TicTacLightsEnglish

project overview
Year	2012
Number of pixels	144
Grayscales / Colors	8 Grayscales
Illuminant	SMD LEDs (size 0805)
Power input
Contact person	Arne Rossius
Project website

The TicTacLights is a very small BlinkenLights clone which fits inside a small TicTac box. It is powered by a CR2032 button cell battery. Battery life is only about 30 minutes, alternatively a lithium-polymer battery with an additional voltage regulator can be used.

This project uses the BlinkenPlus firmware on an ATmega8515 controller. The PCB has pads for a Micro-SD card slot and solder pads for a serial port (with external level converter, e.g. MAX3232).

Hardware

The hardware is kept very simple because there isn't a lot of space on the PCB. The columns are directly connected to the controller's outputs, so large currents are not possible. Due to the high internal resistance of the button cell battery, the voltage drops quickly, causing the controller and the SD card to operate outside of their specifications (which requires a minimum voltage of 2.7 V).

• Schematic
• Schematic (Eagle file, version 4.16)
• PCB Layout (Eagle file, version 4.16)
• Construction kit instructions

see also Projects