Help me get started on an LED project for my kid
December 31, 2020 7:17 PM Subscribe
I'd like to build and program an LED project for my kids. Details on what I'm thinking inside but I have no what to buy to get started. How do I start?
My ideal project:
* LED strips that line my 8 year old's Ikea bed, or a matrix of LEDs for the wall.
* Programming multiple patterns/displays. Ideally individually addressable LEDs, not strips.
* I know how to program. I would prefer python to C++, but could make either work.
* Control from an IPad, or failing that, a manual switch between patterns that he can control.
* Safe (i.e., no danger zones that I need to keep a young boy away from).
* Doesn't involve soldering (I don't know how or have the tools). This isn't a hard requirement, I could learn.
* I'd like the 8 year old to participate in the project in some way.
What kind of kit or what set of parts do I need? Is there a good tutorial, or a specific project I should start with to learn the ropes?
My ideal project:
* LED strips that line my 8 year old's Ikea bed, or a matrix of LEDs for the wall.
* Programming multiple patterns/displays. Ideally individually addressable LEDs, not strips.
* I know how to program. I would prefer python to C++, but could make either work.
* Control from an IPad, or failing that, a manual switch between patterns that he can control.
* Safe (i.e., no danger zones that I need to keep a young boy away from).
* Doesn't involve soldering (I don't know how or have the tools). This isn't a hard requirement, I could learn.
* I'd like the 8 year old to participate in the project in some way.
What kind of kit or what set of parts do I need? Is there a good tutorial, or a specific project I should start with to learn the ropes?
You are limiting yourself somewhat with the soldering restriction. Doing custom work with LED's generally involves soldering of some sort. You may be able to avoid it if you limit yourself to preterminated LED strips, but you will be limiting your options significantly.
Do consider getting some basic soldering practice kits off of eBay, and pick up a reasonable low wattage soldering iron and solder. You do not need a huge set of supplies and tools. My kids learned soldering with a 25 watt iron, solder, a flush cutters, a stand for the iron, and some kits to solder.
Big Clive operates a YouTube channel where he shows off his obsession with LED based lighting projects, teardowns, discussion of electronics, and routinely works on his various kits and projects, usually soldering with little more than the basic tools I just described.
posted by jgreco at 8:18 PM on December 31, 2020
Do consider getting some basic soldering practice kits off of eBay, and pick up a reasonable low wattage soldering iron and solder. You do not need a huge set of supplies and tools. My kids learned soldering with a 25 watt iron, solder, a flush cutters, a stand for the iron, and some kits to solder.
Big Clive operates a YouTube channel where he shows off his obsession with LED based lighting projects, teardowns, discussion of electronics, and routinely works on his various kits and projects, usually soldering with little more than the basic tools I just described.
posted by jgreco at 8:18 PM on December 31, 2020
A step up from arduinos are the esp ecosystem, either the esp12f or esp32. They can be programmed like arduinos are programmed, which basically means C++ with an absolute ton of community written libraries. However, they're much more powerful and will talk WiFi.
If you have no intention of soldering you can get either with pins soldered into them (or find a friend if you get one that comes with pins in the package that need soldering), and then wire everything together with DuPont connector wires, which are readily available and easily found.
Dot matrix LEDs exist, and are available with protocols that arduinos can talk, but I can't give you more advice than that. Multi-yard runs of them are likely to get a bit pricey, mind.
On the other hand, you can get 5 yard strips of individually programmable RGB LEDs soldered onto a PCB tape for cheap - search AliExpress for WS2812 strips and assume its going to be 5 weeks to delivery, or use a US service and pay around twice as much (still not that much in the grand scheme of things).
posted by How much is that froggie in the window at 10:24 PM on December 31, 2020
If you have no intention of soldering you can get either with pins soldered into them (or find a friend if you get one that comes with pins in the package that need soldering), and then wire everything together with DuPont connector wires, which are readily available and easily found.
Dot matrix LEDs exist, and are available with protocols that arduinos can talk, but I can't give you more advice than that. Multi-yard runs of them are likely to get a bit pricey, mind.
On the other hand, you can get 5 yard strips of individually programmable RGB LEDs soldered onto a PCB tape for cheap - search AliExpress for WS2812 strips and assume its going to be 5 weeks to delivery, or use a US service and pay around twice as much (still not that much in the grand scheme of things).
posted by How much is that froggie in the window at 10:24 PM on December 31, 2020
Hi! I have done a similar project: specifically, I have strips of APA102C LEDs on my ceiling, set up to be sound-responsive. My soldering skills are ok, but not amazing, and they were more than adequate. Ditto my python skills. My platform was a raspberry pi with libraries from bibliopixel. I wanted a control panel with knobs that light up and a couple of buttons (and and and...) so I ended up doing a custom circuit board to interface with the RPi, but if you just want a switch or two you won't need to get that involved.
Even though they're in strips, each LED is individually controllable. Basically, each APA102 takes off the first 4 bytes and passes the rest on down the strip.
I got 5-metre rolls of strips (60 lights/metre) from one of the several companies selling them on aliexpress. The strips are very hobbyist-friendly, with copper pads at every cut point to make soldering easy. (If you're starting to think that I'm urging you to take up soldering, you are completely correct.)
One thing to note is that if your project is more than a few metres long you'll probably want to supply power at multiple spots, otherwise you may have some flakiness later in the strip.
posted by inexorably_forward at 11:47 PM on December 31, 2020
Even though they're in strips, each LED is individually controllable. Basically, each APA102 takes off the first 4 bytes and passes the rest on down the strip.
I got 5-metre rolls of strips (60 lights/metre) from one of the several companies selling them on aliexpress. The strips are very hobbyist-friendly, with copper pads at every cut point to make soldering easy. (If you're starting to think that I'm urging you to take up soldering, you are completely correct.)
One thing to note is that if your project is more than a few metres long you'll probably want to supply power at multiple spots, otherwise you may have some flakiness later in the strip.
posted by inexorably_forward at 11:47 PM on December 31, 2020
This is useful information about the APA102.
posted by inexorably_forward at 11:50 PM on December 31, 2020
posted by inexorably_forward at 11:50 PM on December 31, 2020
Response by poster: I don't think I completely understand what it is I get from soldering. Better light strips?
posted by david1230 at 11:42 AM on January 1, 2021
posted by david1230 at 11:42 AM on January 1, 2021
I don't think I completely understand what it is I get from soldering. Better light strips?
More flexibility in the layout. Such as running a strip past an area that you don't want lit, or in a way that bending the strip would be a problem like a tight 90 degree corner: you cut the strip at the provided cutting points, and use wires to bridge the gap.
Or maybe you want to put them on the wall in a star pattern. Electrically it should be one long strip; you can't connect them at the centre, instead you have to go from one tip to the end at the centre of the next 'ray'
posted by Stoneshop at 12:17 PM on January 1, 2021
More flexibility in the layout. Such as running a strip past an area that you don't want lit, or in a way that bending the strip would be a problem like a tight 90 degree corner: you cut the strip at the provided cutting points, and use wires to bridge the gap.
Or maybe you want to put them on the wall in a star pattern. Electrically it should be one long strip; you can't connect them at the centre, instead you have to go from one tip to the end at the centre of the next 'ray'
posted by Stoneshop at 12:17 PM on January 1, 2021
Too-Ticky is working on augmenting a cheap IKEA clock with an addressable LED strip that would have the time reflected in the colour lighting up the wall behind the clock. As a test I've slapped Aircookie's WLED code on an ESP8266 driving a ring of 60 WS2812 LEDs, made it available on the network and told her the address. The ESP basically runs a webserver, so you can control the LEDs from any browser that's on he local network. It offers a nice and clean interface with lots of predefined patterns.
posted by Stoneshop at 12:36 PM on January 1, 2021
posted by Stoneshop at 12:36 PM on January 1, 2021
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You probably want something like an Arduino or a Raspberry Pi. The Arduino is a programmable microcontroller on a board, whereas the Raspberry Pi is a full computer with Linux. The Arduino can be programmed in Python, but is generally programmed in C/C++.
posted by Blue Jello Elf at 7:32 PM on December 31, 2020 [2 favorites]