Rotary Encoder Sensor

The rotary_encoder sensor platform allows you to use any continuous-rotation rotary encoders with ESPHome. These devices usually have two pins with which they encode the rotation. Every time the knob of the rotary encoder is turned, the signals of the two pins go HIGH and LOW in turn. See this Arduino article to gain a better understanding of these sensors.

../../_images/rotary_encoder.jpg

Example of a continuous rotary encoder. Pin + is connected to 3.3V, GND is connected to GND, and CLK & DT are A & B.

../../_images/rotary_encoder-ui.png

To use rotary encoders in ESPHome, first identify the two pins encoding the step value. These are often called CLK and DT as in above image. Note if the values this sensor outputs go in the wrong direction, you can just swap these two pins.

# Example configuration entry
sensor:
  - platform: rotary_encoder
    name: "Rotary Encoder"
    pin_a: D1
    pin_b: D2

To modify additional parameters of pins like active state or pull-ups, you may add extra options.

# Example of advanced pin configuration
pin_a:
  number: D5
  inverted: true
  mode:
    input: true
    pullup: true

Configuration variables:

  • pin_a (Required, Pin Schema): The first pin for determining the step value. Must not be a pin from an external I/O expander.

  • pin_b (Required, Pin Schema): The second pin for determining the step value. Must not be a pin from an external I/O expander.

  • pin_reset (Optional, Pin Schema): An optional pin that resets the step value. This is useful with rotary encoders that have a third pin. Defaults to no reset pin.

  • resolution (Optional, string): The resolution of the sensor, this controls how many pulses are generated by one step:

    • 1 - (Default)

    • 2

    • 4

  • min_value (Optional, int): The minimum value this rotary encoder will go to, turning the knob further will not decrease the number. Defaults to no minimum.

  • max_value (Optional, int): The maximum value this rotary encoder will go to, turning the knob further will not increase the number. Defaults to no maximum.

  • publish_initial_value (Optional, boolean): Controls whether the value is published upon start of ESPHome. By default, the value is only published when it changes, causing an “unknown” value at first. If you set this option to true, the value is published once after boot and when it changes. Defaults to false.

  • restore_mode (Optional): Control how the Rotary Encoder attempts to restore state on bootup.

    • RESTORE_DEFAULT_ZERO - (Default) Attempt to restore state and default to zero (0) if not possible to restore.

    • ALWAYS_ZERO - Always initialize the counter with value zero (0).

  • on_clockwise (Optional, Automation): Actions to be performed when the knob is turned clockwise. See on_clockwise and on_anticlockwise Triggers.

  • on_anticlockwise (Optional, Automation): Actions to be performed when the knob is turned anticlockwise. See on_clockwise and on_anticlockwise Triggers.

  • All other options from Sensor.

sensor.rotary_encoder.set_value Action

The internal state of the rotary encoder can be manually changed to any value with this action. After executing this action, rotating the encoder further will increase/decrease the state relative to the newly set internal value.

# Example configuration entry
sensor:
  - platform: rotary_encoder
    id: my_rotary_encoder
    # ...

# in some trigger
on_...:
  - sensor.rotary_encoder.set_value:
      id: my_rotary_encoder
      value: 10

  # Templated
  - sensor.rotary_encoder.set_value:
      id: my_rotary_encoder
      value: !lambda 'return -1;'

Configuration options:

  • id (Required, ID): The ID of the rotary encoder.

  • value (Required, int, templatable): The value to set the internal counter to.

on_clockwise and on_anticlockwise Triggers

With these configuration options, you can run automations based on the direction that the encoder has been turned, and not the value that it currently holds. These triggers ignore the min and max values and will trigger on every step.

on_clockwise:
  - logger.log: "Turned Clockwise"
on_anticlockwise:
  - logger.log: "Turned Anticlockwise"

See Also