Jim Campbell: Tools Demystifying custom electronics

1
Jim Campbell ToolsDemystifying custom
electronics

• Video camera
• Monitor
• FPGA
• LED panel
• Oscilloscope
• Computer

2
Jim Campbell Tools

• Video camera
• Digital video is captured in MiniDV format.
• Signal is fed to custom electronics, where it
  is stored
• for processing and playback
• Monitor
• Simple video monitor used to preview video
  and select
• areas to be represented with LEDs

3
Jim Campbell Tools

• FPGA
• Field Programmable Gate Array
• The heart of the custom electronics, these
  boards are similar to our own BASIC stamps
• larger but more primitive could be used to
  create a
• BASIC stamp
• Available off-the-shelf from Xilinix
• Circuitry controlled by Hardware Description
  Language
• Campbell uses Verilog to prototype and program
• Verilog language similar to C, but easier
• A concurrent language, it does not matter where
  a
• line of code is in the program
• Dont have much memory Campbell doesnt need a
  lot for his video

4
Jim Campbell Tools

• LED screen
• Usually RGB, white or red light emitting diodes
• Different colors produced from different
• inorganic minerals
• RGB just a combination of three individual
  diodes
• Campbell first produced his own panels, now has
  panels produced

5
Jim Campbell Tools

• Oscilloscope
• Creates a two-dimensional graph of one or
  more electrical
• potential differences (voltages, etc.) over
  time
• Campbell uses oscilloscope for prototyping,
• troubleshooting

Computer Programming FPGAs Capturing raw video to
be processed and stored by FPGA board
6
Jim Campbell Basic Process

• Video captured from computer
• Sent to FPGA
• Previewed on monitor
• Pixels chosen
• Stored on computer
• Verilog used to program FPGA for LED screen
  playback

7
Jim Campbell Alternates

• In gallery, spare hardware and backups of all
  data are kept on hand
• For outdoor lighting with lightbulbs, basic
  principles are the same, except using
  computer-controlled dimmers