PacLED64
64
Channel LED controller with full brightness control
Features:
- 64
LED channels with 256 brightness levels for full RGB color mixing
- NEW
FEATURE! Can be set to flash any or all LEDs at one of 3
rates, without PC control.
- Can
be used with single-color or RGB LEDs (RGB use 3 channels)
- Constant
current negates the
need for resistors for each LED
- Can
be used with LEDs with
inbuilt resistors if required
- 128-command
flash storage
for
“attract-mode” sequences which run immediately on
power-up with no PC present
- Supports
single-command
fades with preset speed on-board.
Multiple fades can overlap
- Comes
with power cable for
plugging into a PC disk drive
power connector, and USB cable
- User-assigned
IDs allow
multiple boards to be connected
- Extensive
software support
including test application,
Software Development kit for adding support to your own programs, and
LedBlinky third-party software
- Compact
modular
connectivity. Our
Ultralux RGB pushbuttons simply
plug in. Other harnesses and connectors available.
Kit
Contents:
- PacLED64
Board.
- USB
Cable
- Power
cable for connection
to PC HDD power
- 2
x 48-way empty connector housings. Wires with crimp
contacts (ordered separately if required) push into these.
Installation.
Connecting
LEDs
Each LED must have its negative connection (cathode) connected to one
of the
numbered pins 1-64.
Each LED must also have its positive (anode) connection connected to
one of
the
supply pins marked “+”. Note it does not matter
which of the “+” pins you use
as they are all connected together on the board.
You can daisy-chain
multiple LED + connections and connect to one + pin.
The picture below shows a schematic
representation of three LEDs connected to channels 31-33
Note that if using Ultimarc Ultralux RGB pushbuttons, no additional
connectors nor wiring is
required. These have built-in wiring and connectors available in 2
lengths.
The pins labeled A1-A6, PR, NX and GND are for future customized OEM
versions of the board and are not used in the standard version.
The following are available in our online store:
|
Illuminated joystick
handle for Servostik and J-Stik. Plugs
directly into this board. |
|
RGB LEDs for Ultralux
buttons. Available in 2 wire lengths.
See the
Ultralux product page for more
info. |
|
These
are 600mm long wires which push into the housings, above. The other
ends have 6.3mm or 4.7mm push-on terminals. If required, these can be
cut and shortened, which requires a new crimp terminal to be fitted.
Use for the channel (negative) connections of individual LEDs.
If using with single-color Ultralux buttons, order the 6.3mm connector
size. In packs of 10 |
|
Pre-made
harness with 32 x 6.3mm or 4.7mm connectors fitted. Ideal for
connecting all positive connections of LEDs to one of the
“+” pins on the board. If
using with single-color Ultralux buttons, order the 6.3mm connector
size. |
|
Use
if shortening the pre-made wires. 6.3mm for Ultralux pushbutton LEDs.
Packs of 100 |
What
to order
For
connecting Ultralux RGB
LEDs: |
Nothing
extra required |
For
connecting Ultralux
single-color LEDs: |
Order one 600mm wire
per LED (wires are in packs of 10). Order daisy-chain for + common for
each 32 LEDs |
Other
LEDs: |
Order as Ultralux but
may need to cut off the push-on
connector at the LED end. |
Connecting
Power and USB
The PacLED64 is supplied with a power cable which plugs onto a spare PC
power supply hard drive power connector. This supplied 5 volts to the
board.
Also, connect the USB cable to a USB port on the PC.
Alternative Power Options
The LED power connector can be powered from another source such as a
wall-plug power supply. The voltage required depends on LEDs being used
but all LEDs supplied by Ultimarc require 5 volts and the supplied
power cable is pinned for 5 volts.
Current requirement is 0.02 amps X number of LEDs. Note each RGB LED
counts as 3 LEDs.
Ensure CENTER pin on the connector is 5V, BARREL is ground.
Connector is 5.5mm diameter. 2.1mm pin.
Power-on
When you power on the PC, the board will immediately run a script which
is pre-loaded in flash. If you have overwritten this with your own
script, this will run. The pre-loaded script causes all LEDs to
sequence in a fade up/down “wave” from 1 to 64.
Scripts are repeated continuously.
When a command is sent by the PC via USB, the script stops running and
the command is processed. The script is then not run again until the
next power-on.
Using
the Supplied
configuration/test application
This app is used for the
following:
- Testing LEDs and connections
by turning LEDs on/off or setting to a specified brightness.
- Creating simple
“attract mode” scripts and storing in the on-board
flash ROM
- Assigning an ID to board,
when using more than one board
Settings Tab
Start/Stop/Run Script
When clicked, all subsequent commands will be stored in on-board flash.
Next time the board is powered on, the script will run and loop forever
until a command is sent from the host via USB.
Clicking “Stop Recording” will end the script
storage.
Clear Flash
This will cause any stored script to be deleted, so on next power-on,
nothing will happen until the host sends commands via USB.
Fade Time
This adjusts the time taken to perform a fade. A fade occurs whenever
the state of a LED changes, ie its brightness is changed or switched
off/on. This setting affects all subsequent state changes. This can be
stored in scripts.
Script Step Delay
This adjusts the time interval when scripts are being executed. This
can be stored in a script. This is not relevant when sending direct
commands from the host.
Brightness tab
On this screen, the brightness of any of the 64 LEDs can be set. The
command is executed immediately by the board, and if you are storing a
script, is also added to the script.
On the latest version (requires latest firmware) the LED(s) can also be
set to flash at one of 3 rates on this screen.
Off/On Tab
On this screen, a group of 8 LEDs is set to a pattern. The LEDs are
either fully off or fully on. There are 8 groups of 8 LEDs. Also, all
LEDs can be set to a random pattern.
The command is executed immediately by the board, and if you are
storing a script, is also added to the script.
APPLICATION
SOFTWARE
Ultimarc LED and output controllers have great software support,
including PC and Linux software and our own SDK which enables easy
addition of output control to your own programs.
Also a Linux library is available. See our
Programming
Page
For Windows
For Linux
There are more details and screenshots of third party software on our
PacDrive page
LEDBlinky
overview
This is a third-party application available in free or paid versions.
It is actually a suite of programs enabling configurations to be
stored, animations to be created, and has special MAME features.
Note
that LEDBlinky supports direct control of the board via USB only. It
does not support creation of scripts for storing on the board.
Version 5.0 required.
- With RGB LEDs, you can
specify colors for individual controls or
using a pre-defined colors.ini file. Colors or intensities can also be
customized on a game-by-game basis.
- Use audio output (music or
game sounds) to blink, fade, or
animate
LEDs – great for use with Jukebox software.
- Blink and speak front-end UI
controls by pressing a pre-defined
“Help” button.
- Blink and speak controls
when pausing a game and/or play a LED
animation (selected, random, random montage) or use audio output
(music) to animate the LEDs. This is a MAME only feature.
- Flash start buttons when
credits are available - this is a MAME
only
game dependent feature.
- Light start and coin buttons
based on active player count for the
current game.
- Flash all or active buttons
when any is pressed.
- Full support for other MAME
Outputs - light LEDs based on any
output.
Outputs can be linked to controls (P1_Button1, P2_Button2, etc.) or
directly linked to a Device/Port.
- Extensive audio animation
options let you completely customize
how
the LEDs blink to music or game sounds.
- When starting a game,
LEDBlinky can play a LED animation
(selected or
random), speak the game name, speak each button
“action” while blinking the button in its correct
color, speak the primary controls, and speak a custom message. When
speaking the game name or custom message, LEDs can blink in sync with
the speech.
- While playing a game,
LEDBlinky can play a continuous LED
animation
(selected, random, or random montage) or use audio output (game sounds)
to animate the LEDs. The LED animation will only effect unused controls.
- See the LEDBlinky website
for all details: http://www.dndw.com/ledblinky/ledblinky.htm
Controlling
LEDs from your own
programs
An SDK is available which includes a DLL to provide an API to enable
LED control in your programs. The SDK includes the DLL, plus example
source code showing its use. A test program for checking operation of
the DLL is also included.
The SDK is detailed on our
PROGRAMMING PAGE
Third-PartySoftware
and SDK Support
As most third-party software and our SDK is cross-product, we have
placed all details on
this page.
PacLED64
vs PAC-Drive Comparison Chart
Our
PAC-Drive board can also be used
for
simple low-cost On/Off LED
control.
|
No of Channels |
Dimming |
Current |
Can control |
Voltage |
Flash Storage |
PacLED64 |
64 |
Yes |
20mA constant |
LEDs only |
12 v max |
Yes |
PAC-Drive |
16 |
No |
500mA (max) not constant |
All devices |
48v max |
No |