Single Cat-6 Power and Data for WS2815 LED strips

One of the biggest hassles with addressable LED strip installations is that you usually end up running data and power separately. Sure, in theory, a Neopixel type installation just needs three conductors – one for data, one for ground, and one for +5V or +12V. In practice this doesn’t work on large installations for twoContinue reading “Single Cat-6 Power and Data for WS2815 LED strips”

Transmitting WS2812b Signals Over Longer Distances

The WS2812b protocol is a fairly simply protocol based on toggling the data pin between 0v and 5v. That makes something akin to a square wave. I have heard people refer to this hardware protocol as TTL (“transistor to transistor logic”) and it is common on circuit boards. The trouble with this square wave isContinue reading “Transmitting WS2812b Signals Over Longer Distances”

Control your projects with IR Remote Controls!

When you build electronics projects for the desert you always need some kind of basic controls. For LED projects you might want brightness controls, for example, or buttons which switch between various preset visual programs. The trouble is that it’s very hard to come up with a reliable way to have pushbuttons and knobs whichContinue reading “Control your projects with IR Remote Controls!”