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• Getting Started with Interstate 75
• Download Pirate brand MicroPython
• Interstate 75 function reference
• C++ examples
• MicroPython examples

You can also use?CircuitPython?on your Interstate 75! Because CircuitPython drivers are designed to work on a bunch of different microcontrollers you won’t get the fancy RP2040-architecture specific tweaks that you’ll find in our library, but you will get access to Adafruit’s mighty DisplayIO library which makes it super easy to display all sorts of different kinds of text, draw shapes and display images.

• Getting Started with Interstate 75
• Download CircuitPython for Interstate 75
• Getting Started with CircuitPython
• RGB LED Matrices with CircuitPython

Please note that some less-common varieties of 64×64 panels, like ones that use the FM6126A chip, are not currently supported in CircuitPython.

Connecting Breakouts

If your breakout has a QW/ST connector on board, you can plug it straight in with a?JST-SH to JST-SH cable, or you can easily connect any of our I2C Breakout Garden breakouts with a?JST-SH to JST-SH cable?coupled with a?Qw/ST to Breakout Garden adaptor.

You can find a list of which breakouts are currently compatible with our C++/MicroPython build in the most recent?release notes.

We’ve also broken out a bunch of useful I2C pins, analog pins and debug pins along the side of the board so you can solder things like breakouts or analog potentiometers directly to them.

About RP2040

Raspberry Pi’s RP2040 microcontroller is a dual core ARM Cortex M0+ running at up to 133Mhz. It bundles in 264kB of SRAM, 30 multifunction GPIO pins (including a four channel 12-bit ADC), a heap of standard peripherals (I2C, SPI, UART, PWM, clocks, etc), and USB support.

One very exciting feature of RP2040 is the programmable IOs which allow you to execute custom programs that can manipulate GPIO pins and transfer data between peripherals – they can offload tasks that require high data transfer rates or precise timing that traditionally would have required a lot of heavy lifting from the CPU.

• Powered by RP2040 (Dual Arm Cortex M0+ running at up to 133Mhz with 264kB of SRAM)
• 2MB of QSPI flash supporting XiP
• Compatible with 5V WS2812/Neopixel/SK6812 and APA102/Dotstar/SK9822 LEDs
• Screw terminals for attaching your LED strip.
• USB-C connector for power and programming (3A max)
• Qw/ST (Qwiic/STEMMA QT) connector
• Low side current sensing (accessible via ADC3)
• Reset, BOOT and two user buttons (the BOOT button can also be used as a user button)
• RGB LED
• Fully-assembled (no soldering required)
• Measurements: approx 50 x 28 x 12mm (L x W x H, including connectors)
• C++/MicroPython libraries
• Schematic

LED strip and connectors are sold separately, check out the extras tab for some options!

Getting Started

Plasma 2040 is firmware agnostic! You can program it with C/C++ or MicroPython in the same way as you would a Raspberry Pi Pico. You can find (lots) more information on how to do that (as well as download links for the firmware/SDK) on the?RP2040 landing page. You can find documentation for our MicroPython Plasma module?here.

You can also use CircuitPython on your Plasma 2040! CircuitPython is an easy to use, well-established ecosystem with lots of example code and drivers for interfacing with different kinds of hardware.?Click here?to download the CircuitPython firmware for Plasma 2040 and?click here?for a getting started guide.

Click?here?for a beginner friendly tutorial that covers how to hook up different kinds of LEDs to Plasma 2040 and how to use it to build a simple busy light. It includes both MicroPython and CircuitPython code!

Connecting Breakouts

If your breakout has a QW/ST connector on board, you can plug it straight in with a?JST-SH to JST-SH cable, or you can easily connect any of our I2C breakouts with a?JST-SH to JST-SH cable?coupled with a?Qw/ST to Breakout Garden adaptor.

You can find a list of which breakouts are currently compatible with our C++/MicroPython build?here.

We’ve also broken out a set of I2C pins, analog pins and debug pins so you can solder things like breakouts or analog potentiometers directly to them (or solder on a strip of header and plug the whole shebang into a breadboard).

Notes

• Our C++/MicroPython software uses the RP2040’s PIO state machines to drive each strip separately – this board only has one set of LED strip connectors, but if you’re up for some inventive wiring it’s possible to drive multiple strips simultaneously, even if they’re of different types!
• If you’re curious about how much current your LEDs are consuming, we’ve incorporated some current sensing circuitry onto this board, which you can measure by reading ADC3. You could use this in your code to do things like adjusting the brightness of your LEDs based on available power!

About RP2040

Raspberry Pi’s RP2040 microcontroller is a dual core ARM Cortex M0+ running at up to 133Mhz. It bundles in 264kB of SRAM, 30 multifunction GPIO pins (including a four channel 12-bit ADC), a heap of standard peripherals (I2C, SPI, UART, PWM, clocks, etc), and USB support.

One very exciting feature of RP2040 is the programmable IOs which allow you to execute custom programs that can manipulate GPIO pins and transfer data between peripherals – they can offload tasks that require high data transfer rates or precise timing that traditionally would have required a lot of heavy lifting from the CPU.