A real-time hardware telemetry dashboard built with Arduino, Python, Flask, and Socket.IO.

This project reads sensor data from an Arduino over serial, sends it to a Python backend, and visualizes it live in a browser dashboard.

Built for the ACM x WECE Hardware Telemetry Workshop (2026).

This project shows how to build a simple full-stack hardware interface:

You will learn how to:

• Read sensor data on an Arduino
• Send structured data over serial
• Parse data in Python
• Stream telemetry with websockets
• Visualize real-time data in a browser dashboard

• Real-time telemetry dashboard

• Works with Arduino Uno

• Supports potentiometer + temperature sensor

• Serial data formatted as JSON

• Live statistics:

  • current value
  • min / max
  • moving average

• Chart visualization with Chart.js

• Fake data mode for testing without hardware

Any Arduino Uno compatible board.

Workshop tested kits:

• Arduino Uno Starter Kit
• Elegoo Arduino Uno Starter Kit

Components used:

• Arduino Uno
• Potentiometer
• LM35 temperature sensor
• Breadboard
• Jumper wires

Note: You will need a standard USB port. The Arduino cable typically is USB and not USBC.

1. You will first fork this repo, and then clone your fork to your machine

git clone https://github.com/<your-username>/hardware-dashboard-workshop.git
cd hardware-dashboard-workshop

Recommended:

python -m venv venv

Activate it.

Windows

venv\Scripts\activate

Mac / Linux

source venv/bin/activate

pip install -r requirements.txt

Dependencies include:

• flask
• flask-socketio
• pyserial

Upload the Arduino sketch from:

telemetry/telemetry.ino

The sketch:

• reads the potentiometer and temperature sensor
• converts them to normalized values
• sends JSON telemetry over serial

Example output:

{"t_ms":5234,"pot":0.53,"temp":0.41}

Serial settings:

baud rate: 115200

Start the Python server.

python server/app.py --source fake

python server/app.py --source serial --port COM5

NOTE: your port may be different. You can check (on Windows) by searching for Device Manager in the start menu, and clicking on the Ports dropdown

Examples:

Windows

python server/app.py --source serial --port COM5

Mac

python server/app.py --source serial --port /dev/tty.usbmodemXXXX

Linux

python server/app.py --source serial --port /dev/ttyACM0

Then open your browser:

http://127.0.0.1:5000

You should see the live telemetry dashboard.

--source   fake | serial
--port     serial port (required for serial mode)
--baud     baud rate (default 115200)

Example:

python server/app.py --source serial --port COM5 --baud 9600

Telemetry is sent as JSON lines:

{
  "t_ms": 5234,
  "pot": 0.53,
  "temp": 0.41
}

Fields:

If hardware is unavailable, the dashboard can generate synthetic telemetry.

Run:

python server/app.py --source fake

This allows students to:

• test the dashboard
• debug frontend code
• run the project without hardware

Check the console output of app.py.

Ensure the correct port is used:

Windows example:

COM3
COM4
COM5

Check in Arduino IDE → Tools → Port.

This is expected behavior. Opening the serial port triggers an Arduino reset.

The server waits briefly to allow the Arduino to reboot.

Jacob Frankel Sally Golding

ACM @ University of Florida Women in Electrical & Computer Engineering (WECE)