The CircuitPython LED Animation library includes an animation group helper that enables you to synchronize groups of animations. This section will walk through the basics of the animation group feature of the library and show you how to use it with animations and pixel objects.
AnimationGroup
The AnimationGroup helper enables you to keep multiple animations in sync, whether or not the same animation or pixel object is used. It can be used with multiple animations or pixel objects, including pixel subsets. The example on this page is written for Circuit Playground Bluefruit and a 30-pixel NeoPixel LED strip, connected to pad A1.
First, you'll need to import the AnimationGroup module. You'll also import the other required libraries, the CircuitPlayground library, a number of animations and colors for them, and AnimationSequence.
import board import neopixel from adafruit_circuitplayground import cp from adafruit_led_animation.animation.blink import Blink from adafruit_led_animation.animation.comet import Comet from adafruit_led_animation.animation.chase import Chase from adafruit_led_animation.group import AnimationGroup from adafruit_led_animation.sequence import AnimationSequence import adafruit_led_animation.color as color
Next you'll create the pixel object for the strip, and specifically set the brightness for the Circuit Playground Bluefruit NeoPixels to 0.5.
strip_pixels = neopixel.NeoPixel(board.A1, 30, brightness=0.5, auto_write=False) cp.pixels.brightness = 0.5
Then you create an animation sequence. But this time, instead of simply adding animations, you're also going to add animation groups.
The first group is made up of the same animation on both the CPB and the strip, but we'll set each animation to a different speed. Then, we'll set sync=True. This means that when the animations are displayed, the different speed of the second animation is ignored, and the speed of the two animations is synced to the speed specified in the first one.
animations = AnimationSequence(
AnimationGroup(
Blink(cp.pixels, 0.5, color.CYAN),
Blink(strip_pixels, 3.0, color.AMBER),
sync=True,
),
[...] # Means there's code below here in this code block.
The second group is also made up of the same animation on both, and we set each one to a different speed. This time, we won't sync them.
[...] # Means there's code above here in this code block.
AnimationGroup(
Comet(cp.pixels, 0.1, color.MAGENTA, tail_length=5),
Comet(strip_pixels, 0.01, color.MAGENTA, tail_length=15),
),
[...]
The third group is made up of two different animations, one on the CPB and one on the strip. It displays two different animations on two different pixel objects simultaneously.
[...]
AnimationGroup(
Blink(cp.pixels, 0.5, color.JADE),
Comet(strip_pixels, 0.05, color.TEAL, tail_length=15),
),
[...]
And finally, you include two animations in the sequence that will display sequentially, first on the CPB and then on the strip.
The advance interval is set to 3 seconds, and auto_clear and auto_reset are set to True.
[...]
Chase(cp.pixels, 0.05, size=2, spacing=3, color=color.PURPLE),
Chase(strip_pixels, 0.05, size=2, spacing=3, color=color.PURPLE),
advance_interval=3.0,
auto_clear=True,
auto_reset=True,
)
You display the animations the same way you have in the previous sections.
while True:
animations.animate()
That's all there is to using AnimationGroup to display and synchronise groups of animations using the LED Animation library!
# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2021 ladyada for Adafruit Industries
# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2021 Kattni Rembor for Adafruit Industries
# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT
"""
This example shows three different ways to use AnimationGroup: syncing two animations, displaying
two animations at different speeds, and displaying two animations sequentially, across two separate
pixel objects such as the built-in NeoPixels on a Circuit Playground Bluefruit and a NeoPixel strip.
This example is written for Circuit Playground Bluefruit and a 30-pixel NeoPixel strip connected to
pad A1. It does not work on Circuit Playground Express.
"""
import board
import neopixel
from adafruit_circuitplayground import cp
from adafruit_led_animation.animation.blink import Blink
from adafruit_led_animation.animation.comet import Comet
from adafruit_led_animation.animation.chase import Chase
from adafruit_led_animation.group import AnimationGroup
from adafruit_led_animation.sequence import AnimationSequence
from adafruit_led_animation import color
strip_pixels = neopixel.NeoPixel(board.A1, 30, brightness=0.5, auto_write=False)
cp.pixels.brightness = 0.5
animations = AnimationSequence(
# Synchronized to 0.5 seconds. Ignores the second animation setting of 3 seconds.
AnimationGroup(
Blink(cp.pixels, 0.5, color.CYAN),
Blink(strip_pixels, 3.0, color.AMBER),
sync=True,
),
# Different speeds
AnimationGroup(
Comet(cp.pixels, 0.1, color.MAGENTA, tail_length=5),
Comet(strip_pixels, 0.01, color.MAGENTA, tail_length=15),
),
# Different animations
AnimationGroup(
Blink(cp.pixels, 0.5, color.JADE),
Comet(strip_pixels, 0.05, color.TEAL, tail_length=15),
),
# Sequential animations on the built-in NeoPixels then the NeoPixel strip
Chase(cp.pixels, 0.05, size=2, spacing=3, color=color.PURPLE),
Chase(strip_pixels, 0.05, size=2, spacing=3, color=color.PURPLE),
advance_interval=3.0,
auto_clear=True,
auto_reset=True,
)
while True:
animations.animate()
Page last edited January 22, 2025
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