.
.
Scrolling Text with 8×8 LED MATRIX (4 Modules in One)
Click image, please, to access the article on Amazon
.
.
.
As we were playing around already with LED’s in previous blog posts let us NOW try out a LED Matrix “4 in one”; its four (4) singular displays soldered on one piece of a single printed circuit board (PCB). I ordered the stuff at Amazon (DE) https://www.amazon.de/AZDelivery-MAX7219-Matrix-Anzeigemodul-Arduino/dp/B079HVW652 which is supplied by AZ-Delivery.
.
.
.
.
.
I like their products as they provide ALSO eBooks in PDF format for their products with quality explications (in German) as also tips; the eBooks can be downloaded here (registration first required):
- http://bibliothek.az-delivery.de/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/LED_Matrix_Display.pdf
- You might also have a look on their eBooks library:
The Matrix costs also only 12,99€ and therefore worth a try… BTW: I am very satisfied with the product and I ordered two more to make the display longer for my home project. SO, let us start with the wiring scheme, please check below:
.
Click the image, please, to enlarge.
.
As you can see in above wiring scheme, there are ONLY 5 wires necessary and we use an Arduino NANO (works also with the UNO). Connect those wires as shown above, connect the USB cable to the Arduino NANO and the computer. Now we are ready to load the code, but first we need to install the necessary libraries for the MAX7219-Display. Check below please for the How-To:
.
Click image, please, to enlarge.
.
Open the Arduino IDE, click on “Sketch“, followed by “Include Library” as shown in above image.
.
Click image, please, to enlarge.
.
Click on “Manage Libraries…“, a new window will open, the “Library Manager“, as shown below.
.
Click image, please, to enlarge.
.
In the Search-field enter„MAX72xx“ and chose MD_MAX72xx from majicDesigns and install it. SO, the libraries (the code for specific Hardware…) are installed, let us GO for uploading the “Sketch” (the code)… We will use a ready example to make us life easy, please follow the instructions in below picture:
.
.
SO, this done close the Arduino IDE and open it again to chose now: GO to “File“, click on “Examples” followed by “MD_Parola” and chose on of the ready examples, WE will use as example “Parola_Scrolling” as it is expressive for results…
.
A new Arduino IDE with the chosen Sketch will open…
.
Click image, please, to enlarge.
.
In the above image you see WHERE you can have a look for changing the variables, your own text and scrolling-pause. When you use “Notepad++” to open the code (it is more easy to detect the lines to change…) you will find them in lines 66-74…
THE values which you see in the above image (screen shot) are mine which I changed already, to me “Scroll-Speed = 150” is the optimum value; but chose your own…
NOW, as we finished everything, let us upload the code to the Arduino UNO, or Arduino NANO.
Have FUN with your “LEARNing-By-Doing project” and try out ALSO the other examples 😉
|
The author Gust MEES is ICT Course Instructor, ”Member of the Advisory Board” from “Luxembourg Safer Internet” (LuSI), BEESECURE, Official Partner (Consultant) from the Ministry of Education in Luxembourg, project “MySecureIT“, Official Partner from the Ministry of Commerce in Luxembourg, project “CASES” (Cyberworld Awareness and Security Enhancement Structure). The author was also a winner of an electronics contest (Germanic countries) in 1979 and got his project published in the “Electronics Magazine ELO”. |
.
Stay tuned for next blog post(s) 😉..
.
Keywords necessary for me to create this blog post: Arduino UNO R3, Arduino NANO, MAX7219 LRD DISPLAY, Coding, Maker, MakerED, MakerSpaces…
.
EDU: Digital CitiZENship, CyberSecurity, eSkills, Modern EDU by Gust MEES 