Are there any worthwhile LED lighting effects? (1 Viewer)

[KyleH]

Now that I got my LED's and Arduino to programatically / automatically control the dimming, I am thinking of lighting effects such as...

* I understand that sunrise/sunset or dim-to-full lights is useful to prevent fish from being shocked and dart all over the tank and injuring themselves.

* Also, being able to dim LED is useful if you have too much light or if they are too close--where you can reduce the amount of full exposure.

* Perhaps being able to dim blues from whites in order to give a custom look when taking pictures.

However, are there any other usefull lighting effect. Besides making the tank look "groovy" or "freaky"?

I chatted up my buddy Felix a while back, and he has a cool "lighting" effect in his controller, but that would probably freak out the dogs in my house. Plus, it sounds counter productive or the "anti-effect" to the sunrise/sunset effect.

I have also read that there are "cloud-effects", but it doesn't sound like it has any benefit other than "looking cool"?

So, what kind of effects are worth taking a look at? Practical, just cool, or neither?

-KyleH

 

[gabe_j]

thunderstorm mode... oh yeah. if you can figure that one out i'd be down (to build my own.) also write a program to go through lunar phases. so cool! good by moon lights. hello spawning livestock!

 

[KyleH]

haha..forgot about the night/day for spawning...hahah..

Oh, I think lightning is easy. I can send a quick on/off on the whites.

But, you made a good point about spawning. I forgot that fish can be encouraged to spawn if you can accurately customize the lights. But, can't you do that anyway with a fancy timer? Or is there a change of the dim / intensity of the the moon lights?

I guess since I can dim now, I don't really need my moonlights anymore. I can just set the blues on a low glow at night.

-KyleH

 

[steveb]

Which LED drivers did you end up going with? The ones from dwz?

 

[gabe_j]

nah dude program it to get brighter for 7 days say 2-5% then max it out at 9% over the next 7 days and then go back to the 5-2% then off for 1 week. tada lunar cycle. i think there was a bit about this over on that other fish site.. RC lol but i don't know exactly where. man i really want an arduino controller now, thanks. lol

 

[KyleH]

got the IR working...just need to control it.

Steve, I got my led's from a completed diy setup from nano-reefs.com. All I had to do was connect the arduino and it dim'ed that bad boy like expected. The drivers are MBI6651 from http://www.sureelectronics.net/goods.php?id=1035 . Each driver is like $5. and controls up to 8; my seller's configuration uses 6 per driver. There is a huge brick of a transformer for power, but I am thinking of getting a probe out and see if I can get a wallwart supply off of ebay or somewhere for $5.

I got the basic IR example working, but I need to tweek it. (new features, new rules).

I was fortunate to have pestered the store I bought my $5. IR and $10. remote, and they sent me the example plus a working 1-2 page example code before they shipped it. I found the files earlier, and I just copied and pasted it and it seems to work. It even picked up the signals coming out of my LG TV remote, so I can prob use a dummy signal from my universal remote.

I have to rethink the code for my led because using an IR really discourages you to tell the arduino to "sleep" (aka delay). During testing, I set it to sleep every second so it would send me signal to the USB (once a second only) after checking for an IR signal every few milliseconds. I kept pressing my remote 10-20 times to get a signal once every 5 seconds--it seems that it only checked during a few milliseconds then it went to sleep. When I took out the delay, it kept picking it up.

I need to add a change so it will only act once every 1-3 second of the same signal press. The arduino can probably change my led 5 times a second with a single press of the remote if I used the IR example the way it is.

It is pretty neat to add remote control capabilities to my LED for +$5.

-KyleH

 

[steveb]

That's really cool KyleH. I put in a suggestion for DIY LED type thing as a workshop. I dunno if anyone else would be interested or not. Something along the lines of everybody buy the same thing (someone w/knowledge lead us in assembling) and then attaching to and adruino. I would be all over that!

 

[steveb]

Where does your PWM from the aduino attach on that dodad? I see Vcc and Gnd and LED +/- but no PWM signaling.

Never mind - I see the pic of the whole unit. Its two pieces.

 

[KyleH]

simple diagram over another thread...

I posted a diagram over at another thread: http://www.marshreef.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=52300&start=15

It is only 1 piece. The two combine together. The larger piece has the easier screw-tightening clamps so you don't have to solder.

It only illustrates the arduino and the driver. What is is not show are the power supply for the led's, the led's, 3 more drivers, and the power source for the arduino (currently, I have a battery over teh USB-b, waiting to get a regulard 9v by round plug, or 5v by usb-B shape).

There is a separate power source for the LED. That was built for me, so I am not sure how it was done. However, it looks like I can get a walwart (a plug already configured like you get for electronics you buy in the store). The + is connected to the same Ground (GND/+) on each driver, the - is connected to the VIN.

Then there are 6 LED (3w) connected in a series to the +/- of the drivers and each other.

The wiring probably takes all but 10 min, soldering them in will take much longer (for me) and make it a true DIY. Then, drilling-screwing / gluing the led's into a massive heat sink is the next effort. I think there are some conductive glue that people are starting to use on the led's to the heatsink.

I was fortunate that someone was dumping my 24 led setup, it would have probably taken me tons hrs to attach them to heat sink and have all of the wired soldered and tied up.

-KyleH

 

[steveb]

I think its pretty cool - I ordered a few of the 3w, a few of the 5w and 1 10w just for giggles. I need to get an adruino now.

 

[KyleH]

that sounds like a good idea...

That sounds like a good idea. I do not mind offering any help. I am new to the arduino, but I have computer programming background which is helping.

I was also thinking along the lines of getting us "arduino-heads" together and build a single block of code that anyone can download--but, each person chooses the components to buy and plug in.

I may retract that idea if it gets too hard to get all of the components to work together peacefully (and efficiently) in one code, but I am thinking there is only so many things you can plug into 13-18 pins. This will help those that are only comfortable in the copy and download process, but not the writing.

Does anyone have any thoughts or interests? I think I got Arduino-bug to bite Khan, Steve, and possibly Gabe. Just curious if anyone is interested if it was something you can just download.

(I'll start a separate discussion titled "Arduino Club Code on Marsh").

-KyleH

That's really cool KyleH. I put in a suggestion for DIY LED type thing as a workshop. I dunno if anyone else would be interested or not. Something along the lines of everybody buy the same thing (someone w/knowledge lead us in assembling) and then attaching to and adruino. I would be all over that!

 

[TexanReef]

I'll bite.

I arrange 1's and 0's in pleasing patterns for a living though I've never done any coding with the Arduino specific language.

 

[steveb]

I think DustinB is big into the Adruino and custom LED drivers.