DIY SimHub Flag Light Matrix

In this episode we’ll be looking at building our own flag light matrix. You might remember we made a flag light using a light strip and infrared repeater a while ago but this matrix is a little more versatile and not much more expensive.

Quick Links:
Project Repo - https://github.com/Teqqles/SimHubMatr...
LED Profile - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kR3G...

A flag light is just that, a way to see what flags are currently being displayed to drivers so you’ll have another way of seeing what is going on around you without having to look out for marshalls. I’ve tried to keep this box simple so this project doesn’t include any coding but you will have to solder some parts together and whilst the unit I’m making here can be self-powered it isn’t recommended as you’ll be vampirically leaching power from the voltage in of your microcontroller. Don’t fear though, I've reworked the schematic for if you want to try running this from just the USB port, though you’ll be doing so at a reduced voltage not that it matters much given how very bright this screen can be! The project costs about £35 as is likely less than $45 for those outside the UK, though it can be done even cheaper if your budget is stretched and you don’t mind waiting for shipping from China.

The Hardware

This project is pretty lightweight. We have the panel which is a NeoPixel matrix clone and whilst it isn’t perfect it does the job nicely at a fraction of the price of the Adafruit unit. As per the Adafruit recommendations when using external power we use a 1000uf capacitor and 470 ohms resistor, this coupled with a 2 amp external barrel jack power supply and screw terminal to connect that to our circuit. Finally I’m using a perma-proto board which is a bit of an extravagance but I had a few spare, some wiring and an Arduino nano compatible board all housed in a clear fronted junction box case. I’ve given rough pricing for these but things like the Nano can be found for less than £3 which makes it ideal for a sim racer on a tight budget.

Arduino Nano - £2-£8 - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/10050... | https://www.amazon.co.uk/AZDelivery-A...

1000uf Capacitor (10v) - £0.60 - £3 - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/10050... | https://www.amazon.co.uk/Panasonic-De...

470 ohm Resistor - ¼ or ½ watt should suffice, I tend to buy them in the hundreds but you should be able to pick up a few cheaply.

Junction Box (90x115x40mm) - £5 - £10 - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/40011... | https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...

Note: The Amazon box is a bit bigger at 50mm deep.


RGB Matrix Panel - £2 - £8 - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32648... | https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/192864994731

Note: I haven’t tried the Aliexpress panel yet.

2amp 5 volt Power Supply - £10 - https://www.amazon.co.uk/SHNITPWR-Ada...

You’ll also need solder, a soldering iron, some wire to hook it all up and a hot glue gun or some other way to attach the components to your case. It’s also a good idea to have a multi-meter for testing but if you don’t have one it isn’t the end of the world, it’ll just make debugging a little harder if you have issues.

The Circuit

I’ve created a small repository with some diagrams of this circuit to make life easier and that can be found here:

https://github.com/Teqqles/SimHubMatr...

SimHub Installation

We head on over to https://www.simhubdash.com/download-2/ and download the latest version of SimHub. On first load it’ll ask for administrator privileges, go ahead and do that and reload the app. Click on the Arduino section, make sure your other Arduinos if you have them are unplugged so you don’t accidentally wipe them and click My Hardware, along with Single Arduino. Scan for your board and then open the Arduino setup tool. We’re using a Nano on this board, if you don’t know which bootloader you are using try either and if it fails try the alternative. Give your Arduino a name you aren’t likely to forget so you can find it in the hardware panel should you need to and enable the RGB Matrix option. Make sure you have the same pin enabled for this that you are using on your circuit and you’re good to go. Load it on your Arduino and then we can test out the circuit properly before soldering it all together.

You can find the LED profile I use in this project at the following location - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kR3G...

00:00 - Introduction
00:28 - What is a Flag Light?
00:52 - The Project
02:05 - The Hardware
05:16 - The Circuit
06:03 - Circuit Testing
07:13 - Installing SimHub
09:06 - Bring it Together
11:11 - Flags, Gears and a Spotter!
12:09 - Final Thoughts

#diysimracing #simhardware #flaglight