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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : LEDmite 1A...
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Grogster Admin Group  Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9586 |
Hi folks. 
Here is my latest mad creation. LEDmite! 
This is a full MicroMite MK.II on the back of a three-digit LED display. All the interfacing to the LED display is on-board, as are the console, I2C, PICkit3 programming pads, COM1 serial port, and a few other I/O pins that I could squeeze in. Designed specifically to fit into those cheap LED panel displays you can buy on eBay for about $2.50 each. You pull the existing module out of the panel bezel, and fit this as a replacement - it just pops in where the original unit was. The PCB is 41mm x 21mm, and is a 4-layer board. Does not use the original LED driver or display - I'm just reusing the panel bezel and filter because they are so cute, and which makes the thing look a million bucks on any panel without you having to try to make the LED display look nice. Lots of potential uses from voltmeters and ammeters, to speedometers, countdown or count-up timers, heart-rate monitors etc - you just need to change the MM code to suit whatever you are doing. Having a separate MM to drive the display, leaves your main MM free to concentrate on more important things. Having some I/O pins available, means you could easily build a timer that would trip one of those I/O pins to trigger something external if needed, or otherwise control other things when needed. No SPI interface, as I needed the pins to control the LED display. The initial code will use I2C to talk to it(mainly cos of the MM's nice I2C interrupt handling when used in slave mode), but you could also use COM1 or even the console if you wanted - all up to you and your programming abilities and/or preferences.
Three digit, as that is what I needed at the time I started designing this thing.(in case some of you are wondering why it is not a four-digit unit) LED digits are 0.56" in size(14.2mm), and are very easy to see from across the room. Top Visible Layer: 
Bottom Visible Layer: 
All Layers: 
Image stolen from eBay of how display looks from the front: 
This last image, is a mock-up, and not the actual unit, but this is what it will look like when finished. Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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OA47 Guru  Joined: 11/04/2012 Location: AustraliaPosts: 982 |
Good one Grogs, I see not too much idle time for you. GM |
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| Grogster Admin Group Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9586 |
It's another of those projects I took on to distract me, and give me something constructive to do, in lieu of drinking - which has now ceased for three months and counting. Perhaps I could use one of these as a "Sober days" counter. 
It could count to 999 days, or 2.7 years.  Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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| WhiteWizzard Guru Joined: 05/04/2013 Location: United KingdomPosts: 2932 |
Nice one Grogs. 
Can you please confirm if this is a 3-digit counter or a two-and-a-half digit counter (as implied by the picture). Are you getting PCBs made? If so we need to PM each other. Speak soon . . . WW |
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| Grogster Admin Group Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9586 |
Hi WW - Welcome back, BTW, married man.....
I hope everything went well with your marriage and honeymoon. Yes, I will be getting some boards made. As to the counter, it can be whatever you need it to be, by changing the code in the PIC32. Originally, I wanted a three-digit display as a temperature meter, so that I could display the output from the likes of an 18B20. I know you can get ready-made temperature meters all ready to go from eBay, but there was a issue in that I needed to monitor two or three different temperatures, so I can do that with the MM-based display, by cycling through the temperatures on the one single display. There are external LED's to indicate which temp is currently showing. All that could aslo be done with an LCD display, or a VT100 and small screen - there are many options, but I wanted red LED for easy reading from across a room. And no - before anyone asks - NOT a home-brew temperature meter thing. I am off the sauce these days! Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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