Can the Inky Impression boards be used with MicroPython?

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1

I have something on an older Inky Frame that I’d like to update to the new 13.3" Inky Impression. I see the Impression getting-started guide discusses Rasbian. I don’t want to deal with a whole OS (that’s my day job!). Can I just use MicroPython?

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Theoretically, yes. I use the Inky-Impressions with CircuitPython running on a Pico-W. You need two things:

  • an adapter or some smart wiring mapping the pins of the Inky to your device
  • a software driver for MicroPython

For the large 13.3" you would certainly opt for a device with a lot of RAM, e.g. the Pico Plus 2W.

For the adapter, you probably can use this one: Pico to Pi HAT - The Pi Hut. I haven’t used it, so there is no guarantee that it works - you should definitely check the pin-mapping first.

Since Pimoroni is planning to also make a new generation of Inky-Frames with the new displays, you can expect that the MP-drivers will pop up some day too. Until then, you are probably on your own.

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3

Nice, thanks. Are the pins documented somewhere?

In the meantime, I’ve got it going using a Pi Zero, but it seems a horrible shame to use an e-ink display with a device always sucks power. I want something that can wake up once a day, update the screen, then power off.

4

There is a link on the product page to the schematic, there you will find the used pins. Another option is https://pinout.xyz, but this only documents an old Inky. But I think the pins haven’t changed.

When I started with the Inky-Impression, I had the same goal. You can have a look at my projects here: GitHub - bablokb/pi-e-ink-daily: Display Daily Agenda on an E-Ink Display and here: GitHub - bablokb/pcb-pi-batman: A simple hat for battery based Pi projects

That worked well with the Pi-Zero, but compared with a Pico, it still sucks too much power. A Pi-Zero2-W is probably the best compromise, because it boots faster and the uptime is the main driver of energy consumption.

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5

Oooh, I found GitHub - bablokb/circuitpython-inky: CircuitPython Drivers for various Pimoroni E-Ink Displays. That looks promising!

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Yes, this is for CircuitPython, not MicroPython. I ported the Pimoroni Pi-driver for the 7.3" Spectra6 display to CircuitPython. I don’t have the 13.3", so there is no driver available yet but porting should be very similar.