ESP32-P4 AllSky Display

An image display for AllSky cameras using ESP32-P4 with multi-image cycling, hardware acceleration, web configuration, and Home Assistant integration.

🎥 Demo

Check out the video below to see the display in action:

📋 Table of Contents

Demo
Build Status
Overview
Features
Hardware Requirements
Installation
Configuration
- Web Interface
- Home Assistant MQTT Discovery
Image Optimization for AllSky
- Automated Image Resizing Script
- Setup Options
Web Configuration Interface
Troubleshooting
- Common Issues
- Debug Information
Contributing
License
Support

🚀 Build Status

🌟 Overview

This project makes your ESP32-P4 touch display into an all-sky camera viewer with features like image cycling, per-image transformations, MQTT control, and seamless Home Assistant integration.

Key Highlights:

Display images from multiple sources with automatic cycling
Real-time image transformations (scale, offset, rotation)
Complete web-based configuration interface
Native Home Assistant integration via MQTT discovery
Touch controls for quick navigation
Hardware-accelerated image processing using ESP32-P4 PPA

✨ Features

Multi-source image cycling: Display images from up to 10 different URLs with automatic cycling
Hardware-accelerated processing: Fast image scaling and rotation using ESP32-P4 PPA
Per-image transformations: Individual scale, offset, and rotation settings for each image
Web-based configuration: Complete setup interface accessible via browser
Home Assistant integration: Native MQTT discovery with full control and monitoring
Touch controls: Single tap for next image, double tap to toggle modes

Interactive Controls

Touch interface:
- Single tap: Next image
- Double tap: Toggle cycling/refresh modes
Serial commands: Real-time manipulation via USB
Transform controls: Scale (+/-), Move (WASD), Rotate (QE)

🛠️ Hardware Requirements

Supported Displays:

Waveshare ESP32-P4-WIFI6-Touch-LCD-3.4C (800x800)
Waveshare ESP32-P4-WIFI6-Touch-LCD-4C (720x720)

Specifications:

ESP32-P4 MCU with WiFi 6
DSI touch display
GT911 capacitive touch controller
16MB flash, PSRAM support required

Optional 3D Printed Case:

Download from Printables

📦 Installation

Prerequisites

Arduino IDE (1.8.19 or later) or PlatformIO
ESP32 Arduino Core (3.3.4+)
Required Libraries:
- GFX Library for Arduino (1.6.3+)
- JPEGDEC (1.8.4+)
- PubSubClient (2.8.0+)

Arduino IDE Setup

Initial Setup

1. Compile and Upload Firmware

Click the Upload button in Arduino IDE
Monitor serial output for status messages

2. WiFi Setup via Access Point Mode

On first boot, the device automatically creates a WiFi access point for easy configuration:

Connection Steps:

Find the WiFi Network
- Network Name: AllSky-Display-Setup
- No password required
Connect to the Network
- Use your phone, tablet, or computer
- Connect to AllSky-Display-Setup WiFi
- The display shows a QR code and connection instructions:
Configure WiFi
- Scan the QR code on the display with your phone, or
- A configuration page should open automatically (captive portal)
- If not, manually open a browser and go to:
  - http://192.168.4.1
- Click "Scan for Networks" to see available WiFi networks
- Select your WiFi network from the list
- Enter the WiFi password
- Click "Connect"
Device Connects and Restarts
- The device will connect to your WiFi network
- After successful connection, it will restart
- The display will show the assigned IP address
Access Web Interface
- Note the IP address shown on the display
- Open a browser and go to http://[device-ip]:8080/
- Configure additional settings like MQTT, image sources, and display preferences

Alternative Setup:

If you prefer to manually configure WiFi by editing source code, see MANUAL_SETUP.md

3. Configure Default Image Sources (Optional)

After connecting to WiFi, use the web interface to add image sources, or pre-configure them in config.cpp:

const char* DEFAULT_IMAGE_SOURCES[] = {
    "http://your-server.com/image1.jpg",
    "http://your-server.com/image2.jpg",
    // Add more as needed
};

⚙️ Configuration

Web Interface

Access: http://[device-ip]:8080/
Configure image sources, display settings, network, and MQTT

Home Assistant MQTT Discovery

The device automatically integrates with Home Assistant when MQTT discovery is enabled:

Entities Created:

Light: Brightness control (0-100%)
Switches: Cycling enabled, Random order, Auto brightness
Numbers: Cycle interval, Update interval, Per-image transforms (scale, offset, rotation)
Select: Current image source selector
Buttons: Reboot device, Next image, Reset transforms
Sensors: Current image URL, Free heap, Free PSRAM, WiFi signal, Uptime, Image count

Setup:

Configure MQTT broker settings in web interface
Enable "Home Assistant Discovery" in MQTT settings
Set device name and topic preferences (optional)
Save and reconnect MQTT
Device appears automatically in Home Assistant

All device controls and sensors will be available in Home Assistant for dashboards, automations, and scripts.

📷 Image Optimization for AllSky

⚠️ IMPORTANT: The ESP32-P4 has limited resources. Large images (over 1MB or high resolution) can cause crashes or out-of-memory errors. It's highly recommended to resize images before serving them to the device.

Automated Image Resizing Script

Use this script to automatically resize AllSky images to an optimal size for the display:

#!/bin/bash

# Configuration variables
INPUT_DIR="/home/pi/allsky/tmp"
OUTPUT_DIR="/home/pi/allsky/resized"
IMAGE_NAME="image.jpg"
RESIZE_DIMENSIONS="720x720"

# Create output directory if it doesn't exist
mkdir -p "${OUTPUT_DIR}"

# Resize allsky image on demand
/usr/bin/mogrify -path "${OUTPUT_DIR}" -resize "${RESIZE_DIMENSIONS}" "${INPUT_DIR}/${IMAGE_NAME}" >/dev/null 2>&1

Setup Options

Option 1: AllSky Script Module (Recommended)

Save the script as /home/pi/allsky/scripts/resize_for_display.sh
Make it executable: chmod +x /home/pi/allsky/scripts/resize_for_display.sh
In AllSky Web UI, go to Module Manager → Daytime or Night time capture → Add the 'Allsky script' module to the selected modules → add script path to the module config
Point your display to http://your-allsky-server/resized/image.jpg

Option 2: Cron Job

Save the script to /home/pi/resize_allsky.sh
Make it executable: chmod +x /home/pi/resize_allsky.sh
Edit crontab: crontab -e
Add one of these lines based on your preference:

# Run every minute
* * * * * /home/pi/resize_allsky.sh

# Run every 5 minutes
*/5 * * * * /home/pi/resize_allsky.sh

# Run every 10 minutes
*/10 * * * * /home/pi/resize_allsky.sh

Save and exit
Point your display to http://your-allsky-server/current/resized/image.jpg

Note: Adjust RESIZE_DIMENSIONS based on your display model (720x720 for 4C, 800x800 for 3.4C).

🖥️ Web Configuration Interface

The device provides a comprehensive web-based configuration interface accessible at http://[device-ip]:8080/. All settings can be configured through an intuitive UI without needing to recompile the firmware.

Configuration Pages

Main Dashboard

Multi-Image Sources

Display Settings

MQTT Configuration

Home Assistant Integration

Touch Controls

Single Tap  : Next image (cycling mode)
Double Tap  : Toggle cycling/refresh modes

Serial Commands

+/-   : Scale image        R     : Reset transforms
W/S   : Move up/down       L/K   : Brightness
A/D   : Move left/right    B     : Reboot
Q/E   : Rotate CCW/CW      M/I/P : System info

🐛 Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Compilation: Enable PSRAM, check ESP32 core version
Memory: Monitor PSRAM usage in serial output
Network: Verify WiFi credentials and image URL access
Touch: Check GT911 I2C connections and debug output

Debug Information

Serial output for comprehensive debugging
Web interface for real-time system status
Memory and network monitoring

Contributing

Fork the repository
Create a feature branch
Test thoroughly
Submit a pull request

License

Open source project. Check license file for details.

Support

Create GitHub issues for bugs/features
Check troubleshooting section
Monitor serial output for debugging

FilesExpand file tree

README.md

Latest commit

History