Constructing a 42-inch E Ink Artwork Body
Just lately, we wished to discover a option to show Generative AI artwork in our workplace at PhotoRoom. A big TV would have completed the job, however we wished to go for one thing extra authentic.
So when somebody knowledgeable me that the E Ink Company was promoting 42-inch E Ink panels, I used to be immediately nerd-sniped. That was the proper undertaking to gasoline my non-traditional show dependancy. After the flip-dot display salvaged from a UK bus, the hunt for an excellent larger construct was on.
The body altering from one picture to a different. The GIF above does not assist with high quality, HD video available here
Cables are lacking on this image
First model. Within the means of constructing it, I broke the highest half of the show
Sourcing parts
Some superior Google-fu was used to discover a provider transport to Europe. Minimal order amount: 3 items. After a little bit of forwards and backwards, the parts arrived.
Are you able to guess it is fragile?
The provider offered the shows in addition to the required driving board.
Whereas the pink packaging definitely has its personal appeal, we determined to go for one thing extra minimalist. Discovering a body store that might deal with this “particular” undertaking was not straightforward. Some straight-out did not reply however one among them was all for that unconventional construct.
So we (effectively, largely he) set on to customized construct a framing system that might enclose the panel with out breaking it and with out utilizing glue to make repairs / changes straightforward.
The primary construct we created did not prove nice: the show was slipping between the layers. Within the second model, we discovered a option to hold it sturdy.
Controlling the show
The show controller could be talked to utilizing USB, so I added a Raspberry Pi on the again. It exposes a small webserver that may obtain photographs to show.Again of the body. Discover how the ribbon cables do not align: I feel I picked the flawed controller board variant
Preprocessing photographs
The show can solely show 16 ranges of grey. Displaying photographs with out preprocessing results in a blocky sample on gradients in photographs. Fortunately a couple of methods exist. One among them, nearer to darkish magic than science to me, known as Blue Noise dithering. It include including a blue noise sample to a picture and them thresholding. Easy but spectacular, see for your self.
Earlier than/after dithering utilizing blue noise. Discover the sample within the sky
Displaying photographs
You probably have ever used a kindle, you may know that each few pages it refreshes itself to keep away from ghosting. We had the identical drawback the place the earlier picture would seem slighly light out, combined with the brand new picture. The trick is to run a full black then full white picture. We discovered that working 2 full white photographs did a ok job, with out disrupting the expertise an excessive amount of (see video)
The primary model of this undertaking now sits within the workplace. There are a couple of concepts we might wish to strive:
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Make it battery-powered: proper now it nonetheless requires an influence wire. It will enable placing it on a wall with out cables
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Ask ChatGPT to generate prompts for us, turning it into our very personal artwork curator
An enormous thanks to Charly for the concept and assist on this constructing course of, to Nico for the framing and to Florian for the dithering code.