Achieve your health goals with accurate weight tracking for personalized progress
A
A
Hardware Overview
How does it work?
Load Cell 5 Click is based on the AD7780, a pin programmable, low power, low drift 24-bit ΣΔ ADC from Analog Devices that includes a PGA and uses an internal clock. The AD7780 typically consumes only 330μA and simplifies this weigh scale design since most of the system building blocks are already on the chip. The AD7780 has two filter options selectable via FIL pin(low state - 16.7Hz, high state - 10Hz) and a Power-Down Mode, allowing the user to switch off the power to the bridge sensor and power down the AD7780 when not converting, increasing the battery life. Since the AD7780 provides an integrated solution for weighing scales, it interfaces directly with the load cell. The only required external components, which are also on the Click board™, are filters on the analog inputs and capacitors on the reference pins for EMC purposes. The low-level signal from the load cell is amplified by the AD7780's internal PGA programmed via the PWM pin of the mikroBUS™ socket, labeled as GN, to operate with
a gain of 128 or 1. The conversions from the AD7780 are then sent to the MCU through the SPI serial interface, where the digital information is converted to weight. This Click board™ uses the 6-wire load cell configuration, which has two sense pins, ground, power supply, and two output connections. The load cell differential SENSE lines connected to the AD7780 reference inputs create a ratiometric configuration immune to low-frequency changes in the power supply excitation voltage. Those sense pins are connected to the high and low sides of the Wheatstone bridge, where voltage can be accurately measured, regardless of the voltage drop due to the wiring resistance. The AD7780 has separate analog and digital power supply pins. The analog and digital power supplies are independent of each other to be different, or the same, potentials achieved with the AVDD SEL jumper. This feature allows selecting the AD7780 power supply between an external power supply (2.7 - 5.25V) and logic
voltage levels supplied via mikroBUS™ rails. Load Cell 5 Click communicates with MCU using a standard SPI interface with a dual-purpose DOUT/RDY line. This line can function as a regular data output pin for the SPI interface or as a data-ready pin (interrupt) labeled as RDY and routed on the INT pin of the mikroBUS socket. Also, it uses the RST pin on the mikroBUS™ socket, which performs the Hardware Reset function by putting this pin in a logic low state, and a blue diode labeled as ACTIVE is used to indicate the device's Active Operational Status. This Click board™ can operate with either 3.3V or 5V logic voltage levels selected via the VCC SEL jumper. This way, both 3.3V and 5V capable MCUs can use the communication lines properly. Also, this Click board™ comes equipped with a library containing easy-to-use functions and an example code that can be used as a reference for further development.
Features overview
Development board
Arduino Mega 2560 is a robust microcontroller platform built around the ATmega 2560 chip. It has extensive capabilities and boasts 54 digital input/output pins, including 15 PWM outputs, 16 analog inputs, and 4 UARTs. With a 16MHz crystal
oscillator ensuring precise timing, it offers seamless connectivity via USB, a convenient power jack, an ICSP header, and a reset button. This all-inclusive board simplifies microcontroller projects; connect it to your computer via USB or power it up
using an AC-to-DC adapter or battery. Notably, the Mega 2560 maintains compatibility with a wide range of shields crafted for the Uno, Duemilanove, or Diecimila boards, ensuring versatility and ease of integration.
Microcontroller Overview
MCU Card / MCU

Architecture
AVR
MCU Memory (KB)
256
Silicon Vendor
Microchip
Pin count
100
RAM (Bytes)
8192
You complete me!
Accessories
Click Shield for Arduino Mega comes equipped with four mikroBUS™ sockets, with two in the form of a Shuttle connector, allowing all the Click board™ devices to be interfaced with the Arduino Mega board with no effort. Featuring an AVR 8-bit microcontroller with advanced RISC architecture, 54 digital I/O pins, and Arduino™ compatibility, the Arduino Mega board offers limitless possibilities for prototyping and creating diverse applications. This board is controlled and powered conveniently through a USB connection to program and debug the Arduino Mega board efficiently out of the box, with an additional USB cable connected to the USB B port on the board. Simplify your project development with the integrated ATmega16U2 programmer and unleash creativity using the extensive I/O options and expansion capabilities. There are eight switches, which you can use as inputs, and eight LEDs, which can be used as outputs of the MEGA2560. In addition, the shield features the MCP1501, a high-precision buffered voltage reference from Microchip. This reference is selected by default over the EXT REF jumper at the bottom of the board. You can choose an external one, as you would usually do with an Arduino Mega board. There is also a GND hook for testing purposes. Four additional LEDs are PWR, LED (standard pin D13), RX, and TX LEDs connected to UART1 (mikroBUS™ 1 socket). This Click Shield also has several switches that perform functions such as selecting the logic levels of analog signals on mikroBUS™ sockets and selecting logic voltage levels of the mikroBUS™ sockets themselves. Besides, the user is offered the possibility of using any Click board™ with the help of existing bidirectional level-shifting voltage translators, regardless of whether the Click board™ operates at a 3.3V or 5V logic voltage level. Once you connect the Arduino Mega board with Click Shield for Arduino Mega, you can access hundreds of Click boards™, working with 3.3V or 5V logic voltage levels.
Used MCU Pins
mikroBUS™ mapper
Take a closer look
Click board™ Schematic

Step by step
Project assembly
Track your results in real time
Application Output
1. Application Output - In Debug mode, the 'Application Output' window enables real-time data monitoring, offering direct insight into execution results. Ensure proper data display by configuring the environment correctly using the provided tutorial.

2. UART Terminal - Use the UART Terminal to monitor data transmission via a USB to UART converter, allowing direct communication between the Click board™ and your development system. Configure the baud rate and other serial settings according to your project's requirements to ensure proper functionality. For step-by-step setup instructions, refer to the provided tutorial.

3. Plot Output - The Plot feature offers a powerful way to visualize real-time sensor data, enabling trend analysis, debugging, and comparison of multiple data points. To set it up correctly, follow the provided tutorial, which includes a step-by-step example of using the Plot feature to display Click board™ readings. To use the Plot feature in your code, use the function: plot(*insert_graph_name*, variable_name);. This is a general format, and it is up to the user to replace 'insert_graph_name' with the actual graph name and 'variable_name' with the parameter to be displayed.

Software Support
Library Description
This library contains API for Load Cell 5 Click driver.
Key functions:
loadcell5_set_power_mode
- Load Cell 5 set power mode functionloadcell5_read_adc
- Load Cell 5 reading ADC data functionloadcell5_get_weight
- Load Cell 5 get weight function
Open Source
Code example
The complete application code and a ready-to-use project are available through the NECTO Studio Package Manager for direct installation in the NECTO Studio. The application code can also be found on the MIKROE GitHub account.
/*!
* @file main.c
* @brief LoadCell5 Click example
*
* # Description
* This library contains API for Load Cell 5 Click driver.
* The library initializes and defines the SPI bus drivers to read status and ADC data.
* The library also includes a function for tare, calibration and weight measurement.
*
* The demo application is composed of two sections :
*
* ## Application Init
* The initialization of SPI module, log UART, and additional pins
* and performs the power on. Sets tare the scale, calibrate scale
* and start measurements.
*
* ## Application Task
* This is an example that demonstrates the use of the Load Cell 5 click board.
* The Load Cell 5 click board can be used to measure weight,
* shows the measurement of scales in grams [ g ].
* Results are being sent to the Usart Terminal where you can track their changes.
*
* @author Nenad Filipovic
*
*/
#include "board.h"
#include "log.h"
#include "loadcell5.h"
static loadcell5_t loadcell5;
static log_t logger;
static uint8_t status_val;
static uint32_t adc_val;
static loadcell5_data_t cell_data;
static float weight_val;
void application_init ( void ) {
log_cfg_t log_cfg; /**< Logger config object. */
loadcell5_cfg_t loadcell5_cfg; /**< Click config object. */
/**
* Logger initialization.
* Default baud rate: 115200
* Default log level: LOG_LEVEL_DEBUG
* @note If USB_UART_RX and USB_UART_TX
* are defined as HAL_PIN_NC, you will
* need to define them manually for log to work.
* See @b LOG_MAP_USB_UART macro definition for detailed explanation.
*/
LOG_MAP_USB_UART( log_cfg );
log_init( &logger, &log_cfg );
log_info( &logger, " Application Init " );
// Click initialization.
loadcell5_cfg_setup( &loadcell5_cfg );
LOADCELL5_MAP_MIKROBUS( loadcell5_cfg, MIKROBUS_1 );
err_t init_flag = loadcell5_init( &loadcell5, &loadcell5_cfg );
if ( init_flag == SPI_MASTER_ERROR ) {
log_error( &logger, " Application Init Error. " );
log_info( &logger, " Please, run program again... " );
for ( ; ; );
}
loadcell5_default_cfg ( &loadcell5 );
log_info( &logger, " Application Task " );
Delay_ms( 500 );
log_printf( &logger, "-------------------------\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " Tare the scale : \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, "- - - - - - - - - - - - -\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " >> Remove all object << \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, "- - - - - - - - - - - - -\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " In the following 10 sec \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " please remove all object\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " from the scale. \r\n");
Delay_ms( 10000 );
log_printf( &logger, "-------------------------\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " Start tare scales \r\n");
loadcell5_tare ( &loadcell5, &cell_data );
Delay_ms( 500 );
log_printf( &logger, "-------------------------\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " Tarring is complete \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, "-------------------------\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " Calibrate Scale : \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, "- - - - - - - - - - - - -\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " >>> Load etalon <<< \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, "- - - - - - - - - - - - -\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " In the following 10 sec \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, "place 100g weight etalon\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " on the scale for \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " calibration purpose. \r\n");
Delay_ms( 10000 );
log_printf( &logger, "-------------------------\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " Start calibration \r\n");
if ( loadcell5_calibration ( &loadcell5, LOADCELL5_WEIGHT_100G, &cell_data ) == LOADCELL5_OK ) {
log_printf( &logger, "-------------------------\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " Calibration Done \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, "- - - - - - - - - - - - -\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " >>> Remove etalon <<< \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, "- - - - - - - - - - - - -\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " In the following 10 sec \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " remove 100g weight \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " etalon on the scale. \r\n");
Delay_ms( 10000 );
}
else {
log_printf( &logger, "-------------------------\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " Calibration Error \r\n");
for ( ; ; );
}
log_printf( &logger, "-------------------------\r\n");
log_printf( &logger, " Start measurements : \r\n");
log_printf( &logger, "-------------------------\r\n");
}
void application_task ( void ) {
weight_val = loadcell5_get_weight( &loadcell5, &cell_data );
log_printf(&logger, " Weight : %.2f g\r\n", weight_val );
Delay_ms( 1000 );
}
void main ( void ) {
application_init( );
for ( ; ; ) {
application_task( );
}
}
// ------------------------------------------------------------------------ END
Additional Support
Resources
Category:Force