hello im new here so be gentle . i wanted to make a controller for my car to control a string of led. but i want it to have a start sequence and be triggered by a 12vdc source from my vehicle curtesy lights as i get close to my car kinda like a greeting lighting . the have it do another startup sequence when i start my car .
other things if possible random greetings and random startup sequence , after it don the go into normal mode with random sequence . also what kinda hardware should i use for 12vdc ? i would relly apprciate it
@djfuego Hello. I intend to venture into in-vehicle “club experience” lighting myself. If time/resources permit, I will begin prototyping in December. This is what I have in mind (assuming 12v powerlines):
A 12v-to-5v DC step-down buck converter for the ESP32s (or ESP8266s). Just DuckDuckGo or Google “12v to 5v dc buck converter for vehicles” for links on Amazon, ebay, walmart, etc… or just inquire from your local mechanic!
12v WS2815 LED strip; No need for high-current DC buck converters as required by 5v strips such as WS2812. Nevertheless, do some WLED/WS28125 background research e.g:
WLED/WS2815 current limiting (quote) “The trick is to select 12v in the LED Preferences when you enable the current limiter.”
For “light up on approach”, “cool color sequences on ignition”, etc, you could borrow ideas from a project such as this one. Essentially, it implements a usermod which does a bunch of interesting things, e.g. sequentially light up the steps on approach, switch off the steps after you, etc
I installed a strip of sk6812 rgbw, 1 meter 144 leds, it fit perfectly in the hood of my truck. Taped into the 12v accessory fuse then through a 10amp fuse block. Into a 12v to 5v converter. Wiring is a little confusing. From the buck converter i have power going to a rockre switch in the cab. Back into the engine bay to the esp8266 and power directly to the sk6812 on both ends for injection. Only data from the esp8266 to the strip. I also added a momentary switch from the cab to the esp8266. Im running wled with 3 presets set up to the push button. 2 presets are static so i can run them while driving, basically full white or sectioned amber to mimic raptor lighting. The third is the knight rider animation. I have wled set up on my smartphone hotspot so i have full conrtol of wled.
A controller already exists for automotive use. Ghozt lighting have made their own controller that has 4 12v inputs for rear light functions. https://ghoztlighting.com/