5.11.2 IR Receiver

In this project, you will learn to use IR Receiver.

An infrared-receiver is a component which receives infrared signals and can independently receive infrared rays and output signals compatible with TTL level. It is similar with a normal plastic-packaged transistor in size and is suitable for all kinds of infrared remote control and infrared transmission.

Required Components

In this project, we need the following components.

It’s definitely convenient to buy a whole kit, here’s the link:

Name	ITEMS IN THIS KIT	LINK
3 in 1 Starter Kit	380+	3 in 1 Starter Kit

You can also buy them separately from the links below.

COMPONENT INTRODUCTION	PURCHASE LINK
SunFounder R3 Board	BUY
Breadboard	BUY
Jumper Wires	BUY
IR Receiver	-

Schematic

Wiring

In this example, we wire up the left pin of IR Receiver to pin 11, the middle pin to GND, and the right pin to 5V.

Code

Note

• Open the 5.11.ir_receiver.ino file under the path of 3in1-kit\basic_project\5.11.ir_receiver.

• Or copy this code into Arduino IDE.

• The IRremote library is used here, you can install it from the Library Manager.

  

After uploading the codes to the R3 board, you can see that the current value of the pressed button of IR Remote Controller displays on the serial monitor.

How it works?

This code is designed to work with an infrared (IR) remote control using the IRremote library. Here’s the breakdown:

1. Include Libraries: This includes the IRremote library, which provides functions to work with IR remote controls.

   #include <IRremote.h>
   

2. Defines the Arduino pin to which the IR sensor’s signal pin.

   const int IR_RECEIVE_PIN = 11;  // Define the pin number for the IR Sensor
   

3. Initializes serial communication at a baud rate of 9600. Initializes the IR receiver on the specified pin (IR_RECEIVE_PIN) and enables LED feedback (if applicable).

   void setup() {
       Serial.begin(9600);                                     // Start serial communication at 9600 baud rate
       IrReceiver.begin(IR_RECEIVE_PIN, ENABLE_LED_FEEDBACK);  // Start the IR receiver
   }
   

4. The loop runs continuously to process incoming IR remote signals.

   void loop() {
       if (IrReceiver.decode()) {
           String decodedValue = decodeKeyValue(IrReceiver.decodedIRData.command);
           if (decodedValue != "ERROR") {
               Serial.println(decodedValue);
               delay(100);
           }
           IrReceiver.resume();  // Enable receiving of the next value
       }
   }
   

   • Checks if an IR signal is received and successfully decoded.

   • Decodes the IR command and stores it in decodedValue using a custom decodeKeyValue() function.

   • Checks if the decoded value is not an error.

   • Prints the decoded IR value to the serial monitor.

   • Resumes IR signal reception for the next signal.