lua-gpiod

A comprehensive Lua C library wrapper for libgpiod, providing complete GPIO control functionality for Linux systems.

Overview

This library provides a complete Lua binding for the libgpiod library, allowing you to control GPIO pins on Linux systems from Lua scripts. It supports all major gpiod features including input/output operations, event handling, bulk operations, and chip enumeration.

Language Versions

• English
• 中文

Features

• Complete GPIO Control: Input/output operations, value reading/writing
• Event Handling: Rising edge, falling edge, and both edge event detection
• Bulk Operations: Efficient multi-line GPIO operations
• Chip Management: Enumerate and manage multiple GPIO chips
• Line Properties: Access line names, consumers, directions, bias settings
• Precise Timing: Built-in precise sleep function for timing-critical applications

Requirements

• Linux system with GPIO support
• libgpiod library installed
• Lua 5.4 (or compatible version)
• GCC compiler

Installation

Install Dependencies

On Ubuntu/Debian:

sudo apt-get install libgpiod-dev lua5.4-dev build-essential

On Fedora/RHEL:

sudo dnf install libgpiod-devel lua-devel gcc

Build the Library

make

Install (Optional)

sudo make install

Usage

Basic Example

localgpiod=require("gpiod")
-- Open GPIO chiplocalchip=gpiod.chip_open("gpiochip0")
-- Get a GPIO linelocalline=chip:get_line(18)
-- Configure as outputline:request_output("my_app", 0)
-- Set highline:set_value(1)
-- Clean upline:release()
chip:close()

Input with Event Detection

localgpiod=require("gpiod")
localchip=gpiod.chip_open("gpiochip0")
localline=chip:get_line(24)
-- Request rising edge eventsline:request_rising_edge_events("button_monitor")
print("Waiting for button press...")
ifline:event_wait(5.0) then-- 5 second timeoutlocalevent=line:event_read()
print("Button pressed at:", event:timestamp())
print("Event type:", event:event_type())
endline:release()
chip:close()

Bulk Operations

localgpiod=require("gpiod")
localchip=gpiod.chip_open("gpiochip0")
locallines=chip:get_lines({18, 19, 20, 21})
-- Configure all as outputs with initial valueslines:request_output("led_controller", {0, 1, 0, 1})
-- Set all values at oncelines:set_values({1, 1, 1, 1})
-- Read all valueslocalvalues=lines:get_values()
fori, valueinipairs(values) doprint("Line " .. (i-1) ..": " ..value)
endlines:release()
chip:close()

API Reference

Module Functions

• gpiod.chip_open(name_or_number) - Open GPIO chip by name or number
• gpiod.chip_iter() - Create chip iterator
• gpiod.sleep(seconds) - Precise sleep function
• gpiod.version() - Get libgpiod version

Chip Methods

• chip:get_line(offset) - Get single GPIO line
• chip:get_lines(offsets) - Get multiple GPIO lines
• chip:find_line(name) - Find line by name
• chip:get_all_lines() - Get all available lines
• chip:name() - Get chip name
• chip:label() - Get chip label
• chip:num_lines() - Get number of lines
• chip:close() - Close chip

Line Methods

Configuration

• line:request_input(consumer, [flags]) - Configure as input
• line:request_output(consumer, default_val, [flags]) - Configure as output
• line:release() - Release line

Value Operations

• line:get_value() - Read current value
• line:set_value(value) - Set output value

Event Handling

• line:request_rising_edge_events(consumer) - Monitor rising edges
• line:request_falling_edge_events(consumer) - Monitor falling edges
• line:request_both_edges_events(consumer) - Monitor both edges
• line:event_wait(timeout) - Wait for event
• line:event_read() - Read event
• line:event_get_fd() - Get event file descriptor

Properties

• line:offset() - Get line offset
• line:name() - Get line name
• line:consumer() - Get current consumer
• line:direction() - Get direction ("input"/"output")
• line:active_state() - Get active state ("high"/"low")
• line:bias() - Get bias setting
• line:is_used() - Check if line is in use
• line:is_open_drain() - Check open drain configuration
• line:is_open_source() - Check open source configuration
• line:update() - Update line information

Line Bulk Methods

• bulk:num_lines() - Get number of lines
• bulk:get_line(index) - Get line by index
• bulk:request_input(consumer, [flags]) - Configure all as inputs
• bulk:request_output(consumer, values, [flags]) - Configure all as outputs
• bulk:get_values() - Read all values
• bulk:set_values(values) - Set all values
• bulk:release() - Release all lines

Event Methods

• event:event_type() - Get event type ("rising_edge"/"falling_edge")
• event:timestamp() - Get event timestamp

Constants

Request Flags

• gpiod.OPEN_DRAIN - Open drain output
• gpiod.OPEN_SOURCE - Open source output
• gpiod.ACTIVE_LOW - Active low logic
• gpiod.BIAS_DISABLE - Disable bias
• gpiod.BIAS_PULL_DOWN - Pull-down bias
• gpiod.BIAS_PULL_UP - Pull-up bias

Testing

Local Testing

Run the example:

lua gpiod_example.lua

Test module loading:

make test

Docker Testing

Build and test using Docker (recommended for CI/CD):

# Build the Docker image
docker build -t lua-gpiod-test .# Run tests in container
docker run --rm lua-gpiod-test
# Interactive shell for manual testing
docker run --rm -it lua-gpiod-test /bin/bash

The Docker environment includes:

• Debian bookworm-slim base image
• All required dependencies (libgpiod, Lua 5.4, build tools)
• Automatic build and basic functionality tests
• Health check for module loading verification

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Repository

This project is hosted at: https://github.com/HsOjo/lua-gpiod

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit issues and pull requests at the GitHub repository.

Troubleshooting

Permission Issues

If you get permission errors, you may need to add your user to the gpio group:

sudo usermod -a -G gpio $USER

Missing GPIO Chips

List available GPIO chips:

gpiodetect

Library Not Found

Make sure libgpiod is installed and the shared library is in the correct path.