Always On Circuit Diagram

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The instructions on this page are for an "always on" hoop. See the next page "Point Sensor Circuit Diagram" for instructions on adding an IR Sensor and IR LED to have the hoop illuminate when a point is scored. 

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This diagram uses the Gemma v2 but you can also use the Gemma M0 with the exact same wiring!

Step One:

Cut and strip a black, yellow, and red wire each about 6" long and with 1/2" stripped off the ends
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Step Two:

Solder the black wire to the ground pin on the NeoPixels.
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Step Three:

Solder the yellow wire to the data pin on the NeoPixels.
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Step Four:

Solder the red wire to the 5V pin on the NeoPixels.
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Step Five:

Solder the red wire that is connected to the 5V pin on the NeoPixels to the Voltage Out pin on the Gemma. This pin connects to the battery pack so its the best way to light up a bunch of pixels
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Step Six:

Solder the yellow wire that connects to the data pin on the NeoPixels to the D1 pin on the Gemma.
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Step Seven:

Solder the black wire that connects to the ground pin on the NeoPixel Strip to the ground pad on the Gemma.
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Step Eight:

Trim the excess wire on the Gemma on the pads you have just soldered.
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Step Nine:

This is for people using the Lipoly battery power. You can skip this step if you're using 3xAAA batteries

Cut the positive lead on the Lipo battery in half. Strip a small bit of insulation off both ends. Solder one of the wires to the middle lead on the switch. Solder the other wire to the lead to the left of the center lead.
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Step Ten:

This is for people using the Lipoly battery power. You can skip this step if you're using 3xAAA batteries

Apply two small pieces of heat shrink tubing to the wires we have just soldered. After that is done, connect the JST connector of the battery to the Gemma. Whenever you switch the switch on, it will power the Gemma and NeoPixels.

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Step Eleven:

Attach the NeoPixels to the hoop using zip ties. In my case I attached it to the rim.
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Step Twelve:

Using Velcro we will secure the Gemma to the battery pack and the battery pack to the mini hoop.
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Finished!

Whenever the switch is flipped, it will light up the hoop as soon as the code is uploaded. Now all we have left is to upload the code to the Gemma. Make sure the battery is turned off when uploading code.
 Parts Needed Point Sensor Circuit Diagram 

This guide was first published on Mar 11, 2014. It was last updated on Mar 11, 2014.

This page (Always On Circuit Diagram) was last updated on Mar 01, 2014.

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