Instructions for a Mothbox v4.o Image on a Raspberry Pi 5 (and hopefully works on a 4 too!) Most of the time you can just clone an image to an SD card of a mothbox, but if you want to code your own from scratch starting from a fresh install of a raspberry pi, follow these instructions
RPI 5 Bookworm from scratch (June 20, 2024)
mothbox.local user: pi pass: luna
Terminal Time
ssh pi@mothbox01.local
sudo raspi-config
interface options
VNC
enable
exit
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get upgrade
yes
(Wait for any updates)
Let’s install some things
Fix the GPIO pins for Pi5
sudo apt remove python3-rpi.gpio
sudo apt install python3-rpi-lgpio
#this is the format change from pip3 install...
Open CV and other Picamera Dependencies
sudo apt install python3-opencv
sudo apt install -y python3-kms++
sudo apt install -y python3-pyqt5 python3-prctl libatlas-base-dev ffmpeg python3-pip
sudo apt install python3-numpy --upgrade
sudo apt install python3-picamera2 --upgrade
sudo apt install python3-crontab
sudo apt install python3-schedule
sudo nano /boot/firmware/config.txt (or if Pi 4) sudo nano /boot/config.txt
find this line and add the cam-512 part
dtoverlay=vc4-kms-v3d, cma-512
#Find the line: [all], add the following items under it:
#Disable Bluetooth
dtoverlay=disable-bt
#This sets us the rechargable RTC battery to charge itself
dtparam=rtc_bbat_vchg=3000000
#3000000 indicates the maximum voltage, charging to 3V will disable charging, and the voltage lower than 3V will start to trickle charging
dtoverlay=ov64a40,cam0,link-frequency=360000000
#camera_auto_detect=0 #I haven't needed this line
(If you have a second camera you can also add it by adding a second line like this:
dtoverlay=ov64a40,cam1,link-frequency=456000000
hit CTRL+X and save the file
now we edit a different file to make the pi5 handle its power more efficiently and let us wake it up
#To support low-power mode for wake-up alerts, go to configuration:
sudo -E rpi-eeprom-config --edit
#Add the following two lines:
POWER_OFF_ON_HALT=1
WAKE_ON_GPIO=0
hit CTRL+X and save the file
sudo reboot now
The pi should reboot, and now we should be able to go on the desktop with VNC
Desktop Time
open RealVNC
mothbox.local pi and luna check save passowrd
try a command like
libcamera-hello --info-text "lens %lp" -t 0
and it should open fine and display the image. If there is just a black screen, REALvnc might need to update.
Make a folder on the Desktop called “Mothbox”
Paste everything from Software in the github code repo in there
run TakePhoto.py inside the Mothbox folder. It should take some photos and save them in the photos folder
Install Power monitoring
sudo pip3 install adafruit-circuitpython-ina260 –break-system-packages
add this to crontab
*/1 * * * * cd /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/ && python3 Measure_Power.py >> /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/logs/Measure_Power_log.txt 2>&1
sudo raspi-config
enable SPI enable i2c
note! this breaks GPIO in pi5 so to fix
cd /usr/local/lib/python3.11/dist-packages/RPi
and just started deleting stuff until the GPIO pins started working again.
this meant deleting
sudo rm _GPIO.cpython-311-aarch64-linux-gnu.so
pi@mothbox:/usr/local/lib/python3.11/dist-packages/RPi $ cd GPIO pi@mothbox:/usr/local/lib/python3.11/dist-packages/RPi/GPIO $ ls init.py pycache pi@mothbox:/usr/local/lib/python3.11/dist-packages/RPi/GPIO $ sudo rm init.py pi@mothbox:/usr/local/lib/python3.11/dist-packages/RPi/GPIO $ sudo rm * -r pi@mothbox:/usr/local/lib/python3.11/dist-packages/RPi/GPIO $ cd .. pi@mothbox:/usr/local/lib/python3.11/dist-packages/RPi $ sudo rm init.py pi@mothbox:/usr/local/lib/python3.11/dist-packages/RPi $
Obviously im not the smartest hacker out there, but hey it works fine now it seems!
set up the crontab
make sure to do SUDO crontab -e not just crontab -e because our scripts need to run as root because they change system things like wakeup times
in the @reboot command for the scheduler, make sure to add “-u” after python to make the logs function properly
sudo crontab -e
add these lines for a default scheduling
*/1 * * * * cd /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox && python3 Backup_Files.py >> /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/logs/Backup_log.txt 2>&1
*/1 * * * * cd /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox && python3 Attract_On.py >> /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/logs/Attract_On_log.txt 2>&1
*/1 * * * * /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/TakePhoto.py >> /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/logs/TakePhoto_log.txt 2>&1
@reboot /usr/bin/python3 -u /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/Scheduler_Pi5.py >> /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/logs/Scheduler_log.txt 2>&1
*/1 * * * * cd /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/ && python3 Measure_Power.py >> /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/logs/Measure_Power_log.txt 2>&1
change that last line to SchedulerPi4.py if using a pi4 instead. hit CTRL+X and save, and reboot.
upon reboot everthing should be working in mothbox mode!
if somethign isn’t working, check the logs and see if there’s a problem. for instance my photos weren’t taking, and in the TakePhoto.log, i got an error that said “Permission denied” so i righ clicked takephoto.py, and set its permissions to allow execution, and it worked great!
Wifi Control hotspot and limiting
from https://www.raspberryconnect.com/projects/65-raspberrypi-hotspot-accesspoints/203-automated-switching-accesspoint-wifi-network
download
curl "https://www.raspberryconnect.com/images/scripts/AccessPopup.tar.gz" -o AccessPopup.tar.gz
unarchive with
tar -xvf ./AccessPopup.tar.gz
change to the AccessPopup folder
cd AccessPopup
Run the Installer script
sudo ./installconfig.sh
The menu options below will be presented. Use option 1 to install the AccessPopup scripts. This will automatically start monitoring the wifi connection every 2 minutes. It will also check the wifi at startup and then at every 2 minute intervals.
mothboxwifi lunaluna
to make sure it runs you might have to add this to cron
*/1 * * * * sudo /usr/bin/accesspopup >/dev/null 2>&1
Kill wifi after a while (Limit wifi)
you need to edit the access popup script:
sudo nano /usr/bin/accesspopup On line 22 it says re_enable_wifi=’y’ change this to ‘n’ so your wifi stays off. I would also do this to the accesspopup file in the downloaded AccessPopup folder so it installs as n as well.
from MothPower folder sudo cp lowpower.service /etc/systemd/system/
sudo cp lowpower.timer /etc/systemd/system/
sudo cp lowpower.sh /usr/bin/
sudo chmod +x /usr/bin/lowpower.sh
sudo systemctl enable lowpower.timer
copy low_in_one.sh powerup.sh & stop_lowpower.sh to a convenient place. stop_lowpower.sh is used to stop the timer during the 10 minute countdown. or issue the command sudo systemctl stop lowpower.timer restarting the timer after 10 minutes is not possible as it is from boot up time. powerup.sh is used to switch wifi and bluetooth back on if needed low_in_one.sh this will switch off wifi and bluetooth in 1 minutes time. End the cammand with a & otherwise it will block you enter further commands. use ctrl C to stop it. use: low_in_one.sh &
finally add this to crontab
@reboot cd /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/scripts/MothPower && ./powerup_wifi.sh
Clean up the image (cut the fat)
sudo apt-get clean
sudo apt-get autoremove
sudo apt-get remove –purge firefox
sudo apt-get remove –purge chromium-browser
sudo truncate -s 0 *.log
RPI legacy Bullseye 32bit os
(Follows a lot of my guide https://forum.arducam.com/t/full-walkthrough-setup-rpi4-take-64mp-photos-and-control-focus/4653 and the official https://docs.arducam.com/Raspberry-Pi-Camera/Native-camera/Quick-Start-Guide/#imx519hawkeye-64mp-cameras flash with
mothbox.local User: pi Pass: luna
ssh pi@mothbox01.local
gimmemoths
sudo raspi-config
interface options:
vnc legacy camera i2c
sudo nano /boot/config.txt
uncomment hdmi_force_hotplug=1
change this line to dtoverlay=vc4-kms-v3d, cma-512
CTRL+o [ENTER] CTRL+x
sudo reboot
open RealVNC
mothbox.local
save passowrd
open a cmd line
enter the command cat /proc/meminfo and your CmaTotal: should say something like 524288 kB (if not, double check your /boot/config.txt was saved correctly and restart)
CAMERA STUFF
wget -O install_pivariety_pkgs.sh https://github.com/ArduCAM/Arducam-Pivariety-V4L2-Driver/releases/download/install_script/install_pivariety_pkgs.sh
sudo chmod +x install_pivariety_pkgs.sh
./install_pivariety_pkgs.sh -p libcamera_dev
./install_pivariety_pkgs.sh -p libcamera_apps
Step 5 Installing Picamera2 dependencies
sudo apt install -y python3-kms++ sudo apt install -y python3-pyqt5 python3-prctl libatlas-base-dev ffmpeg python3-pip sudo pip3 install numpy –upgrade sudo pip3 install picamera2 –upgrade
Shut down the RPI and physically unplug it, and then start it back up again
try a command like
libcamera-hello –info-text “lens %lp” -t 0
and you should see an image that gets focused (more libcamera commands https://docs.arducam.com/Raspberry-Pi-Camera/Native-camera/Libcamera-User-Guide/) https://github.com/raspberrypi/documentation/blob/develop/documentation/asciidoc/computers/camera/libcamera_options_common.adoc
save a full res autofocused image
libcamera-still -t 5000 -n -o test64mp.jpg –width 9152 –height 6944
try to save a full res manual focused image libcamera-still –lens-position 7.4 -n -o test64mp_7.4.jpg –width 9152 –height 6944
Try to save a photo with locked down parameters libcamera-still –lens-position 7.4 -n –width 9152 –height 6944 –awb cloudy –metering average –ev .5 -o test64mp_7.4_cloud_met_av_ev05.jpg
save a photo with an extra RAW photo
libcamera-still –lens-position 7.4 -n –width 9152 –height 6944 –awb cloudy –metering average –ev .5 -o test64mp_7.4_cloud_met_av_ev05.jpg –raw
PI Juice Software
sudo apt-get install pijuice-gui
(As of nov 2023 you have to run these lines to make work because of 64 bit things https://github.com/PiSupply/PiJuice/issues/1000#issuecomment-1676382133) $ sudo rm /usr/bin/pijuice_gui $ sudo ln -s /usr/bin/pijuice_gui32 /usr/bin/pijuice_gui sudo rm /usr/bin/pijuice_cli sudo ln -s /usr/bin/pijuice_gui32 /usr/bin/pijuice_cli
sudo rm /usr/bin/pijuiceboot sudo ln -s /usr/bin/pijuice_gui32 /usr/bin/pijuiceboot
You need to go to pijuice GUI go to config set EEPROM to 0x52 add dtoverlay=i2c-rtc,ds1307 to /boot/config.txt.
(examples To add something to the startup service
sudo nano /etc/rc.local
and just before the line exit 0 add the following: python3 /home/pi/runandturnoff.py &
) Pijuice api https://github.com/PiSupply/PiJuice/blob/master/Software/README.md Relay Hat Waveshare https://www.waveshare.com/wiki/RPi_Relay_Board
sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get install python-pip sudo apt-get install python-dev sudo pip install RPi.GPIO
wget https://files.waveshare.com/upload/0/0c/RPi_Relay_Board.zip unzip -o RPi_Relay_Board.zip -d ./RPi_Relay_Board sudo chmod 777 -R RPi_Relay_Board cd RPi_Relay_Board
(Examples
cd shell sudo ./Relay.sh CH1 ON sudo ./Relay.sh CH2 ON sudo ./Relay.sh CH3 OFF
cd python sudo python Relay_Module.py )
Schedule Library
sudo apt install python3-schedule
Low Power Things:
/usr/bin/tvservice -o
sudo ifconfig wlan0 up // might not kill power sudo ifconfig wlan0 down
in /boot/config.txt dtoverlay=disable-wifi dtoverlay=disable-bt
RPI OS Bookworm 64 bit - 01/03/2024
mothbox.local User: pi Pass: luna
ssh pi@mothbox.local type yes
luna
sudo raspi-config
interface options: advanced options A6 Wayland enable x11
exit sudo reboot
sudo raspi-config enable VNC
sudo nano /boot/config.txt [all] dtoverlay=vc4-kms-v3d,cma-512 dtoverlay=arducam-64mp change this line to dtoverlay=vc4-kms-v3d, cma-512
CTRL+o [ENTER] CTRL+x sudo reboot
VNC interface
open RealVNC
mothbox01.local
save password
open a cmd line
enter the command cat /proc/meminfo
and your CmaTotal: should say something like 524288 kB (if not, double check your /boot/config.txt was saved correctly and restart)
CAMERA STUFF
wget -O install_pivariety_pkgs.sh https://github.com/ArduCAM/Arducam-Pivariety-V4L2-Driver/releases/download/install_script/install_pivariety_pkgs.sh
sudo chmod +x install_pivariety_pkgs.sh
./install_pivariety_pkgs.sh -p libcamera_dev
./install_pivariety_pkgs.sh -p libcamera_apps
sudo apt update sudo apt upgrade
sudo apt install -y python3-picamera2
this makes it easier to edit csv files sudo apt install libreoffice-calc
RPI 5 Coding
make it auto wakeup
(from https://www.waveshare.com/wiki/Raspberry_Pi_5) Auto Wakeup
To support low-power mode for wake-up alerts, add the configuration:
sudo -E rpi-eeprom-config --edit Add the following two lines: POWER_OFF_ON_HALT=1 WAKE_ON_GPIO=0
You can use the following method to test the function:
echo +600 | sudo tee /sys/class/rtc/rtc0/wakealarm sudo halt or sudo poweroff #Will wake up and restart after 10 minutes
RTC Battery Charging
Note: Please check whether your RTC battery supports charging and the maximum input voltage before adding the following commands.
sudo nano /boot/firmware/config.txt #Add dtparam=rtc_bbat_vchg=3000000 #3000000 indicates the maximum voltage, charging to 3V will disable charging, and the voltage lower than 3V will start to trickle charging
Take Photos
with OWLSIGHT https://docs.arducam.com/Raspberry-Pi-Camera/Native-camera/64MP-OV64A40/
sudo nano /boot/firmware/config.txt
#Find the line: [all], add the following item under it: dtoverlay=ov64a40,cam0,link-frequency=456000000 (If you have a second camera you can also add it by adding a second line like this:
dtoverlay=ov64a40,cam1,link-frequency=456000000
#camera_auto_detect=0 #I haven't needed this line
#Save and reboot.
`for testing: `
`libcamera-still --list-cameras `
`libcamera-still --camera 0 `
`libcamera-still --camera 1 `
`for capture: `
`libcamera-jpeg --camera 0 --width 9152 --height 6944 -o test0.jpg -n -t 1`
`libcamera-jpeg --camera 1 --width 9152 --height 6944 -o test1.jpg -n -t 1`
Fix GPIO for pi5
https://forums.raspberrypi.com/viewtopic.php?p=2160578#p2160578 sudo apt remove python3-rpi.gpio sudo apt install python3-rpi-lgpio #this is the format change from pip3 install...
Make pi its own wifi hotspot
from https://www.raspberryconnect.com/projects/65-raspberrypi-hotspot-accesspoints/203-automated-switching-accesspoint-wifi-network
download curl “https://www.raspberryconnect.com/images/scripts/AccessPopup.tar.gz” -o AccessPopup.tar.gz
unarchive with tar -xvf ./AccessPopup.tar.gz change to the AccessPopup folder cd AccessPopup Run the Installer script sudo ./installconfig.sh
The menu options below will be presented. Use option 1 to install the AccessPopup scripts. This will automatically start monitoring the wifi connection every 2 minutes. It will also check the wifi at startup and then at every 2 minute intervals.
mothboxwifi lunaluna
to make sure it runs you might have to add this to cron
*/2 * * * * sudo /usr/bin/accesspopup >/dev/null 2>&1
Sometimes it is useful to be able to use the AccessPoint even though the Pi is in range of a known WiFi network. This can be done by opening a terminal window and entering the command: sudo accesspopup -a
to go back to normal use, just run the script without the -a argument. sudo accesspopup
alternately use option 4 “Live Switch…” on this installer script.
to connect to the wifi hotspot
just vnc to mothbox
or if that is being weird for some reason, go to the default ip address the default IP address is 192.168.50.5 ssh pi@192.168.50.5 or vnc to
192.168.50.5
To add new Wifi to the pi
cd AccessPopup Run the Installer script sudo ./installconfig.sh
choose OPTION 5 and you can add a new wifi
To start up the hotspot manually
sudo accesspopup -a
to stop the hotspot sudo accesspopup
Kill wifi after a while
curl “https://www.raspberryconnect.com/images/scripts/MothPower.tar.xz” -o MothPower.tar.xz
tar -xvf ./MothPower.tar.xz
sudo cp lowpower.service /etc/systemd/system/
sudo cp lowpower.timer /etc/systemd/system/
sudo cp lowpower.sh /usr/bin/
sudo chmod +x /usr/bin/lowpower.sh
sudo systemctl enable lowpower.timer
Then copy low_in_one.sh powerup.sh & stop_lowpower.sh to a convenient place. stop_lowpower.sh is used to stop the timer during the 10 minute countdown. or issue the command sudo systemctl stop lowpower.timer restarting the timer after 10 minutes is not possible as it is from boot up time. powerup.sh is used to switch wifi and bluetooth back on if needed low_in_one.sh this will switch off wifi and bluetooth in 1 minutes time. End the cammand with a & otherwise it will block you enter further commands. use ctrl C to stop it. use: low_in_one.sh &
Crontab Tips
Export CRONTAB to file
sudo crontab -l > /home/pi/Desktop/Mothbox/crontab.bak
Import it from the new user:
crontab /some/shared/location/crontab.bak