Before continuing with the build, let’s get the software onto the Arduino. It’s much easier to reach right now when it’s not built into a hat.
Copy-and-paste the code below into a new Arduino sketch. Select your board type (e.g. Arduino Micro) from the Tools→Board menu, then click the Verify icon (the checkmark at the top left). If all goes well, you can connect the board and upload the code.
See the notes following the code for adjustments you may need to make.
If the code fails to compile, this is usually due to a missing library. This sketch depends on four Arduino libraries, and all of them must be correctly named and installed. We have a guide for proper library installation. You may already have some of these installed, but here are all the links for posterity:
Copy-and-paste the code below into a new Arduino sketch. Select your board type (e.g. Arduino Micro) from the Tools→Board menu, then click the Verify icon (the checkmark at the top left). If all goes well, you can connect the board and upload the code.
See the notes following the code for adjustments you may need to make.
If the code fails to compile, this is usually due to a missing library. This sketch depends on four Arduino libraries, and all of them must be correctly named and installed. We have a guide for proper library installation. You may already have some of these installed, but here are all the links for posterity:
If using an earlier version of the Arduino IDE (prior to 1.8.10), also locate and install Adafruit_BusIO (newer versions will install this dependency automatically if using the Arduino Library Manager).
The other reason this might fail to compile is if you’re using a “cutting edge” Arduino-like board; these frequently use a different processor than the plain vanilla Arduino, and the software (expecting specific hardware and registers) is not compatible. It also won’t work on tiny boards like the Trinket and Gemma.
This sketch uses a ton of RAM and won’t work on the common Arduino Uno. The Arduino Micro (and Leonardo) have an extra 512 bytes that are crucial to making this work.
This sketch uses a ton of RAM and won’t work on the common Arduino Uno. The Arduino Micro (and Leonardo) have an extra 512 bytes that are crucial to making this work.
/*--------------------------------------------------------------------------
GUGGENHAT: a Bluefruit LE-enabled wearable NeoPixel marquee.
Requires:
- Arduino Micro or Leonardo microcontroller board. An Arduino Uno will
NOT work -- Bluetooth plus the large NeoPixel array requires the extra
512 bytes available on the Micro/Leonardo boards.
- Adafruit Bluefruit LE nRF8001 breakout: www.adafruit.com/products/1697
- 4 Meters 60 NeoPixel LED strip: www.adafruit.com/product/1461
- 3xAA alkaline cells, 4xAA NiMH or a beefy (e.g. 1200 mAh) LiPo battery.
- Late-model Android or iOS phone or tablet running nRF UART or
Bluefruit LE Connect app.
- BLE_UART, NeoPixel, NeoMatrix and GFX libraries for Arduino.
Written by Phil Burgess / Paint Your Dragon for Adafruit Industries.
MIT license. All text above must be included in any redistribution.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------*/
#include <SPI.h>
#include <Adafruit_BLE_UART.h>
#include <Adafruit_NeoPixel.h>
#include <Adafruit_NeoMatrix.h>
#include <Adafruit_GFX.h>
// NEOPIXEL STUFF ----------------------------------------------------------
// 4 meters of NeoPixel strip is coiled around a top hat; the result is
// not a perfect grid. My large-ish 61cm circumference hat accommodates
// 37 pixels around...a 240 pixel reel isn't quite enough for 7 rows all
// around, so there's 7 rows at the front, 6 at the back; a smaller hat
// will fare better.
#define NEO_PIN 6 // Arduino pin to NeoPixel data input
#define NEO_WIDTH 37 // Hat circumference in pixels
#define NEO_HEIGHT 7 // Number of pixel rows (round up if not equal)
#define NEO_OFFSET (((NEO_WIDTH * NEO_HEIGHT) - 240) / 2)
// Pixel strip must be coiled counterclockwise, top to bottom, due to
// custom remap function (not a regular grid).
Adafruit_NeoMatrix matrix(NEO_WIDTH, NEO_HEIGHT, NEO_PIN,
NEO_MATRIX_TOP + NEO_MATRIX_LEFT +
NEO_MATRIX_ROWS + NEO_MATRIX_PROGRESSIVE,
NEO_GRB + NEO_KHZ800);
char msg[21] = {0}; // BLE 20 char limit + NUL
uint8_t msgLen = 0; // Empty message
int msgX = matrix.width(); // Start off right edge
unsigned long prevFrameTime = 0L; // For animation timing
#define FPS 20 // Scrolling speed
// BLUEFRUIT LE STUFF-------------------------------------------------------
// CLK, MISO, MOSI connect to hardware SPI. Other pins are configrable:
#define ADAFRUITBLE_REQ 10
#define ADAFRUITBLE_RST 9
#define ADAFRUITBLE_RDY 2 // Must be an interrupt pin
Adafruit_BLE_UART BTLEserial = Adafruit_BLE_UART(
ADAFRUITBLE_REQ, ADAFRUITBLE_RDY, ADAFRUITBLE_RST);
aci_evt_opcode_t prevState = ACI_EVT_DISCONNECTED;
// STATUS LED STUFF --------------------------------------------------------
// The Arduino's onboard LED indicates BTLE status. Fast flash = waiting
// for connection, slow flash = connected, off = disconnected.
#define LED 13 // Onboard LED (not NeoPixel) pin
int LEDperiod = 0; // Time (milliseconds) between LED toggles
boolean LEDstate = LOW; // LED flashing state HIGH/LOW
unsigned long prevLEDtime = 0L; // For LED timing
// UTILITY FUNCTIONS -------------------------------------------------------
// Because the NeoPixel strip is coiled and not a uniform grid, a special
// remapping function is used for the NeoMatrix library. Given an X and Y
// grid position, this returns the corresponding strip pixel number.
// Any off-strip pixels are automatically clipped by the NeoPixel library.
uint16_t remapXY(uint16_t x, uint16_t y) {
return y * NEO_WIDTH + x - NEO_OFFSET;
}
// Given hexadecimal character [0-9,a-f], return decimal value (0 if invalid)
uint8_t unhex(char c) {
return ((c >= '0') && (c <= '9')) ? c - '0' :
((c >= 'a') && (c <= 'f')) ? 10 + c - 'a' :
((c >= 'A') && (c <= 'F')) ? 10 + c - 'A' : 0;
}
// Read from BTLE into buffer, up to maxlen chars (remainder discarded).
// Does NOT append trailing NUL. Returns number of bytes stored.
uint8_t readStr(char dest[], uint8_t maxlen) {
int c;
uint8_t len = 0;
while((c = BTLEserial.read()) >= 0) {
if(len < maxlen) dest[len++] = c;
}
return len;
}
// MEAT, POTATOES ----------------------------------------------------------
void setup() {
matrix.begin();
matrix.setRemapFunction(remapXY);
matrix.setTextWrap(false); // Allow scrolling off left
matrix.setTextColor(0xF800); // Red by default
matrix.setBrightness(31); // Batteries have limited sauce
BTLEserial.begin();
pinMode(LED, OUTPUT);
digitalWrite(LED, LOW);
}
void loop() {
unsigned long t = millis(); // Current elapsed time, milliseconds.
// millis() comparisons are used rather than delay() so that animation
// speed is consistent regardless of message length & other factors.
BTLEserial.pollACI(); // Handle BTLE operations
aci_evt_opcode_t state = BTLEserial.getState();
if(state != prevState) { // BTLE state change?
switch(state) { // Change LED flashing to show state
case ACI_EVT_DEVICE_STARTED: LEDperiod = 1000L / 10; break;
case ACI_EVT_CONNECTED: LEDperiod = 1000L / 2; break;
case ACI_EVT_DISCONNECTED: LEDperiod = 0L; break;
}
prevState = state;
prevLEDtime = t;
LEDstate = LOW; // Any state change resets LED
digitalWrite(LED, LEDstate);
}
if(LEDperiod && ((t - prevLEDtime) >= LEDperiod)) { // Handle LED flash
prevLEDtime = t;
LEDstate = !LEDstate;
digitalWrite(LED, LEDstate);
}
// If connected, check for input from BTLE...
if((state == ACI_EVT_CONNECTED) && BTLEserial.available()) {
if(BTLEserial.peek() == '#') { // Color commands start with '#'
char color[7];
switch(readStr(color, sizeof(color))) {
case 4: // #RGB 4/4/4 RGB
matrix.setTextColor(matrix.Color(
unhex(color[1]) * 17, // Expand to 8/8/8
unhex(color[2]) * 17,
unhex(color[3]) * 17));
break;
case 5: // #XXXX 5/6/5 RGB
matrix.setTextColor(
(unhex(color[1]) << 12) +
(unhex(color[2]) << 8) +
(unhex(color[3]) << 4) +
unhex(color[4]));
break;
case 7: // #RRGGBB 8/8/8 RGB
matrix.setTextColor(matrix.Color(
(unhex(color[1]) << 4) + unhex(color[2]),
(unhex(color[3]) << 4) + unhex(color[4]),
(unhex(color[5]) << 4) + unhex(color[6])));
break;
}
} else { // Not color, must be message string
msgLen = readStr(msg, sizeof(msg)-1);
msg[msgLen] = 0;
msgX = matrix.width(); // Reset scrolling
}
}
if((t - prevFrameTime) >= (1000L / FPS)) { // Handle scrolling
matrix.fillScreen(0);
matrix.setCursor(msgX, 0);
matrix.print(msg);
if(--msgX < (msgLen * -6)) msgX = matrix.width(); // We must repeat!
matrix.show();
prevFrameTime = t;
}
}
Adjustments:
- You’ll almost certainly need to change NEO_WIDTH to match the actual circumference of your hat, in pixels. NEO_HEIGHT will likely stay at 7, unless you have an exceptionally small or large hat.
- Some of the pin numbers might need changing to reflect your particular wiring, if you’ve changed things around.
- If you’ve coiled your strip clockwise rather than counterclockwise, or the strip input starts at the bottom rather than the top, you might be able to tweak the remapXY() function to use the strip as-is and not have to re-coil it.
- If you’re using a longer or shorter LED strip, the number 240 should be changed in the NEO_OFFSET definition.
