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Espruino is a JavaScript interpreter for low-power Microcontrollers. This site is both a support community for Espruino and a place to share what you are working on.
@veryalien
So that's the GFX HAT done and dusted!
Well, it's working on the bench, let's put it that way. It needs cleaning up and repackaging a bit.
Gordon is already working on a SN3218 module, which worked OK for me.
My PiGlow should also work immediately too, and the Display-o-tron backlight too, I don't see why not, I will have to try....
The other Espruino modules already exist: ST7565 for the LCD display and the CAP1188 for the touch pads and LEDs (it's actually a CAP1166, but it's near enough to see that that everything is configurable, settable and readable). So, at least for the GFX HAT, there's nothing really new here for Espruino.
Couple of points:
After I ordered a Pixl.js (from Pimoroni UK, still waiting), I noticed that the chip pins are 3.3V only, 5V is going to kill them, but that is the same as the Raspberry Pi. Then I noticed that the Arduino is fundamentally 5V, but there are '3.3V only' shields. I'm messing around with a Pico and raspberry HATs most of which have both 5V and 3.3V pins connected when on a Pi. The Pico has 5V tolerant pins. I'm wondering how many Arduino shields and raspberry pi HATs can be fully used with only 3.3V? I've had problems with other boards and level shifters in the past trying to make the sure that the supply voltage and the GPIO pins are correctly shifted at both ends.
Like allObjects mentioned in this thread, I'm not sure about this. I've personally got tons of HATs and pHATs which I'd like to use directly with Espruino, hence my messing around here. But, what was the thinking of going with a Arduino header layout for Pixl.js and then only at 3.3V? Are the GPIO pins on Arduino hardware working at 3.3V or do they need 5V logic to function?
I've seen the description of the shield power jumper on the pixl.js, does setting that to 5V and passing through the USB supply cause any issues with shields and the Pixl itself, or not?
I'm considering buying one of these boards to attach to the Pixl.js, to make adding HATs and pHATs neater without using a black hat hacker board. But I've already noticed that it doesn't have level shifting on all pins, just selected ones.
https://www.abelectronics.co.uk/p/66/ardÂuino-uno-to-raspberry-pi-adapter
I'm no electrical expert, but I'm running the GFX HAT using only 3.3V with the Pico. This means I've connected both the 5V and 3.3V pins on the HAT to 3.3V from the Pico and it's all working as expected.
I suspect all the chips are quite happy electrically at 3.3V and the only reason to have 5V is for the oomph bling-bling RGB LEDs on the backlight. Yes the LEDs are slightly, and I mean only slightly dimmer, at 3.3V, I don't need to be blinded so it doesn't make any difference to me. Are the LEDs the only reason for needing 5V in this case? Or is the SN3218 taking the 3.3V and boosting it itself?
Please shout at mean if I've missed something somewhere in the above!
As a side-effect of not sitting directly over the Pi 3+ processor and using the lower voltage, the GFX HAT is not getting hot or even warm. When it's on the Pi and all the LEDs are on at full whack, it gets extremely hot, which seems to affect the LCD contrast after a couple of hours. I don't like this as I think it might be a design flaw, but I hope not.