Hello all, thank you for reading this... Hopefully, someone with experience using wireless systems can help me out. My goal is to have four Arduino nano's connected together wirelessly, where each will control a Neopixel RGB LED strip. It should be noted that an Arduino nano has only one dedicated serial com port, although a SoftwareSerial library exists which allows me to use regular digital IO pins as serial TX and RX pins.
What type of wireless devices should I use to allow each module to display the same color/pattern etc, appearing as real time? Meaning if a rainbow pattern is active on one strip each of the other modules will be displaying the same color all the time. Assuming a rainbow pattern cycles through a series of steps from 1-255, what devices would communicate fast enough to update each module every time this pattern step is incremented? Along with this function, I would like the ability to control each module independent of the others, allowing me to have, for example, one module displaying a strobe pattern while the other three display a synced rainbow pattern.
Data is sent through the Neopixel strips at a rate of about 800kHz. Would that mean I need to have wireless devices that communicate at the Megahertz level in order to update each Arduino module faster than the LEDs on the strips are updated?
I have already figured out how to connect a single Arduino to my Android phone using an HC-06 BT slave, and have plenty of experience programming Neopixel strip patterns, although I don't know how I am going to get each of the Arduino modules to communicate with eachother fast enough to avoid discrepancies between the steps of the patterns displayed on each of the four modules.
My longterm goal is to have each of the modules set up in various spots within two adjacent rooms of my house (modules would not be separated more than 10 meters from one another).
Any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
What type of wireless devices should I use to allow each module to display the same color/pattern etc, appearing as real time? Meaning if a rainbow pattern is active on one strip each of the other modules will be displaying the same color all the time. Assuming a rainbow pattern cycles through a series of steps from 1-255, what devices would communicate fast enough to update each module every time this pattern step is incremented? Along with this function, I would like the ability to control each module independent of the others, allowing me to have, for example, one module displaying a strobe pattern while the other three display a synced rainbow pattern.
Data is sent through the Neopixel strips at a rate of about 800kHz. Would that mean I need to have wireless devices that communicate at the Megahertz level in order to update each Arduino module faster than the LEDs on the strips are updated?
I have already figured out how to connect a single Arduino to my Android phone using an HC-06 BT slave, and have plenty of experience programming Neopixel strip patterns, although I don't know how I am going to get each of the Arduino modules to communicate with eachother fast enough to avoid discrepancies between the steps of the patterns displayed on each of the four modules.
My longterm goal is to have each of the modules set up in various spots within two adjacent rooms of my house (modules would not be separated more than 10 meters from one another).
Any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
