UPDATE iLED: Technical Specifications

As promised a few days ago, here is a post detailing on the technical specifications of the new iLED.

As stated, the dimensions of the module are: 30x60x1.6 mm. It has a pixel density of approximately 1.5ppi which may sound very low compared with the high-end displays we have in our smartphones, but in comparison with the existent products from the same category it has the highest pixel density available on the market. This translates into pixels of 15x15 mm, each pixel containing 4 ultra-bright blue LEDs.

In terms of sensing the environment, each pixel contains an infra-red motion sensor comprising of an IR LED which is spectrally and mechanically matched with an IR Phototransistor. The phototransistor reacts to the reflected electromagnetic wave having a wavelength of 940 nm.

The signal from the receiving end of the sensor due to the reflected wave is then processed through an ultra-low power TI microcontroller, the MSP430G2xx series which, depending on how it was programmed it gives a response by lighting the corresponding pixel as desired by the user.

The microcontroller supports in-circuit programming through the 4 pins attached to each chip or it can be taken away from the circuit (as you will probably see in the prototypes) and can be programmed using the MSP430 LaunchPad or other MSP programmer from Texas Instruments.

The programming can be done either through the specific software offered for free by TI known as Code Composer Studio (CCS) or through a recently developed IDE, known as Energia, which is an Arduino-like environment packing the best of both worlds: the user-friendly language developed by Arduino along with the capability to program ultra-low power and cheap microcontrollers from the MSP430G2xx series.

The entire circuit is powered through 4 power lines (2 Vcc lines and 2 ground lines) and is regulated using 3 voltage regulators with a constant output of 3.3V and maximum current of 800mA each. The module can be powered using any regulated DC power supply or battery as long as the output voltage of the supply is between 5 and 12 volts and as long as it can provide around 250mA for each module used (in the case of putting more modules together to create a larger surface).

The beauty of this module stands in its versatility and simplicity. You can program it however you want, you have the serial interface which can be used either to communicate between the 2 MCUs on a module or to communicate with the "outside world". Easy to program and easy to interface, ilED can serve as a great learning tool for beginners or as a versatile development tool for the more advanced users.

If you have any questions related to the functionality of the ilED or you think there's something I should have mentioned, post them in the comments section of this post or on the Facebook page and I will respond as soon as possible.

Looking forward to the first batch of iLEDs to arrive in the next two weeks so I can show them to you and also launch the Kickstarter campaign. Until then, Like us on Facebook and share the information with your friends or anyone you think might be interested.