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Raspberry Pi Pico & MAX6675 K-Type

Thermocouple (MicroPython)
This article will guide you to interface a K-Type Thermocouple with Raspberry Pi
Pico, using the MAX6675 thermocouple-to-digital converter. We will use SPI(Serial
Peripheral Interface) to communicate between RP2040 and MAX6675. At the end
of the article, we also show how to show the temperature data on an OLED
display.

Table of Contents
What is a K-Type Thermocouple?
A thermocouple is a temperature sensor commonly used to measure high
temperatures in industrial applications. They consist of two different wires joined
at an end(called the junction). A temperature difference between this junction and
the other ends of the metal can generate a voltage, which can be measured to
estimate the temperature at the hot end.

MAX6675 Thermocouple Description

A K-type thermocouple is made up of two alloys- chromel and alumel. It can

measure temperatures ranging from −200 °C to +1350 °C. In the image above, the
temperature in the reference point can be used to estimate the temperature at the
hot end(temperature sensing junction).

MAX6675 Pinout & Specifications

Below is the pinout of the most commonly used MAX6675 breakout board.
MAX6675 Pinout Description

PIN DESCRIPTION

SDO Serial Data Output Pin.

Chip Select Pin: Set it low to enable the serial

CS
interface.

SCK Serial Clock Input for Synchronizing data transmission.

VCC Power supply pin: 3V to 5.5V.

GND Ground of power supply.

Specifications

MAX6675 helps in easily interfacing a K-type thermocouple with a

microcontroller. Its main features are:

Direct Digital Conversion of Type -K Thermocouple Output

SPI communication interface.
12-Bit, 0.25°C Resolution.
Cold-Junction compensation.

MAX6675 module has a temperature-sensing diode onboard. This diode is used

to read the temperature at the cold end, which is generally the ambient
temperature. The voltage difference between the thermocouple output and the
sensing diode is used to calculate the temperature read by the thermocouple.

For further information, you can view the datasheet of MAX6675.

Prerequisites For Interfacing MAX6675

With Raspberry Pi Pico
A Raspberry Pi Pico or Pico W running MicroPython.
MAX6675 K-type Thermocouple.
Breadboard and connecting wires.
A 16×2 I2C LCD(optional).

Your Raspberry Pi Pico needs to be preloaded with a MicroPython UF2 file to

program it in MicroPython. You can read our getting started guide for Raspberry
Pi Pico where we show all the steps required to start programming RP2040 in
MicroPython.

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Wiring Of Raspberry Pi Pico W With

MAX6675
The wiring diagram below illustrates how we can connect the MAX6675
thermocouple with a Raspberry Pi Pico W (Recommended read: Raspberry Pi Pico
& Pico W Pinout Guide.)
 Pi Pico Pin MAX6675 Pin

GPIO2(Pin 4) SCK

GPIO3(Pin 5) CS

GPIO4(Pin 6) SO

GND(Pin18) GND

3V3(Pin 36) VCC

Remember to connect the thermocouple leads with proper polarity to the

MAX6675 breakout board. Generally, the red wire connects to the positive
terminal and the blue wire connects to the negative terminal.
 MAX6675 breakout board with thermocouple leads attached.

MAX6675 MicroPython Library

MicroPython library for MAX6675 needs to be saved to your Pico to read the
sensor. Open Thonny IDE, and create a new file(File>New). Paste the following
code:

import time
class MAX6675:
MEASUREMENT_PERIOD_MS = 220

def __init__(self, sck, cs, so):

"""
Creates new object for controlling MAX6675
:param sck: SCK (clock) pin, must be configured as
:param cs: CS (select) pin, must be configured as P
:param so: SO (data) pin, must be configured as Pin
"""
# Thermocouple
self._sck = sck
self._sck.low()

Click on File>Save as and save it to Raspberry Pi Pico

Name the library as max6675.py

MicroPython Code To Interface MAX6675

With Pi Pico
The following steps will demonstrate how to use Thonny IDE to upload
MicroPython code to interface MAX6675 thermocouple with Raspberry Pi Pico.

With all connections done, connect the Pico to your computer using a USB
cable. Open Thonny IDE, and paste the following code into a new project.

from max6675 import MAX6675

from machine import Pin
import time

sck = Pin(2, Pin.OUT)

cs = Pin(3, Pin.OUT)
so = Pin(4, Pin.IN)

sensor = MAX6675(sck, cs , so)

while True:
print("temperature=")
 print(sensor.read())

Run the code by clicking the Run icon or by pressing the F5 key.

Save the script to your Raspberry Pi Pico.

Save the script as main.py or with any other name with a “.py” filename
extension.
 You should now see the sensor output on the Shell of Thonny IDE as shown
in the image below.

MicroPython Code Explanation

First, we import the necessary libraries for our script to work. For the MAX6675
sensor, we import the MAX6675 class from the ‘max6675’ library. From the
‘machine’ module, we import the Pin class so that we can set the pins as
input/output. The ‘time’ module is also imported to introduce delays in our code.

from max6675 import MAX6675

from machine import Pin
import time

Set the pins for communicating with MAX6675. The Raspberry Pi Pico pins
connected to SCK and CS pins are set as output. The SO pin is connected to
GPIO4 as set as input. This pin will carry the temperature data from the MAX6675
sensor to Pico.
 sck = Pin(2, Pin.OUT)
cs = Pin(3, Pin.OUT)
so = Pin(4, Pin.IN)

An object called ‘sensor’ is created and initialized with the input and output pins
that we set in the code above.

sensor = MAX6675(sck, cs , so)

Inside the while loop, we obtain the temperature in Celcius using the
‘sensor.read()’ function and print it. The loop continues printing with a delay of 1
second in between prints.

while True:
print("temperature=")
print(sensor.read())
time.sleep(1)

Connecting An LCD
Let us now try to connect a 16×2 LCD with Raspberry Pi Pico to view the output
from the MAX6675 sensor. We shall use I2C communication in Raspberry Pi Pico
for interfacing the LCD.

We need to install the appropriate MicroPython module for the LCD display to
work. Kindly follow our guide to interface Raspberry Pi Pico with LCD to learn
more about installing the library.

After the library scripts are installed, upload the following code to your Raspberry
Pi Pico and save it as ‘main.py’.

from max6675 import MAX6675

from machine import Pin,I2C
from lcd_api import LcdApi
from pico_i2c_lcd import I2cLcd
import time
 sck = Pin(2, Pin.OUT)
cs = Pin(3, Pin.OUT)
so = Pin(4, Pin.IN)

sensor = MAX6675(sck, cs , so)

I2C_ADDR = 0x27
I2C_NUM_ROWS = 2

When the code is successfully uploaded, you must see the temperature displayed
on the LCD as shown in the image below.

Code explanation

After importing the libraries for I2C LCD, we set the I2C address and set the rows
and columns of our LCD. You can find the I2C address of your LCD which is
discussed in the LCD interfacing guide that is linked above. Note that if you are
using a 20×4 LCD, set ‘I2C_NUM_ROWS= 4’ and ‘I2C_NUM_COLS = 20’.

I2C_ADDR = 0x27
I2C_NUM_ROWS = 2
I2C_NUM_COLS = 16
An object called ‘i2c’ is initialized with GPIO0 as the SDA pin and GPIO1 as the
SCL pin for the LCD. An ‘lcd’ object is also created with the parameters specifying
the I2C address, rows, and columns.

i2c = I2C(0, sda=machine.Pin(0), scl=machine.Pin(1), freq=4

lcd = I2cLcd(i2c, I2C_ADDR, I2C_NUM_ROWS, I2C_NUM_COLS)

Finally, in the while loop, we print the value of the temperature obtained from the
MAX6675 sensor.

lcd.putstr("Temperature={}C".format(int(sensor.read())))

Troubleshooting
What if the distance between MAX6675 and Raspberry Pi Pico is more than the
wires provided with the sensor? MAX6675 IC and the point where the
thermocouple wires are attached to the MAX6675 board should be at the same
temperature. So avoid extending the thermocouple wires by using additional
wires. The wires used for SPI communication can be elongated up to some extent
if the thermocouple wires are short.

Wrapping Up
MAX6675 is a preferred sensor in industrial applications as it can withstand high
temperatures. There is also an internal temperature sensor in Raspberry Pi Pico
that you can use, although it is not as accurate as MAX6675. We also have guides
on other environmental sensors which you can take a look at:

Raspberry Pi Pico BME280 Interfacing Guide Using MicroPython.

Raspberry Pi Pico BMP280 Tutorial-Interface Using MicroPython.
Raspberry Pi Pico DHT22 Interfacing Tutorial.
Raspberry Pi Pico DHT11 MicroPython – Easy Interfacing Guide.

Thank you for reading. Please leave your thoughts in the comments below.

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Posted February 21, 2023 in Raspberry Pi Pico
by

Abhilekh Das

The author holds a bachelor’s degree in Electronics & Telecommunication

Engineering. Fueled by an unquenchable fascination for circuits and an ardent
desire to explore the depths of electronic wonders, he has embarked on a lifelong
journey as an avid circuit enthusiast. Through this website, the author wishes to
simplify complex concepts and empower readers to grasp even the most
intricate circuitry with ease.

Tags: Display Projects, MicroPython, Sensor Projects

Comments

One response to “Raspberry Pi

Pico & MAX6675 K-Type
Thermocouple (MicroPython)”

Thiago Tavares de Abreu Silva

October 14, 2023

How can I do this if CMake?

Reply

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