A laser-based time-of-flight distance sensor with excellent accuracy and range. The VL53L1X measures distances from 4cm to 4 metres using low-power infrared laser pulses, making it ideal for robotics, presence detection, and proximity sensing applications.

Works with both Raspberry Pi and Arduino, and is compatible with Pimoroni's Breakout Garden system for tool-free installation.

Key Features

4cm to 4m Range – Wide detection distance with 27° field of view
High Accuracy – ±25mm (±20mm in darkness)
Fast Sampling – Up to 50Hz ranging frequency
I2C Interface – Simple two-wire connection (address 0x29)
3.3V/5V Compatible – Works with both voltage levels
Reverse Polarity Protection – Built-in circuit protection
Breakout Garden Compatible – Plug directly into Breakout Garden slots

Specifications

Sensor – VL53L1X Time of Flight
Range – 4-400cm
Field of View – 27°
I2C Address – 0x29
Dimensions – 19 × 19 × 3.2mm

Ideal For

Robot collision avoidance
Presence and proximity detection
Gesture recognition
Distance measurement projects

Package Contents

1× VL53L1X breakout board
1× 5-pin male header
1× 5-pin female right-angle header

Tip: Solder the right-angle female header to mount directly on Raspberry Pi GPIO pins 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 (bottom-left corner).

Resources

VL53L1X Datasheet
Python Library
Example Code

Pimoroni Breakouts

VL53L1X Time of Flight (ToF) Sensor Breakout