Help, with Mulitpule Buttons for EFL Selfie Wings

[deblen]

Hi
I ordered a Input Externder Pi Hat in the bulk buy, saw a Youtube video on making different patterns in xLights for the Wings, made a box up with 14 buttons intereactive using these files plus Red, Blue, Green, Yellow and white.

As I am starting to put it all together, I noticed that The Pi Hat can only do 6 buttons (triggers) with the PI HAt, found an Exterder on ACL (thanks Phil), only to find that I can only do 12 triggters (buttons).

Using thes two boards via FPP gives me the twelve.

Can anyone point me how I can I incoperate the 14 buttons as triggers.

Can I use an another Input Extender PI Hat, (which means I would be using 2 Pi Hats, and one Extender)

Would FPP know I was using the extra boards, if so what do I need to be able to do this.

OR, is there another way to have 14 buttons triggered to run FSEQ files.

Sorry for the long post, but any help will be gratefully appreciatted.

Thanks Deblen

 

[TerryK]

Here is a link to another ACL Forum thread with a similar question.

FPP Read GPIO in Script

Wondering what's the best way to set up a GPIO as an input (with pull-up) and read the state into a variable in a script The use case is I want to trigger a special playlist when 2 buttons are pressed simultaneously. Thanks in advance!

auschristmaslighting.com

From a hardware design perspective, the 14 inputs could be multiplexed into 4 input bits, a binary 0 to 15. State 0 would be of course all buttons released or not pressed. A script either triggered or via periodic polling for button presses would need to handle de-multiplexing the inputs as well as debouncing them and perhaps locking out sequential button presses until a prior button press is completed.

 

[merryoncherry]

The simplest idea would be to see if there are two more GPIO pins free on the Pi header sticking up out of the board, that are not already used by the hat + Input Extender. One would think there ought to be, based on this:

 

[merryoncherry]

If you believe the labeling on the hat, any green pin (not ground) from 29 onward ought to be usable for another button. (Please do use a circuit that will protect the pi properly.)

 

[merryoncherry]

Or not. One of them goes to a pixel output.

 

[deblen]

Hi,
Thanks for all the replies.
I am a novice when it comes to PI Hats etc, (Plug & Play).
Merryoncherry, I will attemp to find two pins that I can use. Appreciatted the idea.
Thanks Deblen

 

[merryoncherry]

So, I think if you are playing with the Pi and 14 buttons and wanting to control the wings, you will be learning new things and getting your hands dirty.

The "find more gpio pins" approach will allow simple integration with fpp, xSchedule, and that. Finding the parts to make it work is trivial.

That said, if you want something more interesting, you might branch out from the pixel vendors and into the broad Pi community. People have made hundreds of hats, such as this one, that will do 16 inputs, sharing the same I2C pins with several more boards, and you could stack the experience board on top if you were so inclined. There are enough options to really get lost in the ideas.

Sixteen LV Digital Inputs 8-Layer Stackable HAT for Raspberry Pi

Sixteen Inputs Raspberry Pi 8-Layer Stackable HAT; Opto-isolated digital inputs 3V-48V AC/DC; Pluggable connectors; RS485 Port;

sequentmicrosystems.com

 

[merryoncherry]

Great, now I am looking at pi hats and thinking a few need to be added to a junk drawer "just in case the need arises".

https://www.amazon.com/Ultra-Small-Status-Terminal-Breakout-Raspberry/dp/B09QXR6RL7/

 

[deblen]

Hi,
Very interesting, does open up more options
Thanksfor the heads up, now need to see what I can acheive
Deblen