1/6/2024 0 Comments Custom cryptocurrency ticker![]() A Google Search reveals 2 popular services we can use, CoinMarketCap and Coindesk. To get the data we first try to find where is it freely available. We use the Serial Monitor for printing out the data, and worry about the OLED later. The very first thing we do is forget about the OLED screen and simply figure out how to get the data that we'll eventually display on it. The main reason is that this module was the one chosen by the developers of the NodeMCU project for their hardware DevKit 1.0 (see Firmware Options for details about NodeMCU). In consequence, a dedicated community has formed around the platform (), which has been focused on improving its functionality.įrom the different ESP-NN boards and modules, we began to experiment with the ESP-12E. The ESP8266 provides a cost-effective solution to the rapidly growing market of internet-connected projects and devices (i.e., the so-called Internet Of Things), thus it has become one of the most popular development platforms over the past years. This tiny IC includes an RF front end, RAM, and (usually) an onboard TCP/IP stack that allows it ready to connect to a nearby Access Point, to act as an Access Point itself, or both. The ESP8266 was developed by Shangai-based Espressif Systems, as a Serial (UART) to Wi-Fi SoC (System On a Chip) based around a Tensilica Xtensa LX3 DPU. Since the summer of 2014, the ESP8266 has seen a wide adoption as a cost-effective solution for IoT and WiFi-capable devices. Most of the work, however, goes into making the UI both intuitive and aesthetically pleasing. Using a couple of OLED Arduino libraries, it's straight forward to display the price data on the screen as well as our custom graphics. Using Benoît Blanchon's fantastic Arduino JSON library (available in the Library Manager), we can easily get the parts of the JSON-formatted data that interest us. Using the built-in Arduino library for the ESP8266, we create a WebClient object that allows us to send a GET request to the servers' APIs and retrieve the price data. Using the built-in Arduino library for the ESP8266 and entering our WiFi network credentials (ssid/password) we connect to the internet. To perform the two tasks mentioned above, namely, query/parse data and control the OLED screen, we use a piece of code running on the ESP8266. Running on the microcontroller, we need software that's able to query the price data from dedicated servers, as well as to control the OLED screen to display the queried data.Īs of this writing, the best sites that provide a free API to query the current prices of different cryptocurrencies are:Įven better, at the moment they neither of them requires an API key, so we only need to write the firmware to perform queries and parse the result to obtain the necessary data. ![]() ![]() ![]() For this project, we evaluated a few options and settled DevKit 1.0 Development Board for its compactness and our familiarity with using an OLED display with it in past projects OLED display with it in past projects! The SoC comes in a variety of modules, breakouts, and development boards. we love it! It's the most convenient, inexpensive way to have a microcontroller running code while connected to a Wi-Fi network. What can we say about the ESP8266 that hasn't been said about the wheel, sliced bread, or the iPhone. Not only are these displays small (and bright!), but they're very easy to control over i2c merely having to connect 4 wires to our microcontroller or single-board computer: 2 for power and ground, and 2 for the data and clock lines. Given our main goal of having a device with a small form factor that could sit on our desks, the first choice was to use a 0.96" OLED screen to display the price data. To build a price tracker for cryptocurrency we simply needed two pieces of hardware: an internet-capable microcontroller to gather the data, and a screen to display it, we tried to find the best solution considering ease of use and cost. In terms of what's required, we challenged ourselves to use the minimum number of parts, and require no special tools/skills such as soldering. The main goal is to have a dedicated, inexpensive, device that would help us avoid repeatedly checking websites, apps, email, writing scripts, etc., in order to monitor the ups and downs of coin prices. Not to mention that building the device is a great excuse to work on a ESP8266-powered, internet-connected, DIY electronics project for any Maker out there! (bro/sis, do you even IoT?) With the latest craze in the world of cryptocurrency and, as coin hodlers ourselves, we wanted to have a tiny desktop display cycling through the current prices of different coins.Īlthough we can certainly find the same information using apps and websites (for free!), we discovered that having a dedicated device on our desks displaying the data constantly minimized the time we spent on tracking it.
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