wmitc2375:
I am a veteran programmer and somewhat familiar with electronics. I have an Arduino Mega 2560 microprocessor. I am wanting to build an industrial application which will consist of 5 foot long “bars” each having 4 LEDs. I need the ability to daisy-chain these bars out from the microprocessor and control any combination of turning on/off the LEDs on each bar. I am considering using I2C with extender boards http://sjtbits.com/i2c-to-differential-breakout-board/ but need some serious help in understanding if this is a practical design. The LED “bars” will be about 8 feet apart and on my application there will be a total of 24 bars each having 4 LEDS. I am considering using CAT5 wiring and connectors to daisy-chain and hopefully carry enough voltage to drive the system. Thanks for any advise on how to build such a system.
That is a pretty standard NXP chip that cost nowhere near the 20 bucks they are looking for it. You might want to look at DMX it's pretty much 485 serial and much better suited for going the distance since it's primarily used for theater work. Cost should be similar if not cheaper than the i2c option your looking at. Check out DMX Lighting & Networking | Pathway Connectivity for the standard pin outs you can put power over pins 4 and 5.