7 Color E Paper Digital Photo Frame

Overview

The ESP32 E-Paper Digital Frame Project is an innovative way to showcase your favorite photos on a unique 5.65-inch seven-color E-Paper display. Utilizing an ESP32 microcontroller, this project enhances the experience of digital photo frames by allowing for a beautiful and power-efficient display. The frame retrieves images from a local Raspberry Pi server, refreshes them on a schedule, and features smart power management, making it ideal for long-term usage.

Setting up the frame requires a bit of hardware configuration, including the essential components like an E-Paper display and a Raspberry Pi to operate a simple API server for image processing. This project emphasizes efficiency, as it incorporates clever algorithms for image conversion that optimize the limited color palette of the display, thus producing visually stunning results even with just seven colors.

Features

• 7-Color E-Paper Display: Delivers images using a unique seven-color palette, enhancing visual appeal while maintaining energy efficiency.
• Power-Saving Hibernation: The ESP32 enters hibernation mode between updates, conserving battery life and ensuring that energy is used only when necessary.
• Image Processing with Dithering: Utilizes Floyd–Steinberg dithering to transform images into the required format, resulting in high-quality displays despite the limited color range.
• Local Server Integration: Works seamlessly with a Raspberry Pi running a Flask server that automates the image retrieval and conversion process.
• Dynamic Update Schedule: ESP32 is programmed to wake up hourly from 8 AM to 8 PM for updates, ensuring a fresh display throughout the day.
• Custom API for Image Data: Features multiple API endpoints specifically designed to manage image data efficiently and streamline communication between the server and ESP32.
• Versatile Setup: Designed for easy installation on Raspberry Pi, but can also be set up on a standard PC, offering flexibility depending on user needs.
• Extensive Dependencies Support: Leverages powerful libraries such as Flask, Pillow, and NumPy to handle server tasks and image processing seamlessly.