7 ms·

A giant 360 LED clock

spdustin 8y ago
I’ve had several strips of these just waiting for the perfect project. Anyone else have any interesting ideas for weekend projects using addressable LEDs?
- AlphaWeaver 8y ago
  I built a system that displayed where I am by different color statuses. For example, if someone comes looking for me and the lights are red, I'm not there. Yellow means busy, don't interrupt, rainbow/green means come in. Controlled by a Raspberry Pi, great for an office or a shared space. I ringed the door with LEDs.
  - aloisamae 8y ago
    I like this! I have some leftover Arduinos and LED strips; I think I'll do this after exams. Thanks for the idea!
    - AlphaWeaver 8y ago
      No problem! You're welcome to shoot me an email (my website is in my profile) and I can send along the (terrible) code I wrote for it.
- leggomylibro 8y ago
  Grid-based displays are fun. You can cut the strips and re-arrange them in a "zig-zag" pattern if you don't mind soldering a few wires. Lately, I was also thinking it could be fun to try 3d-printing some little spherical diffusers for individual 5050 LEDs and arranging individual ones of those in a larger area like a window.
- anfractuosity 8y ago
  https://www.anfractuosity.com/projects/painting-a-christmas-tree/ https://www.anfractuosity.com/projects/painting-a-christmas-... - I created a little system to 'paint' my Christmas tree using these addressable LEDs. The tree could be wrapped with the LED strips then the position of the LEDs was obtained using a camera (as they pulse out an ID). I then created a little Flask app, that ran on the same Raspberry Pi which controlled the LED strips, which let people paint the tree via a website.
  - abecedarius 8y ago
    That's cool! And reminds me I'd like to see something like http://wry.me/hacking/moirexmas.html http://wry.me/hacking/moirexmas.html on a real Christmas tree.
- asteli 8y ago
  I had a project on my living room ceiling for a good while. If you stuff the LED strips into PEX tubing (common white plastic plumbing) you get a decently diffuse LED "stick". I took 8 of these modules, about a meter long each, and hung them from the ceiling in a semi random pattern, mapped them to a 2D plane in software, and used MIDI data from Ableton live to trigger light patterns that would be played across the LED array. Decent party trick. It unfortunately was mostly destroyed when someone fiddled with the variable voltage supply it was hooked up to in an attempt to turn it off post-party. Word to the wise: if there are knobs on equipment at a party (mixer, lighting, etc), people will inevitably fiddle with them. Design for this.
- posterboy 8y ago
  A Word Clock. Google it. Impractical but pretty.
- frob 8y ago
  I've built a few weekend-level projects with these. One I've loved the most is ambient lighting. I ringed the ceiling of one of my rooms with these and I can fade them in and out to a warm or cool white. It is great for hanging out with friends since there's this warm glow coming from all directions. Also great for reading. My next step is to create areas that I can light up sections above chairs and sofas. It's also fun and easy to attach these to bikes. You can then just ziptie your arduino under the seat or somewhere like that and then light up your frame. If you have a GPS module, you can build a compass or something that always points to the same spot. You could also give your sofa and chairs underglow.
olskool 8y ago
Beautiful! I had not heard about this kind of addressable LEDs but now I'm inspired to think of my own projects.
ebspelman 8y ago
very awesome! for further inspiration, you might like the work of Craig Dorety: http://craigdorety.com/objects.html http://craigdorety.com/objects.html Once upon a time I made a project with a similar aesthetic, but not quite as much function (ie it wasn’t a clock): http://www.ebspelman.com/#/james-turrell-turrellevision/ http://www.ebspelman.com/#/james-turrell-turrellevision/
jimmies 8y ago
I noticed that the you made a config front-end using a web page and claimed that you're not up to date with web development. Indeed, I do find that it's unsatisfying to configure IoT devices over the web, although the web is one of the most compatible solutions. The drawbacks include the fact that if you want to configure it you always have to be on the same LAN and figure out its IP or port-forward, but if you port-forward, it will be not very secure due to the attack surface of the mini web server. Moreover, it's not very elegant for you or others to programmatically control it. My interest recently has been on the mqtt protocol, it's like microservices for IoT. You will need to connect to a middleman mqtt server and hold that connection. When you want to change something you push the changes to the middleman mqtt server. It can be local or on the internet, but since the mqtt server is maintained and updated, it's much easier to secure the mqtt server. Or you can use someone else's mqtt server as a commodity. The app called "mqtt dashboard" acts as a client and allows you to draw a number of controls to the client if you answer a specific request. I think it's suitable for applications like this. Hackaday has a detailed article about it. I think mqtt is a great example of a great protocol for the purpose of controlling/configuring IoT devices. https://hackaday.com/2016/05/27/minimal-mqtt-control-and-clients/ https://hackaday.com/2016/05/27/minimal-mqtt-control-and-cli...
- arcbyte 8y ago
  I added that link to my reading list. Very interesting idea. I'll be looking more into MQTT. But I don't see the issue with exposing the HTTP interface to the world? I'm always leaning towards solutions that ship with web interfaces, especially over mobile apps because I can use third party apps to work with them. Especially IP cameras.
  - jimmies 8y ago
    >But I don't see the issue with exposing the HTTP interface to the world? It's a quick solution, but it is not user friendly. - What the IP it has is highly dependent on your router config. Even finding the IP requires work from the end user and you, every time. You can tell the router to give the device a static DHCP allocation, sure, but that will break as soon as you switch to a new router. - Browser changes might break rendering of the config pages. - The config interface is not standardized: it works for now but it will look outdated a couple of years from now. It can't be improved upon. Understanding and working with it is another annoyance that the user has to learn. - You need to handle credentials management, which is messy, or you can put nginx or whatever in front and let the proxy handle authentication. The first solution requires a whole bunch of boilerplates on the device and is not secure. The second one is secure, however, it requires you to have control of a nginx server that has to know specifically about your IoT device. - On a small device, you likely are unable to host and deliver all assets on the device (for example, boostrap). That means you'll have to rely on a third party to deliver those resources for you. It might break in the future. - Let's say a person wants to know all the params and controls, they have to read your web page source code. They have to tease out UI intermingled with logic. - All of those is well if you know you'll gonna deploy it at home where you control everything and reconfig it every time you have a new router. But let's say you want to gift it to a friend or deploy to the end users. The amount of work you'll need to setup for that HTTP config thing to work consistently for the friend is a lot. You can't tell him/her "just find the device's IP and go to the website..."
proee 8y ago
Here's a similar IoT LED clock my friend is working on. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1926284625/96766872 https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1926284625/96766872
elFarto 8y ago
I really like the Equinox Clock[1], which was made before easily available addressable RGB LED strips, so each LED is individually placed. [1] http://www.bramknaapen.com/equinox-clock/ http://www.bramknaapen.com/equinox-clock/
nomadtwin 8y ago
We did this a while ago: https://github.com/thinking-twins/vjo-dmx/blob/master/README.md https://github.com/thinking-twins/vjo-dmx/blob/master/README... Might be a good start for creatives without coding background as it is a Visualjockey Gold plugin.
bootmagic 8y ago
This project reminds me of https://www.thelightclock.com/ https://www.thelightclock.com/ where the time is displayed by blended colors. Maybe this project could have a similar setting?
dirkc 8y ago
Love your clock! I'm working on a similar project, mine is currently being called a disco donut: https://www.instagram.com/p/BgZeIDQlA9z/ https://www.instagram.com/p/BgZeIDQlA9z/ Do you power your LEDs and Raspberry Pi separately, or do you use the same power supply?
acobster 8y ago
Very cool! One small quibble: why is the /bright endpoint a GET? GET should never have side effects. :)

I’ve had several strips of these just waiting for the perfect project. Anyone else have any interesting ideas for weekend projects using addressable LEDs?

AlphaWeaver 8y ago
I built a system that displayed where I am by different color statuses. For example, if someone comes looking for me and the lights are red, I'm not there. Yellow means busy, don't interrupt, rainbow/green means come in. Controlled by a Raspberry Pi, great for an office or a shared space. I ringed the door with LEDs.
- aloisamae 8y ago
  I like this! I have some leftover Arduinos and LED strips; I think I'll do this after exams. Thanks for the idea!
  - AlphaWeaver 8y ago
    No problem! You're welcome to shoot me an email (my website is in my profile) and I can send along the (terrible) code I wrote for it.
leggomylibro 8y ago
Grid-based displays are fun. You can cut the strips and re-arrange them in a "zig-zag" pattern if you don't mind soldering a few wires. Lately, I was also thinking it could be fun to try 3d-printing some little spherical diffusers for individual 5050 LEDs and arranging individual ones of those in a larger area like a window.
anfractuosity 8y ago
https://www.anfractuosity.com/projects/painting-a-christmas-tree/ https://www.anfractuosity.com/projects/painting-a-christmas-... - I created a little system to 'paint' my Christmas tree using these addressable LEDs. The tree could be wrapped with the LED strips then the position of the LEDs was obtained using a camera (as they pulse out an ID). I then created a little Flask app, that ran on the same Raspberry Pi which controlled the LED strips, which let people paint the tree via a website.
- abecedarius 8y ago
  That's cool! And reminds me I'd like to see something like http://wry.me/hacking/moirexmas.html http://wry.me/hacking/moirexmas.html on a real Christmas tree.
asteli 8y ago
I had a project on my living room ceiling for a good while. If you stuff the LED strips into PEX tubing (common white plastic plumbing) you get a decently diffuse LED "stick". I took 8 of these modules, about a meter long each, and hung them from the ceiling in a semi random pattern, mapped them to a 2D plane in software, and used MIDI data from Ableton live to trigger light patterns that would be played across the LED array. Decent party trick. It unfortunately was mostly destroyed when someone fiddled with the variable voltage supply it was hooked up to in an attempt to turn it off post-party. Word to the wise: if there are knobs on equipment at a party (mixer, lighting, etc), people will inevitably fiddle with them. Design for this.
posterboy 8y ago
A Word Clock. Google it. Impractical but pretty.
frob 8y ago
I've built a few weekend-level projects with these. One I've loved the most is ambient lighting. I ringed the ceiling of one of my rooms with these and I can fade them in and out to a warm or cool white. It is great for hanging out with friends since there's this warm glow coming from all directions. Also great for reading. My next step is to create areas that I can light up sections above chairs and sofas. It's also fun and easy to attach these to bikes. You can then just ziptie your arduino under the seat or somewhere like that and then light up your frame. If you have a GPS module, you can build a compass or something that always points to the same spot. You could also give your sofa and chairs underglow.

olskool 8y ago

Beautiful! I had not heard about this kind of addressable LEDs but now I'm inspired to think of my own projects.

ebspelman 8y ago

very awesome! for further inspiration, you might like the work of Craig Dorety: http://craigdorety.com/objects.html http://craigdorety.com/objects.html Once upon a time I made a project with a similar aesthetic, but not quite as much function (ie it wasn’t a clock): http://www.ebspelman.com/#/james-turrell-turrellevision/ http://www.ebspelman.com/#/james-turrell-turrellevision/

jimmies 8y ago

I noticed that the you made a config front-end using a web page and claimed that you're not up to date with web development. Indeed, I do find that it's unsatisfying to configure IoT devices over the web, although the web is one of the most compatible solutions. The drawbacks include the fact that if you want to configure it you always have to be on the same LAN and figure out its IP or port-forward, but if you port-forward, it will be not very secure due to the attack surface of the mini web server. Moreover, it's not very elegant for you or others to programmatically control it. My interest recently has been on the mqtt protocol, it's like microservices for IoT. You will need to connect to a middleman mqtt server and hold that connection. When you want to change something you push the changes to the middleman mqtt server. It can be local or on the internet, but since the mqtt server is maintained and updated, it's much easier to secure the mqtt server. Or you can use someone else's mqtt server as a commodity. The app called "mqtt dashboard" acts as a client and allows you to draw a number of controls to the client if you answer a specific request. I think it's suitable for applications like this. Hackaday has a detailed article about it. I think mqtt is a great example of a great protocol for the purpose of controlling/configuring IoT devices. https://hackaday.com/2016/05/27/minimal-mqtt-control-and-clients/ https://hackaday.com/2016/05/27/minimal-mqtt-control-and-cli...

arcbyte 8y ago
I added that link to my reading list. Very interesting idea. I'll be looking more into MQTT. But I don't see the issue with exposing the HTTP interface to the world? I'm always leaning towards solutions that ship with web interfaces, especially over mobile apps because I can use third party apps to work with them. Especially IP cameras.
- jimmies 8y ago
  >But I don't see the issue with exposing the HTTP interface to the world? It's a quick solution, but it is not user friendly. - What the IP it has is highly dependent on your router config. Even finding the IP requires work from the end user and you, every time. You can tell the router to give the device a static DHCP allocation, sure, but that will break as soon as you switch to a new router. - Browser changes might break rendering of the config pages. - The config interface is not standardized: it works for now but it will look outdated a couple of years from now. It can't be improved upon. Understanding and working with it is another annoyance that the user has to learn. - You need to handle credentials management, which is messy, or you can put nginx or whatever in front and let the proxy handle authentication. The first solution requires a whole bunch of boilerplates on the device and is not secure. The second one is secure, however, it requires you to have control of a nginx server that has to know specifically about your IoT device. - On a small device, you likely are unable to host and deliver all assets on the device (for example, boostrap). That means you'll have to rely on a third party to deliver those resources for you. It might break in the future. - Let's say a person wants to know all the params and controls, they have to read your web page source code. They have to tease out UI intermingled with logic. - All of those is well if you know you'll gonna deploy it at home where you control everything and reconfig it every time you have a new router. But let's say you want to gift it to a friend or deploy to the end users. The amount of work you'll need to setup for that HTTP config thing to work consistently for the friend is a lot. You can't tell him/her "just find the device's IP and go to the website..."

proee 8y ago

Here's a similar IoT LED clock my friend is working on. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1926284625/96766872 https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1926284625/96766872

elFarto 8y ago

I really like the Equinox Clock[1], which was made before easily available addressable RGB LED strips, so each LED is individually placed. [1] http://www.bramknaapen.com/equinox-clock/ http://www.bramknaapen.com/equinox-clock/

nomadtwin 8y ago

We did this a while ago: https://github.com/thinking-twins/vjo-dmx/blob/master/README.md https://github.com/thinking-twins/vjo-dmx/blob/master/README... Might be a good start for creatives without coding background as it is a Visualjockey Gold plugin.

bootmagic 8y ago

This project reminds me of https://www.thelightclock.com/ https://www.thelightclock.com/ where the time is displayed by blended colors. Maybe this project could have a similar setting?

dirkc 8y ago

Love your clock! I'm working on a similar project, mine is currently being called a disco donut: https://www.instagram.com/p/BgZeIDQlA9z/ https://www.instagram.com/p/BgZeIDQlA9z/ Do you power your LEDs and Raspberry Pi separately, or do you use the same power supply?

acobster 8y ago

Very cool! One small quibble: why is the /bright endpoint a GET? GET should never have side effects. :)