how to "clean up" serial output?

Using Arduino Programming Questions
#1

I am logging temp to a csv file using a python script.

Occasionally I will have extra values, or strange values like this:

normal:

11/05/2012 08:40:31, 72.89,

error:

11/05/2012 08:41:17, 72.8972.2972.2973.48,

(as you can see, there are extra temp readings coming out on the same line as the previous reading.

I am certain the problem lies somewhere in the arduino code:

/* Sensor test sketch
  for more information see http://www.ladyada.net/make/logshield/lighttemp.html
  */

#define aref_voltage 3.4         // we tie 3.3V to ARef and measure it with a multimeter!




//TMP36 Pin Variables
int tempPin = 1;        //the analog pin the TMP36's Vout (sense) pin is connected to
                        //the resolution is 10 mV / degree centigrade with a
                        //500 mV offset to allow for negative temperatures
int tempReading;        // the analog reading from the sensor
int led_state;

void setup(void) {
  // We'll send debugging information via the Serial monitor
  Serial.begin(9600);   
  pinMode(13, OUTPUT);
  Serial.println("Ready");

  // If you want to set the aref to something other than 5v
  analogReference(EXTERNAL);
}


void loop(void) {

  tempReading = analogRead(tempPin);  

  //Serial.print("Temp reading = ");
  //Serial.print(tempReading);     // the raw analog reading

  // converting that reading to voltage, which is based off the reference voltage
  float voltage = tempReading * aref_voltage;
  voltage /= 1024.0; 

  // print out the voltage
  //Serial.print(" - ");
  //Serial.print(voltage); Serial.println(" volts");

  
  //Serial.print(temperatureC); Serial.println(" degrees C");

  // now print out the temperature
  float temperatureC = (voltage - 0.5) * 100 ;  //converting from 10 mv per degree wit 500 mV offset
                                               //to degrees ((volatge - 500mV) times 100)
  // now convert to Fahrenheight
  float temperatureF = (temperatureC * 9.0 / 5.0) + 32.0;
  Serial.print(temperatureF); 

  digitalWrite(13,led_state);
  led_state=!led_state;
  //Serial.println(" degrees F");

  delay(2000);
}

Any ideas for how to filter the output, making sure I only get one temp reading per line?

#2

The code you posted doesn't at all match what I would expect the output to be. (I am ignoring everything commented out.)

There's only two Serial.print() statements. One that says "Ready" and the other that outputs the variable temperatureF. No comments, no newlines.

Edit, Correction: The "Ready" statement has a newline.

#3

I think we need to see the python code too.

#4

Here is the python code:

import serial
import time

ser = serial.Serial('/dev/ttyUSB0', 9600, timeout=1)
time.sleep(1)

logfile = open('test.csv', 'a')

while 1:
    line = ser.readline() 
    now = time.strftime("%d/%m/%Y %H:%M:%S", time.localtime())
    a =  "%s, %s, %s" % (now, line, "\n")
    print a 
    logfile.write(a)
        logfile.flush()    
logfile.close()
ser.close()

additionally, the final version of the program will simply run this python script every 4 hours, and record the temp into the csv file.

It won't be running over and over again...

#5

isn't it because readline reads until the timeout is reached? you should implement a check that looks if the sent int is 10 or 13 (sent by println) and then end the reading and print that. Now you keep op reading until it times out and print it then, while in that time, the arduino may have sent it multiple times (3 times here)

#6

You are using readline() but you aren't sending a newline with the values you print. So how does readline() know when it has finished?

#7

a = "%s, %s, %s" % (now, line, "\n")

at the end, there is a new line.

#8

James meant your Arduino sketch code not the python stuff.

#9