MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - M5Paper e-ink device for DIY

stevenaleach · 02-24-2021, 09:52 PM

I just got an update from DigiKey.. it seems I'll have my M5Paper by about the 7th of April.

Soo... I've got more parts on order from Adafruit, including two rotary-encoder/push-buttons and a 400x240 2.7" diagonal "Sharp Memory Display". I finally decided that my eventual WaveShare tablet will have a small UI/status display underneath the e-ink canvas above. The memory-display is a pretty neat device with extremely low power consumption similar to e-ink (the display does need to be refreshed, but only once a second or so and only needs power sent to a single GPIO briefly to carry out the refresh of current display contents), and like e-ink it's a reflective daylight readable display with no back-light or self-luminescence. Unlike e-ink, it's fast - it updates instantly allowing for animations and quick UI drawing and there's no ghosting to worry about.

So my plan is for this roughly 1/2 credit-card sized little display to be situated between two knobs and right below the ~9" x ~6.5" (10.3" diagonal) WaveShare e-ink display - which I think will work out nicely, visually. The e-ink is to act as a canvas/page only, without being asked to display menus, dialogues, or file mangers as well. Meanwhile, the memory-display will provide all interactive and real-time information - and should alleviate a lot of the inherent frustration resulting from the slow update time of e-ink. With a page displayed and the ESP-32 in deep sleep, turning the scroll knob a click forward to turn the page should result in the little screen waking immediately and displaying the next page number along with a progress bar/animation, along with battery status, tracking the updating of the page above and should then, after a five-second or so time-out fade to grey as the device goes back to sleep (with said animation being achieved by just going to sleep and no longer hitting the refresh pin for the display). One knob would be enough (up/down/select), but two opens up a lot more possibilities (hey, we've got up/down/left/right/A, and B) for zoom and pan, etc.. and it still keeps the interface down to just two knobs.

I've still not ordered an actual WaveShare display yet, but probably will soon - I wonder what my chances are of having my DIY reader finished and in some kind of case before the M5Paper that stared me on this whole obsession actually arrives?

02-24-2021, 09:52 PM	#72
stevenaleach Enthusiast Posts: 46 Karma: 134116 Join Date: Oct 2013 Device: Android Tablet	I just got an update from DigiKey.. it seems I'll have my M5Paper by about the 7th of April. Soo... I've got more parts on order from Adafruit, including two rotary-encoder/push-buttons and a 400x240 2.7" diagonal "Sharp Memory Display". I finally decided that my eventual WaveShare tablet will have a small UI/status display underneath the e-ink canvas above. The memory-display is a pretty neat device with extremely low power consumption similar to e-ink (the display does need to be refreshed, but only once a second or so and only needs power sent to a single GPIO briefly to carry out the refresh of current display contents), and like e-ink it's a reflective daylight readable display with no back-light or self-luminescence. Unlike e-ink, it's fast - it updates instantly allowing for animations and quick UI drawing and there's no ghosting to worry about. So my plan is for this roughly 1/2 credit-card sized little display to be situated between two knobs and right below the ~9" x ~6.5" (10.3" diagonal) WaveShare e-ink display - which I think will work out nicely, visually. The e-ink is to act as a canvas/page only, without being asked to display menus, dialogues, or file mangers as well. Meanwhile, the memory-display will provide all interactive and real-time information - and should alleviate a lot of the inherent frustration resulting from the slow update time of e-ink. With a page displayed and the ESP-32 in deep sleep, turning the scroll knob a click forward to turn the page should result in the little screen waking immediately and displaying the next page number along with a progress bar/animation, along with battery status, tracking the updating of the page above and should then, after a five-second or so time-out fade to grey as the device goes back to sleep (with said animation being achieved by just going to sleep and no longer hitting the refresh pin for the display). One knob would be enough (up/down/select), but two opens up a lot more possibilities (hey, we've got up/down/left/right/A, and B) for zoom and pan, etc.. and it still keeps the interface down to just two knobs. I've still not ordered an actual WaveShare display yet, but probably will soon - I wonder what my chances are of having my DIY reader finished and in some kind of case before the M5Paper that stared me on this whole obsession actually arrives?