We recently supplied about 2400 nodes and 4 E16 controllers to a lighting designer working in Melbourne, Australia. This project is an interactive community display located in the city’s Federation Square. It runs evenings through the end of December.
Mrpackethead captured some test video clips of the tree in action. These, I’m sure, represent only a tiny fraction of the tree’s different looks.
They even have a webcam which points toward the main area. When I checked this link this morning, I could see the tree flashing merrily away in (nearly) real time.
If you find yourself in Melbourne this month, it’s definitely worth a visit.
The only real way to describe interest in this project is ‘humbling.’ We’ve seen orders and inquiries pour in from around the globe. Here’s a public ‘thank you’ for your interest and your trust.
I’ve included in this post several odds, ends & items of interest.
1. Comment Spam
All comments on this site are held for moderation, unless something you’ve written has been previously approved. A few days ago, this gem turned up in the queue:
My partner and I harmonise with all your data and can hungrily look forward to the following updates. Simply expressing thanks will never merely end up being enough, for the exceptional readability within your writing. I will straightaway seize your rss to keep up-to-date with all messages. Great work and much success with your business endeavors!
Sadly, it also contained links to an Internet get-rich-quick scheme, which I’ve thoughtfully deleted.
Moving on…
One of our customers sent a link to this YouTube clip. He’s got a T3 bridge and string of RGB nodes connected to a Light-O-Rama iDMX-1000 controller:
E16 Production
The E16 Ethernet Controller went through 21 different PCB revisions before the final design was approved. Of those 19, we ran actual circuit boards for 3 or 4. And for each those designs, 3-4 board sets were populated and tested.
For these short runs, this was all done by hand. Looking back on the process, it’s probably fair to estimate 3 hours per board for applying solder paste, loading components, cooking the board, then testing.
Yesterday mrpackethead snapped a few quick pictures at the factory where the E16s are now being produced. The assembly robots (sadly, because of the factory schedule, we apparently were stuck with the slow one) churn out a panel of 3 logic boards every 4.5 minutes).
Unbelievable.
Field Installations
If you’ve already purchased nodes or controllers, we’d love to see your end results. Feel free to add a comment to the bottom of this page with a short description, plus links to your own site, video clips or still images. Some time in the future, we’ll condense the relevant replies into a new article.
Node & Controller Availability
In an attempt to wind down the bulk of production, shipping and tech support before December begins, we’re strongly urging that all node and controller orders be placed by Saturday, November 6. Request a quote here, visit the online store here.
This gives us time to place our requests with the factory for more bits and pieces, should we run out of local stock. Having played the ‘Pay FedEx a Fortune to Deliver Heavy Heavy Boxes Around the Globe at Lightning Speed’ game before, and having then been presented with the freight bill…
Note that November 6 isn’t by any means a hard deadline. We’ll do our best to fill any order that comes in. But life will be easier and much less expensive – for all parties – if we’re given time to work.
In Summary…
T3 Controller works with Light-O-Rama’s iDMX interface
Robots, even the slow ones, are blindingly fast
Send in your project photos and links
Order soon for best delivery
Thanks!
John
P.S. To receive automatic email updates when content is added to this site, just enter your name and email address in the top right corner of this page. You’ll be first on your block to hear the news.
To simplify testing the E16 controllers, we made a simple 42 x 16 grid of holes on 2″ centers. Backing material is a 4′ x 8′ sheet of double-thick cardboard. The 16 strings of RGB nodes easily fit in the holes.
After configuring a Madrix patch to output four consecutive universes of Art-Net data, I grabbed this quick video clip.
The rainbow pattern runs at about 40% intensity, to avoid over-exposing the poor camera even more.
The E16 also features a Test Mode, which drives the strings with different patterns. No ethernet connection is required. This makes it easy to confirm basic system operation. String #1 displays 1 red, 1 green, 1 blue and 1 white LED. String 2 displays 2 red, 2 green, 2 blue and 2 white LEDs, etc.
E16 Test Mode - String ID Pattern
After about 10 seconds, the test mode switches to a ‘walking stripe’ pattern, where each entire string is driven in alternating red, green, blue and white colors. On a 1 second tick, the pattern shifts from string to string. Thus, it’s easy to confirm operation of each color on each node.
'Walking String' test pattern.
To be instantly notified when content on this site changes, just enter your name and email address in the top right corner of this page.
Though we’ve asked the factory to thoroughly test each string of RGB nodes before shipping them to us, I double-check that each color in each node works properly in our shop before sending them out to our end customers.
In this case, 185 strings of 42 nodes were tested today.
For them to be tested simultaneously (they weren’t, but just for fun…) the following calculations are required:
First – and finally! – there’s an enormous batch of node strings en route to our shop. The factory ended up being about 10 days late with the delivery, but we’re super excited. This shipment contains 300+ strings of 42 nodes. About 2/3 are spoken for already, and the factory is making several hundred more strings in addition.
If you’ve placed an order in the past few weeks, this is the shipment we’re waiting for.
225 pounds worth.
Next, a quick preview of the soon-to-be-released E16 Ethernet Node Controller.
E16 Ethernet Node Controller
Receives Art-Net 2.0 and (coming soon) E1.31 control data.
Input frame rate of up to 44 Hz
Drives 16 strings of 42 nodes, using between 1 and 4 universes of data
Simple web-based configuration wizard. Node count, universe number, string start address and more can be set on a per-string basis.
Matching 5V / 50A power supply takes up less counter space (!) than the E16 controller itself.
Fuse per output for sleep-at-night safety.
Built-in test patterns for confirming wiring & string assignments, no ethernet connection required.
Below are a couple screen shots taken from the web-based configurator.
I’ve been playing with an early prototype E16 controller for the past few days and can’t stop smiling. It’s amazing.
First clip comes from mrpackethead in New Zealand, who used attached 60 1-meter RGB tubes to a section of motorized truss. These tubes are available for hire, by the way.
The track is called “Everybody” by PlanetShakers.. They were actually doing that song, but the audio on my camera was terrible, so I used the original.
It’s downloadable from iTunes, that’s where I got it from.
-mrpackethead
Second clips is a 47.5″ star with 136 RGB nodes attached. Video shot in here in our shop.
For the curious, this is an early prototype of a system which will be distributed by Animated Lighting. Check with them for pricing, availability and more details.
P.S. Video questions: This was shot with a Nikon point & shoot camera, tripod mounted, autofocus off. The camera was perfectly still during recording. But, the captured image hops all over the place. No idea why, and it drives me crazy.
It only seems to occur in high-contrast video clips. Daylight shooting works as expected.
In January we pulled down the light frames from the windows, the balcony and the grand archway. The controllers and cable were all put away, but we left the nodes on the raingutters and upper roofline.
Wednesday morning I pulled out the controllers (last year’s Rev1 Art-Net bridge), extension cables and power supplies. After about an hour of shuffling back and forth, I applied power.
Gratifyingly, the entire rig sparked right up. I was pleased to see that 6 months of outdoor exposure hadn’t affected the nodes in any measurable way.
Question: Can a flock of RGB nodes be ‘played’ in real-time, like a piano?
Answer: See the clip below…
(Note that the sound doesn’t start until half way through.)
Sorry for the rough video quality… The nice camera (EOS 7D + 28-70 f/2.8L) from last fall was a rental, and I’ve not found the courage to buy a set for myself yet.
Nonetheless, I think the gist of the project is nicely conveyed. :)
