RGB LED Scrolling Clock - PART 2
This is an update to the code for my LED Scrolling Clock which will eventually be a full graphics control code library for Shift Register (74HC595N) controlled LED Matrices.
I have introduced the concept of a 'Colour Overlay' which means the colour data is held in a separate data array to the LED ON/OFF data. The way it works is you imagine the matrix is made up of two layers, the bottom layer is an array of 8x8 lights that can either be on or off 9The Greyscale Layer). The top layer (The Overlay Layer) contains a digital piece of coloured cellulose that the lights shine through. Depending on what colour each section of the matrix has been set to, whatever is displayed underneath on the Greyscale Layer shines through the coloured Overlay Layer, giving you the colours that you see.
In this demonstration two functions are used, the 'colourFill' and the 'rainbowFull' functions. The colourFill function simply fills the Overlay array with a solid colour. The rainbowFill function fills the Overlay array with a preset pattern of colours. As you can see, the colours remain static whilst the text appears to slide underneath.
An ambitious coder could use this function to also animate the Overlay to give animated colours that move separately to the animation underneath in the Greyscale Layer. Having control of the colours separately to the text/graphics will give a lot more flexibility to the user.
The next set of functions to go into the library are the ability to set individual pixels on or off at a colour of your choosing.