Can't get working: LuMini LED Ring - 1 Inch (20 x APA102-2020)

Components & Accessories LEDs
1

I purchased the “LuMini LED Ring - 1 Inch (20 x APA102-2020)” and for some reason I can’t get it working.

I soldered wires to the 5V, GND, DI, & CI and attached them to an arduino mega approately (DI to PIN 16 and CI to PIN 17).

I downloaded the FastLED.h library and uploaded the “Example1_RingTest” that is provided. In the example code I defined the number of LED’s as 20 and commented the line for the 3" ring and uploaded it successfully.

Nothing happened.

I tried this on a Uno as well and a Teensy 3.2, still no luck.

Any advice on just getting it to turn on all white? nothing fancy.

2

Hi pfoster.

Couple questions for you. :slight_smile:

  • - Is nothing lighting up at all on the LEDs when you run that sketch?
  • - When you move from board to board, are you changing the clock and data pins to match what's available on your board?
  • - Can you send pictures of the back of the LED ring and a picture showing how it's connected to your Arduino?
    • 3

    TS-Chris:
    Hi pfoster.

    Couple questions for you. :slight_smile:

  • - Is nothing lighting up at all on the LEDs when you run that sketch?
  • - When you move from board to board, are you changing the clock and data pins to match what's available on your board?
  • - Can you send pictures of the back of the LED ring and a picture showing how it's connected to your Arduino?

    • Nothing is lighting up at all.

    I do change the Data and clock pins. The Mega and the Uno are both on 16 and 17 and the Teensy 3.2 im using 18 and 19.

    See picture: https://imgur.com/a/ZcPFc79

    I made sure that the each pad is isolated

    Thank you!

    -Patrick

    4

    OK, lets try the code below with an Arduino Uno and the following wiring:

    Lumini → Arduino – Your wire color

    =============================

    G → GND – Black

    5V → 5V – Green

    DI → D2 – Yellow

    CI → D3 – Red

    #include <FastLED.h>

#define NUM_LEDS 20 //1 Inch

// The LuMini rings need two data pins connected
#define DATA_PIN 2
#define CLOCK_PIN 3

// Define the array of leds
CRGB ring[NUM_LEDS];

void fadeAll(uint8_t scale = 250)
{
  for (int i = 0; i < NUM_LEDS; i++)
  {
    ring[i].nscale8(scale);
  }
}

void setup() {
  LEDS.addLeds<APA102, DATA_PIN, CLOCK_PIN, BGR>(ring, NUM_LEDS);
  LEDS.setBrightness(32);
}

void loop() {
  static uint8_t hue = 0;
  //Rotate around the circle
  for (int i = 0; i < NUM_LEDS; i++) {
    // Set the i'th led to the current hue
    ring[i] = CHSV(hue++, 150, 255); //display the current hue, then increment it.
    // Show the leds
    FastLED.show();
    fadeAll();//Reduce the brightness of all LEDs so our LED's fade off with every frame.
    // Wait a little bit before we loop around and do it again
    delay(50);
  }
}

    Give this a try with the code above (select all, copy, paste in Arduino) and let me know if the LEDs light.

    If they don’t, send a photo showing the ring connected to your Arduino Uno.

    14967-SparkFun_LuMini_LED_Ring_-1_Inch__APA102-2020-03.jpg
    14967-SparkFun_LuMini_LED_Ring_-1_Inch__APA102-2020-03.jpg500×542 56.6 KB

    5

    TS-Chris:
    OK, lets try the code below with an Arduino Uno and the following wiring:

    Lumini → Arduino – Your wire color

    =============================

    G → GND – Black

    5V → 5V – Green

    DI → D2 – Yellow

    CI → D3 – Red

    Give this a try with the code above (select all, copy, paste in Arduino) and let me know if the LEDs light.

    If they don’t, send a photo showing the ring connected to your Arduino Uno.

    I don’t know what sorcery happened, but it works! Thanks you!!!