Neopixel-XL

A 3W Individually Addressable RGB LED similar to Neopixel

Overview

Neopixel LEDs aka WS2812b addressable RGB LEDs are very fun to play with because it has integrated driver IC built in which allows us to control tons of such LEDs using single Data line from the microcontroller. But if you feel a single WS2812B led isn't bright enough for a certain project then Neopixel-XL will fill that gap.

Hardware

It consists of a 3W RGB LED, a WS2811 LED driver IC and 3 mosfets with complimentary resistors to boost the week signal from the WS2811 outputs to drive the high power LED.

It shared the same pinout as the original WS2812B led. And you can also daisy chained them together. But make sure to use a separate power supply that can deliver enough power to drive all these high power LEDs.

PCB Layout	PCB Footprint

Schematics	Dimensions

Specifications:

Parameter	Ratings	Unit
Forward Voltage	5	V
Forward Current	0.6	A
Peak Current	0.8	A
Power Consumption	3	W

Getting Started

Using FastLED library

#include <FastLED.h>
#define NUM_LEDS 1
#define DATA_PIN 4
CRGB leds[NUM_LEDS];
void setup() { FastLED.addLeds<WS2811, DATA_PIN, RGB>(leds, NUM_LEDS); }

void loop() {
  leds[0] = CRGB::Red; FastLED.show(); delay(500);
  leds[0] = CRGB::Black; FastLED.show(); delay(500);

  leds[0] = CRGB::Green; FastLED.show(); delay(500);
  leds[0] = CRGB::Black; FastLED.show(); delay(500);

  leds[0] = CRGB::Blue; FastLED.show(); delay(500);
  leds[0] = CRGB::Black; FastLED.show(); delay(500);
}

Where to Buy

Tutorial video