Shared Clock pin with multiple strips

1

I have a custom ESP32 Pico kit board with 6 outputs for APA102 strips. Each strip uses an individual data pin, but the clock pin is shared. This works great in FastLED, but WLED doesn’t allow a shared clock pin. It shows a conflict in pins after the second strip is setup. Are their any concerns in sharing the clock pin, and is this a bug?

2

I’m sure that’s just unanticipated.

3

Hey there,

using multiple pins for multiple APA102 strips with one shared clock pin is exactly the thing I like to use in an upcoming project.

Anyone up-to-date if this has been anticipated within the last two years?

4

this is not supported.

5

thanks for the response @dedehai .

Is there any details you can elaborate on? From some dicussion on discord I got an idea that is has to do with limited hardware SPI pins.

6

WLED uses neo pixel bus and AFAIK it does not suppor that. In addition the whole architecture of the UI would need to be changed and using a clock distribution also requires additional hardware so this is a very niche application.

7

Thanks for insight into this.

I have one last question: Is there any library you are aware of, that can do multiple APA102 led strips with shared clock pin?

I ask, because I have identified the sparkfun DMX to LED shield as a nice piece of hardware, that packages ESP32 with galvanically sperated DMX XLR-3 ports: SparkFun ESP32 Thing Plus DMX to LED Shield - SparkFun Electronics

And this one has exactly a shared clock pin for up to three data signals…. I just wonder how this might be of use if not by WLED?

8

You can use any pin on that as clock or data.

9

Yes that’s right. But I would be glad to run three sperate data wires (from three GPIOs) to three individual APA102 strips (for which each has its own effect runnung), and three clock wires from a single GPIO (essentially a shared clock pin for all three APA102 strips).

I think @dedehai answered this already: WLED cannot do this with the currently used neo pixel bus (NBP) driving the leds.

My questions was, if there is any library which can drive three sperate APA102 strips from three GPIOs with only a single, shared clock GPIO?

10

it sais it in the initial initial post