Australia
Asked — Edited

LED For WALL-E's Eye

Hey guys,

I tried to use the original LED that comes with the WALL-E U-Command with the EZ-B, but the LED does not turn on (using digital ports).

Should the original LED work, or should I use another type of LED with the EZ-B?


ARC Pro

Upgrade to ARC Pro

Unlock the true power of automation and robotics by becoming a proud subscriber of Synthiam ARC Pro.

Author Avatar
PRO
Synthiam
#9  

I have no experience with a color changing led, sorry. Let us know what you find though:) ... I usually use BlinkM's

You can easily blow an LED if you connect the power directly to +5 and GND without a resistor (even for a brief second while testing polarity). You do not need a resistor if you connect the LED directly to the EZ-B's DIGITAL I/O

Author Avatar
Australia
#10  

I didn't know what a BlinkM did till you mentioning it now blush

That's exactly what I need so I'm getting one straight away instead of using the color changing LED.

The BlinkM has PWR - + & I2C d c pins, how do I connect the 2 d c pins to the EZ-B?

Author Avatar
Australia
#11  

Answering my own question here.

Just looked at the EZ-B manual & it mentions the I2C header onboard :)

#12  

I have used RGB color changing LEDs with the EZ-B and had no problems. I`ve connected them to gnd and digital out pin.

Author Avatar
United Kingdom
#13  

DJ, you should add the info about not requiring resistors if hooking up the LEDs to the signal wire on to the LEDs page of the hardware compatibility tutorial section.

Author Avatar
Netherlands
#14  

I have RGB leds hooked up to the EZ-b I/o ports, no resistors. They work just fine. The only thing I've noticed is that when changing the intensity of a led or animating for instance a light pulse, that the leds will flicker excessivly every so often when the intensity is changed. Would using a resistor reduce this flickering?

Author Avatar
PRO
Synthiam
#15  

@steveBurkett you don't need a resistor if the LED is connected to the I/O for its +5. The chip has internal resistors on the i/o:) .. However, you can't power anything more than LED's with the chip's I/O

#16  

Only potential issue I see is many if not most 5mm LEDs are not 5v. Most blue are 3.0- 3.7 v max as well as white , green, uv . Red is 2v so maybe the 5v smoked the led.