The ADSL362 is known for it’s very low power consumption and is mounted on a universal PCB which supports multiple accelerometer chips.
This one uses SPI (pin information on the backside of the break out board)
Hereby download the ino and fritzing file
We expect (lying flat, room temperature ~21.5°C, ±2g mode):
POWER_CTL: 0x02
FILTER_CTL: 0x13 (±2g, 100Hz ODR)
DEVID_AD: 0xAD
>>> ADXL362 detected!
RAW TEMP: ~611
RAW X: ~0 Y: ~0 Z: ~1000 Temp: ~22.0 C Status: 0x40
X: 0.00 g Y: 0.00 g Z: 1.00 g
on a esp8266 D1 mini
SCK → D5 (GPIO14), hardware defined
MISO → D6 (GPIO12), hardware defined
MOSI → D7 (GPIO13), hardware defined
CS → D2 (GPIO4), was D8 (GPIO15) which must be LOW at boot
| Feature | What it does | Why it’s special / useful |
|---|---|---|
| ⚡ Ultra-low power operation | ~270 nA standby, ~3 µA measurement mode | One of the lowest-power accelerometers ever made → ideal for battery devices that must run for months/years |
| 💤 Always-on motion sensing | Can monitor motion while “sleeping” | Lets devices stay in deep sleep and wake only when movement is detected |
| 🎯 Motion + inactivity detection | Built-in threshold and timer-based triggers | No need for constant MCU polling → saves power and simplifies firmware |
| 📦 Internal FIFO buffer | Stores up to 512 acceleration samples | Reduces MCU workload and prevents data loss during bursts of motion |
| 🔌 Fully digital SPI output | Direct digital communication | No ADC noise, better stability, easier integration than analog sensors |
| 🚀 Fast wake-up time | Microsecond-level wake from sleep | Ideal for shock, tap, or impact detection systems |
| 🌡 Built-in temperature sensor | Basic internal temperature readout | Useful for drift compensation and environmental awareness |
| 📉 Low noise density | Stable low-frequency output | Good for tilt detection and slow movement tracking |
| 🧠 Embedded event engine | Hardware-based motion logic | Reduces firmware complexity and CPU usage |
| 🔋 Efficient duty cycling | Designed for long idle periods | Enables multi-year battery life in IoT sensors |