It's super easy to get started with embedded code using CircuitPython. To use a microcontroller running CircuitPython we’ve built a simple serial bridge that will let you call two simple functions in your code that will:

• Send real-time telemetry via the Spotter's satellite/cellular connection
• Write logs to the Spotter SD card

More features and functionality may be added at a later date. More details can be found in the GitHub repo:

https://github.com/bristlemouth/bm_serial/tree/develop/circuitpython

Overview

We’ll go through each of these steps in more detail in this guide but if you’re an experienced developer you can follow the steps here to get going right away. If you’d like a more detailed tutorial keep reading.

1. Make sure the Spotter and Spotter Bridge firmware is up to date.
2. Flash the serial_bridge app to your Bristlemouth Dev Kit.
3. Connect the RP2040 to UART TX, UART RX, and GND on the Dev Board.
4. Copy bm_serial.py to the lib directory of the CircuitPython board.
5. Call spotter_tx and spotter_log from the CircuitPython code! It may be helpful to look at these as implemented in example.py.

<aside> ⌛ Expect this to take 30 to 60 minutes.

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Updating the Spotter Firmware

This step can be the trickiest part so please let us know if you need any help.

<aside> ⚠️ You’ll need Spotter’s Main firmware to be v2.15.1 or higher.

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<aside> ⚠️

You’ll need Spotter’s Bridge (this is the Bristlemouth device in the Spotter) to be firmware 0.11.1 or higher.

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If you don’t know what version you have or want to update, follow the steps here: Guide: Managing Spotter & Bristlemouth Firmware Versions.