5-Minute IoT Clock

I accidentally ordered the 1.2" 7-segment display with I2C backpack this week. It's entirely too big for my original purpose, so I decided to make a quick clock out of it. Although it took me about an hour to get it to where it is now, it could easily be built in 5 minutes from start to finish if you have the components in front of you and the code at the ready.

In order to complete this project in 5 minutes, there are a few liberties taken. Just like a recipe might say "cook for 30 minutes", there's usually at least a few minutes of prep time not factored into that. The prep-time liberties taken in this project are that you have removed all the devices from their packaging, already have a Particle account set up, have the Particle app installed on your phone, and are familiar with the Particle CLI. Oh, and pre-heat your soldering iron. Do some stretches to get loose and ready while the soldering iron heats up.

1. Solder the display to its backpack -- 1 minute, 56 seconds

Align the display to the backpack PCB and solder the 5 pins per the instructions at Adafruit.

2. Breadboard everything -- 49 seconds

(To be totally fair, it would have taken MUCH less time if I didn't have a stubborn breadboard with incredibly tight pins.)

• Put the Photon on the breadboard

• Hook up jumper wires:

• - Photon "VIN" --> Display "IO"

• - Photon "VIN" --> Display "+"

• - Photon "GND" --> Display "-"

• - Photon "D0" --> Display "D"

• - Photon "D1" --> Display "I"

• Plug the Photon into a USB power source with a micro USB cable.

3. Claim your Photon -- 51 seconds

Use the Particle app on your phone to claim your Photon. Use the add device wizard and follow the on-screen instructions. If you need help, visit https://docs.particle.io/guide/getting-started/start/photon/#connect-your-photon for more detailed instructions.

4. The code -- 28 seconds

• Download the code: git clone https://github.com/wgbartley/5-minute-segment-clock

• Change variables to taste. There are 3 main #define statements at the top of segment-clock.ino that you can tune. TIMEZONE is your time zone offset in standard time (keep in mind that some places switch to daylight savings time in the fall/winter). USE_DST toggles whether your local area observes daylight savings time. TWENTYFOUR_HOUR allows you to toggle between 12-hour (AM/PM) time or 24-hour (military?) time.

• Flash the code to your device:

particle flash YOUR_DEVICE_ID 

5. Mount the breadboard - 12 seconds

Most of the tiny breadboards come with double-stick tape on the bottom. If your breadboard does, peel off the cover of the tape and stick the breadboard to the back of the display. I placed mine on the right center which allows it to sit at a slight angle for better readability on my desk.

You're done!

If you made this clock in less than 5 minutes, spend the remaining time patting yourself on the back for a job well done. But, really, spend all the time you need here. You deserve it!

Update (2017-04-26)

I also created a wooden box so this can be used as a real clock in a bedroom/office environment. SketchUp plans for a box similar to the one pictured below have been added to the project.

Cherry Segment Clock imgur Album

Update (2017-05-25)

Another box! This time made out of bamboo.

Bamboo Segment Clock imgur Album

Update (2017-05-26)

MOAR BOXES! This time made out of purple heart.

Purple Heart Segment Clock imgur Album