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Overview

This is an Arduino Library that supports sending out data to update a series of color "smart LEDs" commonly known as NeoPixels and/or DotStars.

Please see the FAQ for common questions and answers.

Please read the Adafruit NeoPixel Best Practices guide before connecting your NeoPixels, it will save you a lot of time and effort.

The Quick Start Guide will lead you through getting it connected and working for the first time with some tips to help diagnose possible issues.

The API Reference will just give you details of objects and methods available to you.

Latest Features

(September 25th, 2019)

• LPD8806 support
• NeoPixelSegmentBus - series of seven segment displays driven by WS2811s

(September 1st, 2019)

• APA 106 support

(June 9th, 2019)

• Esp32 now supported with RMT hardware.

Supported Platforms

• AVR 8 bit Arduino
• Esp8266 & Esp32 in hardware
• Most Arm based Arduinos.

Supported Pixels

• WS2811, WS2812, WS2812b, WS2813, APA 106, SK6812, & LC8812 (NeoPixels)
• RGB and RGBW (in various color order)
• APA102 (DotStars)
• LPD8806
• All one and two wire RGB pixels that use the same transport as any of the above.

Using this library in a proprietary application

Using this Library as part of a closed application with its current license is tricky. But it can be accomplished.

Library Comparisons

Why use this library over another? The section linked here are the top level unique features/issues to the most common libraries to help you choose.

Projects based on this library

Here are a few of the projects that use this library. They can often be a great source so you don't have to reinvent the wheel. They maybe just the inspiration you need to make your project.

Smaller Code

This library was written to be small. The template based coding pattern allows the compiler to produce smaller code while still supporting all the options. This is important when you are working on smaller Arduinos like a Gemma.

Examples

There are several examples that will help you get started. They range from simple to complex and are always a good reference.

NeoPixelBus object

This object will be used to set colors on the pixels. When constructed a "feature" and a "method" object must be supplied to define which pixels you are using and how they are updated.

Color objects

There are several color objects that can be used to define and blend colors. While all can be directly used to set the pixel color, the RgbwColor can only be used with a NeoPixelBus that has been declared with NeoRgbwFeature.

NeoPixelAnimator object

This manages the timing and lifetime for animations. It supplements the NeoPixelBus object to make it easy to create smooth asynchronous animations. It also include NeoEase class that provides easing functions for animation curves.

NeoGamma object

The human eye perceives light levels differently than what the NeoPixels show. NeoPixels brightness levels are very linear so this object will convert them to a nonlinear spectrum so that what you see is what you expected.

Concentric Rings Support

Some of the oldest forms of NeoPixels are the ring panels, coming in 12, 24, and larger. When these are used together to form concentric rings they can provide some interesting visual displays. The NeoRingTopology object provides an easy polar coordinate (ring, pixel) access to the concentric rings of pixels.

Matrix Panels Support

Some of the newest forms of NeoPixels are the matrix panels, coming in 8x8, 16x8, and larger. The NeoTopology, NeoTiles, and NeoMosaic object with the help of the layout objects provide an easy (x,y) access to the pixels.

Raster Image Support

There is a series of objects that help manage images and render them onto the strip. This makes it easy to work in paint programs and have that translate into your NeoPixel projects.

Advanced Topics and Tutorials

A series of tutorials and discussions on advanced topics. These include details on custom topography templates and animation techniques.