color kinetics chromasic hacking

• return to space

introduction

This page provides documentation for a DIY approach to controlling Color Kinetics color-changing LED fixtures, without using an official Color Kinetics power supply (which can be expensive).

color kinetics interface

Each Color Kinetics lighting fixture has three inputs: +24VDC, a data line, and ground. The data line, as it turns out, just receives standard DMX512-style messages, only using a ground rail, instead of the differential input used in standard DMX512 implementations.

arduino control

To control Color Kinetics fixtures, I wrote a simple application for the Arduino microntroller to send DMX512 style serial messages, and a transistor connected to +24V to increase the voltages to levels accepted by the fixtures.

This arduino code will transmit DMX for an arbitrary number of channels based on data received over its serial line. To set a channel's value, you send three bytes over serial: [0x73][channel][value]. The arduino stores all channel values in an internal array, and regularly outputs them over DMX to the color kinetics fixtures. Here is an example processing application that controls the lights in a semi-random perlin noise pattern.

Warning: this arduino application has been written for an arduino pro mini, and has many hardware-specific parts to it. If you are trying to use it on another type of arduino, you will probably have to change what port the setHigh() and setLow() functions use, and will also have to adjust the delay times so that each bit that it sends lasts exactly 4 microseconds.

avr control

coming soon