HowTo: pxlBlck – Install and configure the pxlBlck plugin

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The pxlBlck plugin for the ESPEasy framework is the "software counterpart" to the pxlBlck platforms. With the plugin you can easily control the built-in LED matrices and with the help of the other functions it is relatively easy to display your own animations and notifications on the LED matrix.

pxlBlck platform

Before you continue with the installation of the plugin, you should have already set up the hardware for your pxlBlck. You can find the assembly instructions for the various pxlBlck platforms under the following link

Installing the plugin

As already mentioned, the pxlBlck plugin is a plugin for the ESPEasy framework. You would therefore first have to flash ESPEasy onto your ESP8266 or ESP32. The PxlBlck plugin should of course already be included. The combination of EspEasy framework including pxlBlck plugin is simply called "firmware".

There are basically two ways to get the firmware onto your ESP8266 or ESP32. One is described in the article ESPEasy - Compile firmware, flash and configure WLAN access data

The second possibility is that you program fully compiled "binaries" on the ESP8266 or ESP32. You can read how this works here: ESP8266 - Flash .bin files on Windows using Esptool

You will find the current binary in the next section.

Binaries or precompiled firmware

In the following list you will find the link to the current release. This contains the binary that you can flash directly to your ESP8266 or ESP32.

binary: https://github.com/Nerdiyde/pxlBlck/tree/main/plugin/bin

In the linked folder for the binaries you will find various files for the ESP8266 and ESP32. The options used are indicated in the file name.

Changelog: You can find the current changelog in the Nerdiy-Git under the following link: https://github.com/Nerdiyde/pxlBlck/blob/main/CHANGELOG.md

Configure WiFi access data

After you have transferred the firmware to your ESP8266 or ESP32, you must first configure the WLAN access data for your WLAN. This is the only way your pxlBlck can receive and display event messages or the time.

How you can transfer the WLAN access data to ESPEasy (i.e. your programmed pxlBlck) is described in the article ESPEasy - Compile firmware, flash and configure WLAN access data described

I personally find it easiest to configure the access data via the serial interface. You can find information on this under the following link: https://nerdiy.de/howto-espeasy-firmware-flashen/#WLAN-Zugangsdaten_ueber_die_serielle_Schnittstelle_konfigurieren

Activating and configuring the pxlBlck plugin

After you have transferred the WLAN access data to your pxlBlck, you must first activate the pxlBlck and configure it correctly. The easiest way to do this is via the ESPEasy web menu.

To do this, enter the IP address of your pxlBlck in the address bar of your browser. How you can find out the IP address of devices in your network is described in the article Display/find out the IP address of the devices in the network described.

After you have entered the IP address in the address bar, you should land on the overview page shown.

Click on the "Devices" button (area marked in red).

All configured devices are listed in the overview that now appears. As you (very probably) have not yet configured any devices, this list is of course empty.

To activate the pxlBlck plugin, click on the first "Edit" button (area marked in red).

You will now be redirected to the page shown.

Now select the entry from the drop-down list

Display—pxlBlck

off.

Configuring the GPIO of the LED matrix

After you have activated the pxlBlck plugin, you will be redirected to the overview page of the plugin. A complete description of all options can be found below. In this section, we will now continue with the configuration of the pxlBlck plugin.

Enter a name in the text field next to "Name". This can be freely chosen. I have simply entered "Clock" here.

Then also activate the checkbox in the "Enabled" section.

To ensure that the plugin can also control the connected LED matrix, you must now set the correct GPIO. This is specified in the assembly instructions for your pxlBlck platform.

Set pxlBlck platform

In addition to the correct GPIO, you must now also set the correct PxlBlck platform. This is the only way for the pxlBlck plug-in to know how large the connected LED matrix is.

To do this, click on the drop-down list in the "Matrix type" area and select the appropriate entry for your pxlBlck platform.

For example, do you have a SlotClock or RingClock you select "RingClock(1×60)" here.

If you have not already done so, you should also activate the checkbox in the "Display enabled" section. Only if this is activated will there be an output on the LED matrix.

Setting the clock face/screen saver

If desired, you can now also set a clock face or screensaver. Clock faces or screensavers are always displayed when no animation, icon or similar "event-related" item is currently shown on the display of the pxlBlck.

You can also find more information, including examples of how to set the clock faces and screensavers, in the article

To do this, click on the drop-down list in the "Dial version" section and select the desired dial or screensaver.

The list displayed there depends on the "Matrix type" set. For the "Matrix type" "RingClock", you can choose from the options shown. For example, the "Ring" display is suitable here. A detailed description of all representations can be found further down in this article.

Set colors

If you have previously selected a clock face or screensaver for which colors can be configured, you now also have the option of setting the colors according to your wishes. The adjustable colors and their names are always adapted to the selected clock face/screensaver. So don't be surprised if the color options differ depending on the clock face/screensaver you have set.

To do this, scroll to the bottom of the view in the pxlBlck plugin.

You can set up to four colors there.

You can do this using the ColorPicker by clicking on the (red marked) button of the respective color section. Then simply select your desired color and confirm your selection by clicking on "OK".

Alternatively, you can also specify the RGB value of the desired color directly.

To do this, you must enter the desired value in the fields marked red, green and blue. The permitted value range is 0-255.

In the example shown, the "RingClock" dial is selected and the hour hand is set to "Red", the minute hand to "Blue" and the second hand to "Green". The hour markers, on the other hand, light up white.

Description of the plugin options/web menu of the plugin

In the previous paragraphs you can already find some information about the most important setting options of the pxlBlck plugin. A complete description of all options can now be found in this section.

Once you have configured your pxlBlck with your WLAN access data and it is accessible in the network, you can access the web menu via the IP address of the pxlBlck.

To do this, enter the IP address of your pxlBlck in the address bar of your browser. How you can find out the IP address of devices in your network is described in the article Display/find out the IP address of the devices in the network described.

You can access the web menu by clicking on "Devices" and then on the pxlBlck plugin you have activated in the "Device list".

Here you can see the possible options of the pxlBlck plugin in the web view.

The following paragraph contains a description of the individual functions.

Description of the options in the web menu

  • Surname: Here you can configure the name of the device
  • Enabled: The plugin is only activated if the check mark is set here
  • GPIO/DigitalInHere you must specify the GPIO that is connected to the LED matrix. You can find information on this in the assembly article for your pxlBlck platform.
  • Help: A click on it leads you to an overview page with all pxlBlck articles
  • Display EnabledThis option can be used to deactivate the display or hide the content. This option can be used, for example, to switch off the display at night or when nobody is at home. You can also find information on this in the article pxlBlck - Turn off the display when absent
  • Matrix typeHere you can configure the dimensions of your LED matrix. In the example above, a matrix is configured that is 32 LEDs wide and 8 LEDs high
  • Led typeHere you can configure the type of your LED. Most Neopixel or WS2812 LEDs have the sequence green, red, blue. So GRB.
  • Start positionsHere you can specify in which corner of your matrix the first LED is located. You can also find information on this here: https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-neopixel-uberguide/neomatrix-library
  • LED arrangement: This can be used to configure the arrangement of your LED matrix. You can also find information on this here: https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-neopixel-uberguide/neomatrix-library
  • Tile-Arrangement & Matrix tiles in X-direction & Matrix tiles in Y-directionThese functions are still being tested. If in doubt, please leave it set to "OneTileOnly".
  • Matrix rotation: This allows the matrix to be rotated by 90° steps in each case
  • Dial version: This option configures the clock face or the animation that is displayed during normal operation. More on this below.
  • Leading zeros enabled: You can use this function to activate leading zeros. For example, the time "08:15" becomes the display "8:15"
  • Display brightness: This adjusts the screen brightness of the displayed content in 15 gradations
  • Minimal brightness: This option allows you to set a specific absolute value for the lowest brightness. This allows you to set an absolute value for "extreme darkness" and avoid any color distortions.
  • Hour, Minute & Background: The color for the respective group can be set here. These groups change depending on the dial set under "Dial version". More information on this below.

Configuration of the pxlBlck using commands

In addition to configuring your pxlBlck using the options in the web menu, you can also configure the plugin using commands.

This has the advantage that you can also adjust settings via MQTT, HTTP call or with the help of rules during operation.

You can find more information in the article pxlBlck - Commands for configuring the pxlBlck

Show animations on the pxlBlck

The commands can be used to display various information on your pxlBlck. How you can trigger and configure animations is described in the following article.

Show icons on the pxlBlck

In addition to animations, predefined icons can also be shown on the display of the pxlBlck. How to create icons, transfer them to the pxlBlck and display them is described in the following article.

Have fun with the project

I hope everything worked as described for you. If not or you have questions or suggestions please let me know in the comments. I will then add this to the article if necessary.
Ideas for new projects are always welcome. 🙂

PS Many of these projects - especially the hardware projects - cost a lot of time and money. Of course I do this because I enjoy it, but if you think it's cool that I share the information with you, I would be happy about a small donation to the coffee fund. 🙂

Buy Me a Coffee at ko-fi.com       

6 comments

  1. Hello,

    am i blind I have installed everything so far, but now the plugin tells me that I should set up a NAT server. Unfortunately, I can't find a field where I can set the address.

    Does anyone have a tip for me?

    Reply

  3. I have just built this project using one of yours PCBs. There appears to be a missing step to solder the 'SJ1' jumper to connect pin D4 to the matrix. This probably should be in the "Solder the LED panel to the circuit board" section.

    Reply

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