MALDA™ Reference Manual

The AI-First Programming Language - Version 1.0.11

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31. Device Integration

Note: Device integration is an optional feature. The core language and AI features work independently of hardware support.

MALDA supports interaction with physical devices through serial communication (USB) and HTTP/REST APIs (WiFi). This enables control of Arduino, ESP32, Raspberry Pi, smart home devices, and other IoT equipment.

31.1 Overview

Why Device Integration?

Device integration allows MALDA programs to:

Communication Methods

MALDA supports two primary communication methods:

When to Use Each Method

Method Best For Advantages Limitations
Serial USB-connected devices, simple projects Low latency, simple setup, no network required Requires physical connection, limited range
HTTP/REST WiFi devices, multiple devices, remote control Wireless, scalable, works over network/internet Requires network setup, slightly higher latency

31.2 Serial Communication

The SerialConnection class provides low-level serial port communication for USB-connected devices.

Constructor

var serial = new SerialConnection();

Creates a new serial connection instance. The connection is established via the connect() method.

Methods

Properties

Example

var serial = new SerialConnection();
var connected = serial.connect("COM3", 9600);

if (connected) {
    serial.write("Hello Arduino\n");
    var response = serial.readLine();
    print("Response: " + response);
    serial.disconnect();
}

Port Names

Port names vary by operating system:

31.3 HTTP/REST Devices

For WiFi-enabled devices, use the RestClient class (see 28. REST Web Client for full documentation). This works with any device that exposes HTTP/REST APIs.

Example: ESP32 Device

var device = new RestClient("http://192.168.1.100");

// Read sensor value
var response = device.get("/sensor/temperature");
if (response.ok) {
    var data = parseJSON(response.body);
    print("Temperature: " + data.value);
}

// Control actuator
device.post("/relay/1", {"state": "on"});

Authentication

Many devices require authentication:

var device = new RestClient("http://192.168.1.100");
device.setAuth("Bearer", "your-api-token");

31.4 Arduino Integration

The ArduinoConnection class provides a high-level interface for controlling Arduino devices, supporting both serial and HTTP communication modes.

Constructor

ArduinoConnection supports two modes:

// HTTP mode (WiFi-enabled devices like ESP32)
var arduino = new ArduinoConnection("http://192.168.1.100");

// Serial mode (USB connection)
var arduino = new ArduinoConnection("COM3", 9600);

Connection

Digital I/O

Analog I/O

Pin Configuration

Example: Basic Arduino Control

// Connect via serial
var arduino = new ArduinoConnection("COM3", 9600);
arduino.connect();

// Configure pin 13 as OUTPUT (LED)
arduino.pinMode(13, "OUTPUT");

// Blink LED
for (var i = 0; i < 5; i = i + 1) {
    arduino.digitalWrite(13, true);
    sleep(500);
    arduino.digitalWrite(13, false);
    sleep(500);
}

// Read analog sensor
var sensorValue = arduino.analogRead(0);
print("Sensor value: " + sensorValue);

arduino.disconnect();

Arduino Sketch Setup

To use Arduino with MALDA, upload the bridge sketch to your Arduino board. The sketch listens for commands and executes them.

See Examples/Arduino/arduino_bridge.ino for the complete sketch.

Protocol:

31.5 ESP32/ESP8266

ESP32 and ESP8266 devices can be controlled via HTTP/REST after uploading the bridge sketch.

WiFi Setup

Edit the ESP32 sketch to configure WiFi credentials:

const char* ssid = "YourWiFiSSID";
const char* password = "YourWiFiPassword";

REST API Endpoints

The ESP32 bridge exposes the following endpoints:

Example: ESP32 Control

// Connect to ESP32 via WiFi
var esp32 = new ArduinoConnection("http://192.168.1.100");
esp32.connect();

// Control LED
esp32.pinMode(2, "OUTPUT");
esp32.digitalWrite(2, true);

// Read sensor
var distance = esp32.analogRead(0);
print("Distance: " + distance);

31.6 Raspberry Pi

Raspberry Pi can be controlled via HTTP API or serial connection.

HTTP API Control

If Raspberry Pi runs a web server exposing REST API:

var pi = new RestClient("http://raspberrypi.local:8080");
var status = pi.get("/status");

Serial Communication

For direct serial communication:

var pi = new SerialConnection();
pi.connect("/dev/ttyUSB0", 115200);
pi.write("command\n");
var response = pi.readLine();

31.7 Smart Home Devices

Many smart home devices expose REST APIs that can be controlled with RestClient.

Philips Hue Example

var hue = new RestClient("http://192.168.1.50");
hue.setAuth("Bearer", "your-api-key");

// Turn on light
hue.put("/api/username/lights/1/state", {
    "on": true,
    "bri": 254,
    "hue": 10000
});

// Dim light
hue.put("/api/username/lights/1/state", {
    "bri": 128
});

// Turn off
hue.put("/api/username/lights/1/state", {
    "on": false
});

SmartThings Example

var smartThings = new RestClient("https://api.smartthings.com");
smartThings.setAuth("Bearer", "your-token");

// Get devices
var devices = smartThings.get("/devices");

// Control device
smartThings.post("/devices/device-id/commands", {
    "commands": [{
        "component": "main",
        "capability": "switch",
        "command": "on"
    }]
});

Home Assistant Example

var homeAssistant = new RestClient("http://homeassistant.local:8123");
homeAssistant.setHeader("Authorization", "Bearer your-token");

// Get states
var states = homeAssistant.get("/api/states");

// Control entity
homeAssistant.post("/api/services/light/turn_on", {
    "entity_id": "light.living_room"
});

31.8 Multi-Device Coordination

MALDA's actor model is ideal for coordinating multiple devices. Each device can be controlled by its own actor, enabling concurrent, coordinated operations.

Using Actors for Device Control

actor DeviceController {
    var device;
    var deviceId;
    
    function DeviceController(id, url) {
        deviceId = id;
        device = new ArduinoConnection(url);
    }
    
    on connect() {
        device.connect();
        print("Device " + deviceId + " connected");
    }
    
    on control(value) {
        device.digitalWrite(5, value);
    }
}

// Create multiple device controllers
var devices = [];
for (var i = 0; i < 5; i = i + 1) {
    devices.append(spawn DeviceController(i, "http://192.168.1." + (100 + i)));
}

// Connect all devices concurrently
for (var i = 0; i < devices.length; i = i + 1) {
    send devices[i].connect();
}

Coordination Patterns

Common patterns for multi-device systems:

Example: Multi-Robot System

actor Robot {
    var robotId;
    var arduino;
    var coordinator;
    
    function Robot(id, url, coord) {
        robotId = id;
        arduino = new ArduinoConnection(url);
        coordinator = coord;
    }
    
    on move(direction) {
        if (direction == "forward") {
            arduino.digitalWrite(5, true);
            arduino.digitalWrite(6, true);
        }
        send coordinator.robotMoved(robotId, direction);
    }
}

actor Coordinator {
    var robots = [];
    
    on registerRobot(robot) {
        robots.append(robot);
    }
    
    on startAll() {
        for (var i = 0; i < robots.length; i = i + 1) {
            send robots[i].move("forward");
        }
    }
}

var coordinator = spawn Coordinator();
var robot1 = spawn Robot(1, "http://192.168.1.100", coordinator);
var robot2 = spawn Robot(2, "http://192.168.1.101", coordinator);

send coordinator.registerRobot(robot1);
send coordinator.registerRobot(robot2);
send coordinator.startAll();

31.9 Examples

Complete examples are available in the Examples/Devices/ directory:

Step-by-Step Tutorial: First Arduino Project

  1. Upload Bridge Sketch: Upload arduino_bridge.ino to your Arduino
  2. Find Port Name: Identify your Arduino's serial port (COM3, /dev/ttyUSB0, etc.)
  3. Connect in MALDA: 
    var arduino = new ArduinoConnection("COM3", 9600);
arduino.connect();
  4. Control Hardware: 
    arduino.pinMode(13, "OUTPUT");
arduino.digitalWrite(13, true);

31.10 Troubleshooting

Serial Connection Issues

HTTP Connection Issues

Common Errors

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