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99 comments on “ColorNode”

1. So, ive been trying for the better part of the day to get this to compile in the Arduino IDE. I have tried both 1.0 and 0023.

   Trying 0023, with the current zips from github for both G35 and RF12 with the appropriate .cpp’s and .h’s from the code above, I get the following error:

   In file included from \Desktop\arduino-0023\libraries\G35/Cylon.h:14,
   from \Desktop\arduino-0023\libraries\G35\Cylon.cpp:11:
   \Desktop\arduino-0023\libraries\G35/LightProgram.h: In constructor ‘LightProgram::LightProgram(G35&)’:
   \Desktop\arduino-0023\libraries\G35/LightProgram.h:23: error: ‘class G35′ has no member named ‘get_light_count’
   \Desktop\arduino-0023\libraries\G35/LightProgram.h:24: error: ‘class G35′ has no member named ‘get_bulb_frame’

2. Hi, Michael.

   I considered using XLR style connectors as Rob K suggests, but the store I was in didn’t have both male and female inline XLR connectors in stock, so I decided to go with 1/4″ audio connectors instead, which seemed to work fine, and were considerably cheaper (if not as elegant or as durable).

   Here’s what I used:

   http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103446
   http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103445

   One caveat: Make sure you cut the wire far enough away from the box to allow the entire connector to be installed. You need enough wire to allow the plastic housing on the connector to be unscrewed from the metal parts of the connector and slid up the wire towards the box while still leaving enough space for you to solder to the metal parts. This means the wire running from the box to the cut must be at least 3-4 inches. On my first attempt at this, I cut things too close and was barely able to slide the plastic housing far enough down the wire to allow me to solder the necessary parts. I suggest doing a “dry run” ahead of time and acting out the procedure with the actual connector parts to see how much space you will need before you actually cut the wire.

3. Rob K:

   It looks like the code you are using is probably later/more sophisticated than the code I used. My G35 class has neither a ‘get_light_count’ member nor a ‘get_bulb_frame’ member. (In my version, the number of lights is set by a #define, not a method call.) Also, the entirety of the LightProgram class declaration I am using is:

   class LightProgram {
   public:
   virtual void Init() {}
   virtual void Do() = 0;
   };

   which as you can see has no constructor that takes a G35 reference.

   One thing that I did do was go to github to get the latest versions of the ‘JeeLib’ library and used it to replace the RF12 software library, as well as ports.h, that Paul included above, making minor changes as he described in his source code documentation to add the changes he had made to the ones he was using into the ones I downloaded. However, that doesn’t explain the problems that you are having.

   It seems as though you have a mismatch with your LightProgram class and your G35 class. Are you getting them from the same source repository? (You probably should, I would think.)

4. Yes, they are the last zip snapshots from yesterday. I guess I can try to look back and find an older rev of the code.. I will have to give it another shot in a few days when I get a chance to play with it again.

   As for using 1/4″ TRS connectors, I would be concerned about possibly shorting something during insertion or removal. I like XLRs as they are parallel conductors.

5. Can anyone tell me what gauge the wires are (both the power supply and the 3-strand green wire)? This will be handy for stripping them and buying extension wire.

6. I’ve assembled my ColorNode, soldered it to the wires of the GE LED lights, and am now ready for the Arduino programming. I’m not understanding how to install both the code for the nodes and the code for the controller simultaneously. As I understand, I can only upload (via the Arduino IDE) one code program to the ColorNode board at a time (which is conneted to my computer via an FTDI USB converter). How does the node code get installed on the nodes (and by nodes, I assume we are talking about the indivual lights on the GE LED string)? If I upload the controller code first and then upload the node code, won’t the controller code be overwritten?

7. Okay, now I’m thinking … that since the two code files are named differently, they should both upload.

   New question: I’m getting this error when trying to upload code:

   ColorNode_Node.cpp:8:19: error: Ports.h: No such file or directory
   In file included from ColorNode_Node.cpp:10:
   /Users/mac/Documents/Arduino/libraries/G35/G35.h:13:22: error: WProgram.h: No such file or directory

   Do the libraires stay in the project folder, or get put in the user/Arduino/libraries folder (I’ve found differing options posted on-line)? I’m assuming they go in the user docs library folder (I get far less errors, as posted above). When I leave the libraries only in the project folder, I get a whole list of errors:

   ColorNode_Controller.cpp:8:19: error: Ports.h: No such file or directory
   ColorNode_Controller.cpp:9:18: error: RF12.h: No such file or directory
   ColorNode_Controller.cpp:14:17: error: G35.h: No such file or directory
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘G35′ does not name a type
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_EEPROM_SIZE’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘color_t’ does not name a type
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_MAXDATA’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_MAXDATA’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.cpp: In function ‘void saveConfig()’:
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct RF12Config’ has no member named ‘msg’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_EEPROM_ADDR’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘rf12_config’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.cpp: In function ‘void showHelp()’:
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_915MHZ’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.cpp: In function ‘void handleInput(char)’:
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘stack’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_868MHZ’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_915MHZ’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_433MHZ’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘stack’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘struct payload’ has no member named ‘bulb_color’
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘lights’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘stack’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.cpp: In function ‘void setup()’:
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_915MHZ’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘rf12_initialize’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘rf12_control’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘rf12_easyInit’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.cpp: In function ‘void loop()’:
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘rf12_easyPoll’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘rf12_easySend’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘rf12_hdr’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_HDR_CTL’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_HDR_DST’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_HDR_ACK’ was not declared in this scope
   ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘RF12_HDR_MASK’ was not declared in this scope

   And what is Ports.h?

8. Michael-

   The library files need to go in the libraries folder in the Adruino directory. The ColorNode code relies on the RF12 library from JeeLabs (http://jeelabs.net/projects/cafe/wiki/Libraries) which in turn also requires the Ports library. Download and extract both libraries into your Arduino program folder, not your project folder.

   The difference between the Node program and the Controller program is that the Node program gets installed on the ColorNode board attached to the string of lights while the controller program is programmed onto your central controller. The central controller can either be another ColorNode board, a JeeNode board, or some other Arduino-compatible board with an RFM12B radio attached. The Node program is designed to accept commands from the controller program, which is designed to wirelessly control multiple ColorNodes, each running the same or similar (as long as the payload and commands are common) Node program. You don’t program one board with both – you need two boards to accomplish the wireless control. Now, you can just use one board and program it with the Node software and modify it to run different light programs independently of any wireless control. You can also send the software commands serially (using the Adruino serial console, for example) via a connected FTDI cable. That is a good way to test out your light sequences before jumping into the wireless control.

9. For the ColorNode, which board do I choose from the list in Arduino –> Tool –> Board ?

10. Thanks for the quick reply Paul.

    I’ve had success (!) with getting the ColorNode to light up my GE 16s … tho, I’m still not clear on a few things:

    1) After fiddling around with a bunch of unknowns to get the code to compile … I came to realize that ColorNode is perhaps only applicable with the Arduino IDE 0022 version, correct? On the JeeLabs page (http://jeelabs.net/projects/cafe/wiki/RF12), it’s not clear which package I should download based on the version of which Arduino IDE I have. My preferred IDE version says “1.0″ (the most recent version). So, if using the most recent version of Arduino (“1.0″), what is the appropriate code package to use? Or is 0022 necessary? I just got the code and libraries to work with 0022, so I assume that it is necessary (but will the “jeelib” library from GIThub somehow work with IDE 1.0? I was not able to get it to work, as it appears I was missing “WProgram.h”.)

    2) Anyway, with 0022, the code compiles. And then I had to change the IDE serial port output to “dev/tty”, and choose board “Arduino Uno” to get the code to upload, and then see some lights! With the initial install of Node code, I get a few variable colors, tho not all of the 16 lights are lit up (does this sound right?). So now, I’ll be looking into understanding and adapting the code.

    Questions:

    - Mr RGB mentions above, Paul’s “source code documentation”. Is there documentation aside from the code comments?

    - In the Node code, to adapt for a string of GE 16s, is there generally anything else I would need to change besides “#define LIGHT_COUNT 16″?

    - Can anyone offer an example of how to make calls via serial? I still have only barely a concept of what the general protocal is for calling the functions in the Node program. My needs are pretty straight forward. I just need to be able to have 12 of my 16 lights be a unique color, and then control the brightness of each light dynamically. How would I, for example, have light # 7 fade gradually from black (off) to very bright red?

    - Or one of the included Light Programs?

11. I too was able to compile the code finally with 0022, and had no success with anything newer than that.

    I now have a functioning 50 bulb string, and I can get to the serial console using the UART Pass mode on my Bus Pirate. Now, I am a little confused about how to actually use the console. I can only seem to change the brightness of a cyan color on bulb 1, as any other input seems to bring up the “help” menu over and over again.

    Is there a more detailed breakdown of the control protocol for this?

    Now, on to another question. I have been controlling it thusfar with the console header on the node itself. I have not yet built a “controller” node. I understand that Paul uses a Jeenode to do the control, and I was wondering if that code would work natively on the JeeLink, which seems to be basically a Jeenode with built in USB and 1mbit of flash.

12. So, I have been able to get a chance pattern to work on this via the console using the arduino serial monitor. But, I would like to use the patterns. no matter what I have tried for color commands, I cant get a built in pattern to kick over. I am sure I am looking over something completely obvious, but I cant seem to find it!

    Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

13. Sorry, by “Pattern” I mean “Program”, from command 1.

14. Nevermind. After a weekend of toying around with it, I figured it out. The only thing I am trying to figure out now is the RGB codes that do not seem to match up with my understanding.

15. Rob-

    What did you have to do to get it working? Do you know what was going wrong? As far as the RGB is concerned, the lights are only 12-bit RGB, so 4-bits (0 through F, in HEX, or 0 through 15 in decimal) per color. We are used to 24-bit RGB with one byte per color, so with 12-bits you have a smaller range of colors (4096 versus 16+ million). White in 24-bit RGB is FFFFFF while in 12-bit it is FFF or, for the ColorNode code, 15,15,15. Here is a site that shows the whole 12-bit color space: http://rangevoting.org/ColorCode.html I couldn’t get the hover to work like it says, but it gives you an idea of what’s possible with 12-bits, even though the LEDs may not be able to accurately reproduce all those colors. Also, as the bulb intensity is altered, the colors may look slightly different than when the intensity is at max.

    I don’t see why the code wouldn’t work on a JeeLink. I actually was looking to get one of those next time since it is so compact and more convenient to use with a laptop than a board + USB converter + cable.

16. It basically boiled down to my misunderstanding the command syntax. Now as for the color codes that makes more sense, I was trying to pass 254,0,0 thinking I would get Red, but instead I was getting Cyan.

    I just received my JeeLink this afternoon, so I am about to compile the code and upload, I will reply with my results.

17. Okay, so it works just fine on the JeeLink, now that I set the frequency properly anyways.. I would highly recommend it for this setup!

18. I’ve ordered and put together a colornode for myself. While I don’t need RF, it’s a nice feature to be able to add.
    I was able to compile and run the ColorNode_Node.pde file with Arduino 0023. However, I’m unable to get the G35Arduino examples to run on the colornode hardware. The code requires Arduino 1.0 and other than the changing the data pin from 13 to 19, I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong. I can upload the BasicExample.ino file successfully but the lights stay off. I’m using the latest jeelib library. Any pointers would be great.

19. Is anyone selling the ColorNode PCBs already popluated?

20. Cant seem to get the ColorNode code to compile using the 0022 or 1.01 versions. Keep getting the following compile error: ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘G35′ does not name a type

    Please advise.

21. Paul – was able to overcome the ColorNode_Controller.pde:-1: error: ‘G35′ does not name a type by directly defining locations of the header files (i.e. #include “/Users/Documents/Arduino/Libraries/etc.. vs. #include ). However.. now I seem to be having an issue with the following line of code:

    G35String lights(G35_PIN, LIGHT_COUNT);

    Giving me the following errors:
    BasicExample.cpp.o: In function `__static_initialization_and_destruction_0′:
    BasicExample.cpp:23: undefined reference to `G35String::G35String(unsigned char, unsigned char)’
    BasicExample.cpp.o: In function `loop’:
    BasicExample.cpp:32: undefined reference to `G35::fill_color(unsigned char, unsigned char, unsigned char, unsigned int)’
    BasicExample.cpp:34: undefined reference to `G35::fill_color(unsigned char, unsigned char, unsigned char, unsigned int)’
    BasicExample.cpp:39: undefined reference to `G35::rainbow_color(unsigned int)’
    BasicExample.cpp:39: undefined reference to `G35::fill_color(unsigned char, unsigned char, unsigned char, unsigned int)’
    BasicExample.cpp.o: In function `setup’:
    BasicExample.cpp:27: undefined reference to `G35String::enumerate()’
    BasicExample.cpp:28: undefined reference to `G35String::do_test_patterns()’

    Please help.

22. Anyone have any success sending commands from a perl script to the JeeLink? if so, some sample code would be very helpful.

    Thanks.

23. I too am having some trouble with sending commands over serial, I can get them to sporadically work but not uniformly. I’m looking to connect a JeeLink USB plug to a linux box and send commands to it by putting them in the crontab so that i can turn it on/off, Run a pattern at the hour (as a “chime”) etc. Has anyone had success with this sord of scripting?

24. Paul – how do you handle broadcasting (serial monitor) to multiple light strings of varying lengths and still manage to keep them in sync? For example, I have 50 ct strings, 36 ct icicles, a Christmas tree, & snowflake and would like to broadcast a predefined program (i.e. mode 1) to all nodes. So I’m broadcasting the following “1,0,49,15,15,15,100,3,1000,255 l”. All colornodes receive the broadcast and change to the predefined program, however the 36 count light strings quickly get out of sync with the 50 count etc…

    I noticed this wasn’t an issue in your video… please advise.

    Thanks

25. Do you have a board outline for your gerbers? I want to get a board made with DorkBot, but their new upload system wants a board outline file.

    See here.

    http://oshpark.com/guideline

    Looking at your file, you seem to have layer, mask and screen for top and bottom, but not a board outline. I thought of just trying to convince them to make a square board, but DorkBot will take the corners off for me if I get a proper outline, and that’d be nice. If you could explain the extensions of yours (Presumably B and T are top and bottom, LOS are layer, mask and screen?) that’d be great too.

26. Steve-

    If you are using OSHPark, it’s just easier to upload the Eagle .brd file. I don’t recall which Gerber layer corresponds to the outline, but it’s definitely there and in Eagle.

    Paul

27. Paul –

    How do you handle broadcasting (serial monitor) to multiple light strings of varying lengths and still manage to keep them in sync? For example, I have 50 ct strings, 36 ct icicles, a Christmas tree, & snowflake and would like to broadcast a predefined program (i.e. mode 1) to all nodes. So I’m broadcasting the following “1,0,49,15,15,15,100,3,1000,255 l”. All colornodes receive the broadcast and change to the predefined program, however the 36 count light strings quickly get out of sync with the 50 count etc…

    I noticed this wasn’t an issue in your video… please advise.

    Thanks

28. Oooh! Nice to see you were able to use my code. Great stuff. If anyone is interested, I’m using two Arduinos. One to control the lights, and another which is an Ethernet shielded web page that reads from my Android phone. The lights Arduino just thinks it’s inputs are buttons (so, people with one Arduino can still use it), the Ethernet Arduino outputs as simulated buttons. Obviously, it looks a bit of a mess, but I don’t mind that. The Android phone has an app with 6 buttons: On/Off; Randomise; Program+; Program-; Pattern+; Pattern- If there’s any interest from anyone, I’ll post code / instructions for the Android/Ethernet side of things on my GitHub site.

29. Can someone make a video tutorial on how to do this ?

30. Regarding keeping 36 and 50-count strings in sync: the BULB_FRAME delay is supposed to handle that since there is a longer delay between each bulb transition on the 36-count string versus the 50-count. Also, when running one of the light programs (mode 1), the start and end bulb values are ignored (on the strings at least – I have a snowman sculpture where I do use the start and end bulb numbers to have the patterns run only on its hat). So the command you posted would have the same effect if you did “1,0,0,0,0,0,0,3,1000,255 l” All this being said, I have also experienced the race condition where the 36 advances through the programs faster even though the delay should take care of that. I still haven’t figured out why though and it hasn’t really caused too many issues on my light installation.

31. Paul, thanks for making the ColorNode. It’s awesome! I built a bunch of them just finally finished getting my strings up on my house and my programs running. I was originally disappointed that communications were not fast enough to completely drive all bulbs from the controller. However, I was able to tweak the ColorNode and G35 code to fit my needs. I added a bunch of program options for random or fixed, speed, direction. It was really interesting to see that some patterns I thought would be really cool turned out not so good with the lights on my house. Other programs I thought would be dull actually look good on the house. My favorite pattern is the MEORainbow where I have it start off slow, speeds up, slows down, changes direction and speeds up again. MEORandomStrobe is really cool too.

    I found a timing issue related to different string lengths to be that my code wasn’t originally accounting for the time it takes to update the bulbs. If you update all the bulbs and then have a fixed delay, the strings will slowly drift. I think it takes a little less than 1ms to update a single bulb. A 36 and 50 string will drift by ~10-14ms per cycle. You can better account for this by adjusting the delay time based on the how long it took to perform the update.

    I also added a program “wait” option to help address better synchronization between strings. This works by having each program complete a “cycle” and then wait. I created a new update command which tells the strings to run the next cycle. Basically, the controller acts as a clock for the whole system. I’ve found this to works pretty good for programs that don’t need a fast clock. I also reduced the number of RF retries to 5 and retry interval to 20. Communication still works reliably so long as I put the controller in a good spot. For example I wanted all my strings to transition across all the colors of the rainbow. Over time, the strings would start to get noticeably out of sync, even strings with the same number of bulbs.

    I made some other enhancements to the original ColorNode and G35 code to pass a random seed from the controller (that was another synchronization issue), a new “raw” command and defer/commit command parameters. The “raw” command allows the controller to set the color of each bulb. There is enough space in the RF buffer to store the color in 1 byte per bulb for 50 bulbs. This works great for fixed color patterns which I can define after putting up the strings. The defer option allows the controller to send each node a new command and then later send a commit command that tells all the strings to run the deferred command at the same time. I have 15 strings so it can take a while to send each of them a specific program to run. This way they all continue to run the current program while I’m handing out new assignments.

    Fun stuff!

32. I’m starting a ColorNode project using my three sets of GECE lights. I have two sets of 36 and one looong set of 84 (a 50 and a 36) that I soldered together last year. Looking forward to getting the hardware together and (hopefully) figuring out how to program these things.

    I wanted to let everyone know that Laen has a page set up to sell the V1 modules here: http://store.oshpark.com/products/colornode-v1-0 for $4 a piece.

33. Pingback: ToddFun.com » Blog Archive » G35 LED Christmas Lights – A Simple Parallel Sync Hack

34. Paul 2 (29/11 4:17) – thanks for your compliments about my programs. I’d love to see your code! I have a program/pattern select and randomize, but would like to introduce speed parameters like you. My tree is up now, but I’ll probably update it a few more times. I ran out of time for more ambitious programs. I was going to copy an idea using alpha channels (i.e. a virtual extra channel in addition to R,G,B) whereby you use the alpha channel to blend between programs. I gave up because at only 4096 colours with the unsmooth gradient that the G35s have, I wasn’t sure how effective it would be. Maybe next year!!

35. MarkEMark, I’d be happy to share the code. I briefly checked into putting it on GitHub. A complication is that I’ve made heavy modifications to code from several other peoples code from GitHub (including yours). I’m not sure what the best approach is for re-sharing modified versions of other peoples code. Also, it’s a bit of a mess. Mostly around debug output. I added conditional macros using printf mapped to serial output. It works OK, but consumes too much code and ram. I’ve found that I have to have nearly all of it disabled for the program to even run. I’m new to arduino so I haven’t yet figured out a better way to do.

    If you send me an email (craiz13 at yahoo) I will send you the code.

36. Is there a way to download the 14 Pre-programmed sequences from the original PCB?

37. Preston – Sowbug did a pretty good approximation of the original programs. See – https://github.com/sowbug/G35Arduino.

38. I’ve added some more interesting patterns to my MEORainbow and MEOColorPhasing programs…

    https://github.com/MarkEMarkEMark/G35-MEO-Programs

    Enjoy!

39. Here is an interesting spinoff of your colornode work:

    http://doityourselfchristmas.com/forums/showthread.php?22062-New-High-Speed-Wireless-GE-Color-Effects-Controller-RFColor2_4

    Wireless real time DMX control…..

40. Hey, all. If anyone has a GECE 50-light board and frequency matching remote leftover from your project then please email me at boofwah@gmail.com. I need a matched set to troubleshoot my 50-light strand (I think I have a bad node in the middle) and my stock board didn’t survive removal from the GECE enclosure.

    Thanks in advance.

    Jeff

41. I have several original controller boards for 25/36/50 light strings and remotes if anyone needs extras. joej852000@yahoo.com

42. Hello, everyone. I wanted to drop a post to say that I’m throwing the towel in on this project after several frustrating weeks with it.

    With the assistance of one thread visitor (thanks so much, Jeff), I was able to diagnose that my non-responsive colornodes were due to a non-Arduino UNO boot loader flashed Atmega IC…the thread’s BOM should recommend Newark Mfr part# A000048…not cat no. 15R0268. Now I may have misunderstood the BOM some, but for newbs (like myself) it should be a little more clear.

    This was a cool and fun project to build amd learn about, but I have three assembled V1 colornodes (with the Arduino flashed Atmega now installed) and one blank V1 colornode available for sale. Please email me at boofwah@gmail.com for further inquiries and photos.

    Hope y’all had a merry Christmas and have a safe and happy new year.

    Jeff

43. i need help i bought 8 sets of 50 g35 lights what do i need to buy from start to finish please somone help me

44. Hi Joshua,

    There are good details at the top of the page regarding what is needed for the nodes (including a link to a BOM which shows all the components needed). You will also need an arduino development/programming environment. You can download the arduino tools for free. There are many options for how to program the controller. I’m happy to help. You can email me: craiz13 at yahoo.

    Good luck,

    Paul

45. Paul,

    I know you use the USB BUB II to program the lights. While programming/testing patterns, do you have the BUB II plugged into your PC while powering the lights with the wall wart? Could you maybe go into a little more detail about how to program/test different patterns? Thank you.

46. Kevin-

    Yes, I typically leave the BUB connected to the programming header and have the GE power supply powering the lights. I have populated the voltage select headers on the BUB such that I can use a jumper to select either 5V or 3.3V or none for both the supply voltage on the BUB or the logic voltage. I just pull the jumper off the supply voltage header and let the GE power supply power the ColorNode board. It has a 3.3V converter on board for the ATmega and the RFM12B radio so I always have my BUB set for 3.3V logic. I hope this helps!

    Paul

47. That definitely helps. Thanks, Paul (especially for the quick answer).

48. One other comment – if you look at the silkscreen by the programming connector, you’ll see that the voltage pin is 3.3V. This means that you could technically (accidentally) put 5V on that pin (say if your BUB was jumpered for 5V power) and potentially damage the RFM12B radio. I have done this on a few occasions (not on purpose) and the radio was still fine, and although its recommended input voltage rating was exceeded, it may not cause damage if you notice the problem right away and remove the connection and supply the proper voltage. Again, just be cautious of the voltage levels to prevent component damage.

49. Will do. Thank you again, Paul.