Asked
— Edited
I'm really sort on digital ports on my rad project. I don't have any more digital ports left. I don't want to spend +$10 on a tip circuit because that wont allow me to turn individual leds on and off. Is there an alternate way I could power them?
I2C Expander, but they wont be natively supported by ARC (i.e. the digital controls wont work). Second EZ-B. Multiplexer circuits.
A second EZ-B is the ideal choice. It's simple and supported by ARC's built in controls. I2C Expander is next best but you will need to use scripts and you will need to find an expander that is well documented with all of the I2C commands you'll need to use to enable outputs. Multiplexer is not really recommended, they cost a lot of ports to increase by few. They have been discussed and the conclusion was they are not really a good solution for increasing digital outputs.
Look around for parts for the TIP circuit too, $10 is a lot for the few items it needs. You should easily be able to pick up what you need to make one for $3 (plus any shipping if applicable).
If you wish to power them and not need to control them - use the +5 on the side expansion port of the EZ-B. If powering directly off the +5, I would recommend throwing a resistor inline.
again the "put 2 and 2 together" come to mind.
@rich, already out of money in my budget so a second ez-b is out of the question. i2c scares me. I've looked at the commands and examples and it seems overly complicated.
I guess i'll wait until I've got the rad torn apart until I ask the questions.
Do you know how many LEDs you need and how you want them to work?
I2C is pretty simple once you get past the initial "wow, what in God's name do I do with this" part. I was planning to use I2C extenders on Melvin's eyes before his head change to power and sequence rows of LEDs to simulate eye lids opening/closing (I've since found out that Loki has something very similar).
Besides, even if I2C does scare you, there's a community here waiting to help if you need it.
Its OK I2C scared me too thunder buddy
Technopro,
Let us know what you had in mind.
I've doubled up LED's connected to the EZB just to keep simple, but it all depends on your plan.
Kris
I'm planning on testing the leds on a aa battery pack test like I do with all my leds to see if I can double up some. then ill start finding alternate ways. thanks for all the comments
visit this video sorry i don't know how to include a video