Help with portable RBG strip project

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csm7277
 
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Help with portable RBG strip project

Post by csm7277 »

Hi! I need some help figuring out how to put together (and what to purchase) for a project I'm working on. I would like to use the RGB strip lights in a costume. I only need to use about 3 feet per costume but the power supply needs to be as small as possible and to have a simple controller (on/off/flicker) . Also, I do not need to change the color of the lights, I want them to stay on a steady blue.

Can you help me with the following?

How to cut the strip into the correct length sections (I've seen online tutorials on this)
What kind of battery supply to get (I saw you suggested a 8-battery pack. Is it possible to use a smaller source for this length of strip?)
What do I need and how do I wire the cut strips to the battery?
Do you have a battery pack that also contains a simple controller? (on/off/flicker)
Is there anything else I need?

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adafruit_support_rick
 
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Re: Help with portable RBG strip project

Post by adafruit_support_rick »

First of all, there is no simple controller that will give you a flicker effect. For that, you would have to program a small microcontroller, like our Trinket or Gemma or Flora, and use a digital addressable RGB pixels. You've been looking at 12V analog strips, I think?

Second, there are alternatives to strips - you should have a look at our individual NeoPixels, as well as our NeoPixel strips.
http://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-neopixel-uberguide

Perhaps you might start by looking at some of our Wearables projects, using the Flora microcontroller:
http://learn.adafruit.com/getting-started-with-flora

There are several battery configurations we could suggest, once you refine your design a little bit. Digital LED pixels and strips can run on much less battery power than analog LED strips.

csm7277
 
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Re: Help with portable RBG strip project

Post by csm7277 »

Thanks for the help!

After searching through the various products on the website, I have a few additional questions.

Mainly, I am wondering if I can use the following items in conjunction with each other:

Adafruit GEMMA
Adafruit Neopixel Digital RGB LED Weatherproof Strip 30 LED - 1m
3 x AAA Battery Holder with On/Off Switch and 2-pin JST
Membrane LED Keypad

I think the 1m strips will actually fit my needs quite well, especially because they can be cut to length.

I am new at this, so I am unsure as to the programming side of things just yet. I'm going to start digging into the tutorials this week.

From what I've gathered watching some of the demonstration videos, I should be able to use either the GEMMA, or the Membrane LED Keypad to trigger the LEDs. Is this correct?

Many Thanks!

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adafruit_support_mike
 
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Re: Help with portable RBG strip project

Post by adafruit_support_mike »

You can use all those parts together, but the Gemma will control the NeoPixels at all times. You can use the keypad to send signals to the Gemma, and the Gemma can change what it tells the NeoPixels to do based on the signals it gets from the keypad.

csm7277
 
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Re: Help with portable RBG strip project

Post by csm7277 »

Thank you, Mike!

Can you give me any more information on how the LED Keypad is able to send different signals to the GEMMA controller?

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adafruit_support_mike
 
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Re: Help with portable RBG strip project

Post by adafruit_support_mike »

Which keypad did you have in mind? We have several, with different numbers of buttons.

csm7277
 
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Re: Help with portable RBG strip project

Post by csm7277 »

Aha, I hadn't noticed the keypads with multiple buttons. I went ahead and ordered the "Membrane LED Keypad + extras," which looks to have a single button. I assume this one can send only one signal to the controller, correct?

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adafruit_support_mike
 
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Re: Help with portable RBG strip project

Post by adafruit_support_mike »

Correct.

csm7277
 
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Re: Help with portable RBG strip project

Post by csm7277 »

Hello,

I received the items yesterday in the mail, and I'm having trouble understanding how they all work together. The membrane LED keypad has a three pin connector, but I don't see how I connect this with the GEMMA controller.

The connection between the AAA battery pack and the GEMMA is fairly straightforward.

Also, the LED strip has a three pin receiver, and also two shielded cords, one red and one white. Am I correct in assuming I need to strip the cords to connect them to the GEMMA? And, if so, what about the Green cord included in the LED strip connector?

Please forgive my lack of know-how, I'm very new at all of this.

Thanks!

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adafruit_support_rick
 
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Re: Help with portable RBG strip project

Post by adafruit_support_rick »

Here is the pinout of the membrane keypad. Connect the "data" line to a Gemma input.
membrane_pinout.png
membrane_pinout.png (267.65 KiB) Viewed 363 times
The two "extra" wires on the pixel strip are for power (red: 3.3V or 5V, white: GND). They are the same as the two outermost pins on the 3-pin connector. You can use either pair, whichever is more convenient. If you use the power pins on the 3-pin connector, wrap the ends of the "loose" power wires with electrical tape to prevent the bare ends from touching.

The center of the 3-pin connector is data. Connect that to a data-out pin on your Gemma.

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