I have four bright neo-pixel plates and a couple of smaller LED grids. I might as well put them to work in a Jack-O-Lantern this year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5ygn6gWkBM&t=12s
LED Grid: http://www.adafruit.com/product/902
NeoPixel Plate: http://www.adafruit.com/products/1487
Here is the hardware and pumpkin:
The plan is to use the two smaller displays for eyes. Three of the plates will make a mouth. I'll offset them to better allow a smile. I'll use the center stripe of the fourth for a nose.
I already have the propeller software going. I was planning a Circuit Cellar article (of course) on the grid mapping. This project will be a good addition to the article.
Here is another project using LED grids for eyes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3O-ti5n6jw
I create a DSL (domain specific language) for the project. I wrote a compiler for it in Java. The compiler outputs Propeller DAT sections for compiling into the propeller. Have a look at "nose.txt" and "mouth.txt" to see the language in action. The "Jack2015.spin" contains the interpreter and the compiled scripts.
The code launches 3 copies of the Jack interpreter -- one for the eyes, one for the nose, and one for the mouth. They run independently of one another.
