface settings have to be defined.

// define I2C interfaces at which CCS811 sensors can be connected
#define I2C_PORT       0
#define I2C_SCL_PIN   14
#define I2C_SDA_PIN   13

// define GPIO for interrupt
#define INT_GPIO      5

Main program

Before using the CCS811 driver, function i2cdev_init() needs to be called.

Note

CCS811 uses clock streching that can be longer than the default I2C clock stretching. Therefore the clock stretching parameter of I2C has to be set to at least CCS811_I2C_CLOCK_STRETCH.

ESP_ERROR_CHECK(i2cdev_init());
...
static ccs811_dev_t sensor;
memset(&sensor, 0, sizeof(ccs811_dev_t)); // Zero descriptor
ESP_ERROR_CHECK(ccs811_init_desc(&sensor, 0, CCS811_I2C_ADDRESS_1, 5, 4);
...

Once I2C library initialized, function ccs811_init() has to be called for each CCS811 sensor to initialize the sensor and to check its availability as well as its error state.

...
if (ccs811_init(&sensor) == ESP_OK)
{
    ...
}
...

If initialization of the sensor was successful, the sensor mode has be set to start periodic measurement. The sensor mode can be changed anytime later.

...
// start periodic measurement with one measurement per second
ccs811_set_mode(&sensor, CCS811_MODE_1S);
...

Finally, a user task that uses the sensor has to be created.

xTaskCreate(user_task, "user_task", 256, NULL, 2, 0);

The user task can use different approaches to fetch new data. Either new data are fetched periodically or the interrupt signal nINT is used when new data are available or eCO2 value exceeds defined thresholds.

If new data are fetched periodically the implementation of the user task is quite simply and could look like following.

void user_task(void *pvParameters)
{
    uint16_t tvoc;
    uint16_t eco2;

    TickType_t last_wakeup = xTaskGetTickCount();

    while (1)
    {
        // get the results and do something with them
        if (ccs811_get_results(&sensor, &tvoc, &eco2, 0, 0) == ESP_OK)
            ...
        // passive waiting until 1 second is over
        vTaskDelayUntil(&last_wakeup, 1000 / portTICK_PERIOD_MS);
    }
}
...

The user task simply fetches new data with the same rate as the measurements are performed.

Note

The rate of fetching the measurement results must be not greater than the rate of periodic measurements of the sensor, however, it should be less to avoid conflicts caused by the timing tolerance of the sensor.

A different approach is to use the interrupt nINT. This interrupt signal is either triggered every time when new data are available (INT_DATA_RDY) or only whenever eCO2 value exceeds defined thresholds (INT_THRESHOLD). In both cases, the user has to implement an interrupt handler that either fetches the data directly or triggers a task, that is waiting to fetch the data.

...
TaskHandle_t nINT_task;

// Interrupt handler which resumes user_task_interrupt on interrupt

void nINT_handler(uint8_t gpio)
{
    xTaskResumeFromISR(nINT_task);
}

// User task that fetches the sensor values.

void user_task_interrupt(void *pvParameters)
{
    uint16_t tvoc;
    uint16_t eco2;

    while (1)
    {
        // task suspends itself and waits to be resumed by interrupt handler
        vTaskSuspend(NULL);

        // after resume get the results and do something with them
        if (ccs811_get_results(&sensor, &tvoc, &eco2, 0, 0) == ESP_OK)
            ...
    }
}
...
xTaskCreate(user_task_interrupt, "user_task_interrupt", 256, NULL, 2, &nINT_task);
...

In this example, a task is defined which suspends itself in each cycle to wait for fetching the data. The task is resumed by the interrupt handler.

Finally, the interrupt handler has to be activated for the GPIO which is connected to the interrupt signal. Furthermore, the interrupt has to be enabled in the CCS811 sensor.

Function ccs811_enable_interrupt() enables the interrupt that is triggered whenever new data are available (INT_DATA_RDY).

...
// activate the interrupt for INT_GPIO and set the interrupt handler
gpio_set_interrupt(INT_GPIO, GPIO_INTTYPE_EDGE_NEG, nINT_handler);

// enable the data ready interrupt INT_DATA_RDY
ccs811_enable_interrupt(&sensor, true);
...

Function ccs811_set_eco2_thresholds() enables the interrupt that is triggered whenever eCO2 value exceeds the thresholds (INT_THRESHOLD) defined by parameters.

...
// activate the interrupt for INT_GPIO and set the interrupt handler
gpio_set_interrupt(INT_GPIO, GPIO_INTTYPE_EDGE_NEG, nINT_handler);

// set threshold parameters and enable threshold interrupt mode INT_THRESHOLD
ccs811_set_eco2_thresholds(&sensor, 600, 1100, 40);
...
group ccs811

ESP-IDF driver for AMS CCS811 digital gas sensor connected to I2C.

Ported from esp-open-rtos

Copyright (c) 2017 Gunar Schorcht https://github.com/gschorcht Copyright (c) 2020 Ruslan V. Uss unclerus@gmail.com BSD Licensed as described in the file LICENSE

Defines

CCS811_I2C_ADDRESS_1

< CCS811 I2C addresses

default

CCS811_I2C_ADDRESS_2
CCS811_ERR_BASE

CCS811 driver error codes ORed with error codes for I2C the interface.

CCS811_ERR_BOOT_MODE

firmware is in boot mode

CCS811_ERR_NO_APP

no application firmware loaded

CCS811_ERR_NO_NEW_DATA

no new data samples are ready

CCS811_ERR_NO_IAQ_DATA

no new data samples are ready

CCS811_ERR_HW_ID

wrong hardware ID

CCS811_ERR_INV_SENS

invalid sensor ID

CCS811_ERR_WR_REG_INV

invalid register addr on write

CCS811_ERR_RD_REG_INV

invalid register addr on read

CCS811_ERR_MM_INV

invalid measurement mode

CCS811_ERR_MAX_RESIST

max sensor resistance reached

CCS811_ERR_HEAT_FAULT

heater current not in range

CCS811_ERR_HEAT_SUPPLY

heater voltage not correct

CCS811_ERR_WRONG_MODE

wrong measurement mode

CCS811_ERR_RD_STAT_FAILED

read status register failed

CCS811_ERR_RD_DATA_FAILED

read sensor data failed

CCS811_ERR_APP_START_FAIL

sensor app start failure

CCS811_ERR_WRONG_PARAMS

wrong parameters used

CCS_ECO2_RANGE_MIN
CCS_ECO2_RANGE_MAX
CCS_TVOC_RANGE_MIN
CCS_TVOC_RANGE_MAX

Enums

enum ccs811_mode_t

CCS811 operation modes.

Values:

enumerator CCS811_MODE_IDLE

Idle, low current mode.

enumerator CCS811_MODE_1S

Constant Power mode, IAQ values every 1 s.

enumerator CCS811_MODE_10S

Pulse Heating mode, IAQ values every 10 s.

enumerator CCS811_MODE_60S

Low Power Pulse Heating, IAQ values every 60 s.

enumerator CCS811_MODE_250MS

Constant Power mode, RAW data every 250 ms.

Functions

esp_err_t ccs811_init_desc(ccs811_dev_t *dev, uint8_t addr, i2c_port_t port, gpio_num_t sda_gpio, gpio_num_t scl_gpio)

Initialize device descriptor.

Parameters:
  • dev – Pointer to the sensor device data structure

  • addr – Sensor address

  • port – I2C port number

  • sda_gpio – GPIO pin number for SDA

  • scl_gpio – GPIO pin number for SCL

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

esp_err_t ccs811_free_desc(ccs811_dev_t *dev)

Free device descriptor.

Parameters:

dev – Pointer to the sensor device data structure

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

esp_err_t ccs811_init(ccs811_dev_t *dev)

Initialize a CCS811 sensor.

The function initializes the CCS811 sensor and checks its availability.

Parameters:

dev – Pointer to the sensor device data structure

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

esp_err_t ccs811_set_mode(ccs811_dev_t *dev, ccs811_mode_t mode)

Set the operation mode of the sensor.

The function sets the operating mode of the sensor. If the parameter mode is either CCS811_MODE_1S, CCS811_MODE_10S, CCS811_MODE_60S or CCS811_MODE_250MS, the sensor starts a periodic measurement with the specified period. Function ccs811_get_results() can then be used at the same rate to get the results.

In CCS811_MODE_1S, CCS811_MODE_10S and CCS811_MODE_60S, raw sensor data as well as IAQ values calculated by the sensor values are available. In CCS811_MODE_250MS, only raw data are available.

In case, parameter mode is CCS811_MODE_IDLE, the sensor does not perform any measurements.

Please note: Mode timings are subject to typical 2% tolerance due to accuracy of internal sensor clock.

Please note: After setting the sensor mode, the sensor needs up to 20 minutes, before accurate readings are generated.

Please note: When a sensor operating mode is changed to a new mode with a lower sample rate, e.g., from CCS811_MODE_60S to CCS811_MODE_1S, it should be placed in mode_idle for at least 10 minutes before enabling the new mode.

Parameters:
  • dev – Pointer to the sensor device data structure

  • mode – Operation mode of the sensor

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

esp_err_t ccs811_get_results(ccs811_dev_t *dev, uint16_t *iaq_tvoc, uint16_t *iaq_eco2, uint8_t *raw_i, uint16_t *raw_v)

Get latest IAQ sensor values and/or RAW sensor data.

The function reads the IAQ sensor values (TVOC and eCO2) and/or the raw sensor data. If some of the results are not needed, the corresponding pointer parameters can be set to NULL.

Please note: If the function is called and no new data are available, e.g., due to the sensor mode time tolerance of 2%, the function still returns successfully. In this case, the results of the last measurement are returned and the error code CCS811_ERR_NO_NEW_DATA is set.

Please note: In CCS811_MODE_250MS, only RAW data are available. In that case, the function fails with error_code CCS811_ERR_NO_IAQ_DATA if parameters iaq_tvoc and iaq_eco2 are not NULL.

Parameters:
  • dev – pointer to the sensor device data structure

  • iaq_tvoc – TVOC total volatile organic compound (0 - 1187 ppb)

  • iaq_eco2 – eCO2 equivalent CO2 (400 - 8192 ppm)

  • raw_i – current through the sensor used for measuring (0 - 63 uA)

  • raw_v – voltage across the sensor measured (0 - 1023 = 1.65 V)

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

esp_err_t ccs811_get_ntc_resistance(ccs811_dev_t *dev, uint32_t r_ref, uint32_t *res)

Get the resistance of connected NTC thermistor.

CCS811 supports an external interface for connecting a negative thermal coefficient thermistor (R_NTC) to provide a cost effective and power efficient means of calculating the local ambient temperature. The sensor measures the voltage V_NTC across the R_NTC as well as the voltage V_REF across a connected reference resistor (R_REF). The function returns the current resistance of R_NTC using the equation

     R_NTC = R_REF / V_REF * V_NTC
Using the data sheet of the NTC, the ambient temperature can be calculated.

Parameters:
  • dev – pointer to the sensor device data structure

  • r_ref – resistance of R_REF in Ohm

  • res[out] resistance of R_NTC in Ohm

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

esp_err_t ccs811_set_environmental_data(ccs811_dev_t *dev, float temperature, float humidity)

Set environmental data.

If information about the environment are available from another sensor, they can be used by CCS811 to compensate gas readings due to temperature and humidity changes.

Parameters:
  • dev – pointer to the sensor device data structure

  • temperature – measured temperature in degree Celsius

  • humidity – measured relative humidity in percent

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

esp_err_t ccs811_enable_interrupt(ccs811_dev_t *dev, bool enabled)

Enable or disable data ready interrupt signal nINT

At the end of each measurement cycle (250ms, 1s, 10s, 60s), CCS811 can optionally trigger an interrupt. The signal nINT is driven low as soon as new sensor values are ready to read. It will stop being driven low when sensor data are read with function ccs811_get_results.

The interrupt is disabled by default.

Parameters:
  • dev – pointer to the sensor device data structure

  • enabled – if true, the interrupt is enabled, or disabled otherwise

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

esp_err_t ccs811_set_eco2_thresholds(ccs811_dev_t *dev, uint16_t low, uint16_t high, uint8_t hysteresis)

Set eCO2 threshold mode for data ready interrupts.

The user task can choose that the data ready interrupt is not generated every time when new sensor values become ready but only if the eCO2 value moves from the current range (LOW, MEDIUM, or HIGH) into another range by more than a hysteresis value. Hysteresis is used to prevent multiple interrupts close to a threshold.

  • LOW below parameter value low

  • MEDIUM between parameter values low and high

  • HIGH above parameter value high is range HIGH.

If all parameters have valid values, the function sets the thresholds and enables the data ready interrupt. Using 0 for all parameters disables the interrupt.

The interrupt is disabled by default.

Parameters:
  • dev – pointer to the sensor device data structure

  • low – threshold LOW to MEDIUM (> 400, default 1500)

  • high – threshold MEDIUM to HIGH (< 8192, default 2500)

  • hysteresis – hysteresis value (default 50)

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

esp_err_t ccs811_get_baseline(ccs811_dev_t *dev, uint16_t *baseline)

Get the current baseline value from sensor.

The sensor supports automatic baseline correction over a minimum time of 24 hours. Using this function, the current baseline value can be saved before the sensor is powered down. This baseline can then be restored after sensor is powered up again to continue the automatic baseline process.

Parameters:
  • dev – pointer to the sensor device data structure

  • baseline[out] current baseline value on success, or 0 on error

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

esp_err_t ccs811_set_baseline(ccs811_dev_t *dev, uint16_t baseline)

Write a previously stored baseline value to the sensor.

The sensor supports automatic baseline correction over a minimum time of 24 hours. Using this function, a previously saved baseline value be restored after the sensor is powered up to continue the automatic baseline process.

Please note: The baseline must be written after the conditioning period of 20 min after power up.

Parameters:
  • dev – pointer to the sensor device data structure

  • baseline – baseline to be set

Returns:

ESP_OK on success

struct ccs811_dev_t
#include <ccs811.h>

CCS811 sensor device data structure.

Public Members

i2c_dev_t i2c_dev

I2C device handle.

ccs811_mode_t mode

operation mode