Build a panel.
Give it a brain.

01 / GATHER

Small parts.
One complete node.

The panel makes it visible. The Waveshare board drives it. A card gives this node its own storage.

The Korvo controller and LilyGo handheld belong to the wider system. They are separate from this node.

02 / CONNECT

Turn it over.
Find the input.

With power disconnected, identify the panel’s HUB75 IN connector. Match the controller’s connection to that input, following the board’s keyed orientation.

Mount the Waveshare board flat against the rear of the panel, with both USB-C sockets facing the bottom in this build’s orientation. One is the USB data/programming connection; the other is marked POWER. Use the supplied mounting kit, keeping spacers and insulating clearances in place. Leave room below for cables and access to the microSD slot.

Connect the small speaker to the board’s speaker socket and secure it to the rear assembly with its cone facing backwards. Keep the cone, microphones and ventilation clear; keep metal fasteners away from exposed electronics. Check screw length against the actual kit before tightening.

CHECKEvery Flockinator panel has its own controller. The panel’s OUT connector is not a link to the next node in the flock.

The board measures 50.01 × 42 × 1.6 mm, with two M2.5 positions 42.54 mm apart. The animation registers its underside HUB75 socket to the panel input and turns both USB-C ports down. Connector centres not dimensioned in the source are identified as reference-derived, not machining coordinates.

03 / MEMORY

Give it a place
to remember.

Fit one FAT32 microSD card to the controller with power off. Keep that card associated with this node as you commission it.

The firmware separates card detection from filesystem mounting. A detected card is not yet proof that files can be read and written.

Detected

The card responds.

Mounted

The filesystem is usable.

Read / write checked

The storage test succeeds.

CHECKBoot does not automatically format a card. Formatting is a separate, explicit operation that erases its contents.

04 / SOUND & SENSING

A node can listen.
And answer back.

The rear speaker and onboard amplifier give each node a voice. Together with the two microphones, they provide the hardware for audible calls and experiments in acoustic communication between nodes. Validate transmit and receive behaviour in the selected firmware before relying on an acoustic protocol.

Listen

Dual-microphone array

Move

Accelerometer + gyroscope

Environment

Temperature + humidity

Expand

3.3V / GND / IO1 / IO2

These sensors are peripherals on the Waveshare board. The four-pin GPIO header can support a small, compatible sensor: mmWave for presence or motion, lidar / time-of-flight for distance, or lux for ambient light. A lux sensor measures light, not proximity; combining inputs can give each node its own local context.

OPTIONAL EXPERIMENTCheck the sensor’s supply current, 3.3 V logic levels and required bus against the header and firmware pin map. Two signal pins do not make every sensor a drop-in fit. Keep radar antennas, optical apertures and light sensors clear of the enclosure, and add their demand to the power allowance.

05 / POWER

Five volts.
Check twice.

There are two useful power paths. For a single bench node, a regulated 5 V / 3 A USB-C supply can feed the board’s POWER port and pass 5 V through the board’s power connection to the panel. Keep the panel power lead fitted: HUB75 is the display-data connection.

The project’s working USB setup limits brightness to about 30%. Treat that as a starting point for this hardware, not a guaranteed current limit: check the brightest allowed pattern, audio peaks and startup, and enforce the limit in firmware. A laptop’s USB port is not a substitute for the specified supply.

For full-brightness-capable hardware, run suitably thick, short 5 V and ground leads from a regulated supply such as a MEAN WELL directly to the panel’s keyed power header. The documented power connection also feeds the ESP32 board. Size conductors, connectors and protection for the load and voltage drop; no single wire gauge suits every run.

Before connecting the node, verify the supply voltage and connector polarity with a meter. Follow the markings on your exact panel and controller, rather than the positions in this schematic.

CHECKThe lab uses an enclosed MEAN WELL LRS-350-5 supply. Its mains installation needs suitable protection and qualified assembly; this guide covers the low-voltage node only.

The documented firmware starts at 25% brightness with a 50% ceiling; that ceiling must be lowered for the roughly 30% USB setup. Direct 5 V power provides electrical capacity for full brightness, but does not override software limits. Do not combine USB power and external 5 V unless the board’s documented power path prevents backfeeding.

06 / FIRMWARE

Give this node
its own identity.

Build the Waveshare target from the public repository. Run PlatformIO jobs sequentially.

pio run --project-dir firmware/node-platform \
  -e waveshare-s3

Initial installation uses the node commissioner with a reviewed release manifest, the exact USB port and the board’s factory MAC. The manifest must include the bootloader, partitions, OTA data and application.

Provision one device at a time. For the reference 4×4 fleet, give it a unique A1–D4 label and keep its Wi-Fi settings and management key private.

CHECKA successful build is not a flashed or accepted node. Verify the reported identity and firmware after commissioning.

07 / FIRST LIGHT

See it.
Then verify it.

Power the checked assembly and observe the display expected by your selected firmware. Different releases show different scenes; a single “READY” screen is not a universal acceptance test.

Ticks are a reading aid for this visit, not recorded hardware acceptance. Also test speaker output, microphone input and enabled sensors separately; a working display does not prove that a node can hear or talk.

NEXTRepeat the verified build for each node. Keep identities separate and measure power demand before expanding the flock.