Skip to the content
2 layers40.2 × 46.4 mmRing-40mm, the printed circuit board in 3D

Small blinkenlight boards that sync up using radios

Size
40.2 × 46.4 mm
Copper layers
2
Thickness
1.6 mm
Parts
45
Nets
25
Pads
132
Tracks, vias
162, 62
Pours
2
Routed
Yes
KiCad
KiCad 7 (file 20221018)
Created
28 Feb 2018
Updated
27 Jul 2026

Overview

Ring-40mm is an open-source printed circuit board by candykingdom, from the candykingdom/firefly2 repository on GitHub. It is a 2-layer board of 40.2 × 46.4 mm with 45 parts on 25 nets, routed with 162 tracks and 62 vias.

It is built around the XL-1010RGBC-WS2812B-DZ. Its parts include 21 capacitors, 20 diodes, 2 resistors and 2 connectors. It belongs with the radio and wireless boards of this library.

Main components

1

README

README.md

Firefly2

Wireless LED control for Burning Man art installations, bikes, and wearables. Devices driving WS2812 strips self-organize over 915 MHz RFM69 radios into a flood mesh with exactly one master, share a network clock via heartbeats, and render effects as pure functions of network time — so every device animates in sync without streaming frames.

New to the project? Start with GETTING_STARTED.md. Working in the code (human or agent)? The mental model lives in docs/index.md and the shared Claude Code/Codex ground rules in CLAUDE.md.

Web simulator (test without hardware)

bash
python3 -m http.server 8642 -d sim
# open http://localhost:8642/

A zero-dependency browser simulator of the whole system: every effect and palette on the real device catalog, synced to a scrubbable network clock, with master-mode autoplay and control overrides. Byte-exact against the firmware (enforced by tests: npm test). See docs/simulator.md.

Building firmware

Firmware builds with PlatformIO (pip install platformio). One env per device target:

bash
pio run -e node                  # SAMD21 rfboard node (node-arm64 on Apple silicon)
pio run -e fancy-node            # STM32G030 node
pio run -e controller            # STM32G070 handheld controller
pio run -e dmx                   # ESP32 DMX bridge
pio run -e fancy-node -t upload  # flash via ST-Link
pio device monitor               # 115200 baud

Note: [env:node]'s bossac platform_packages entry is OS-specific — uncomment the right line in platformio.ini for your OS. Full env/pin/flag details: docs/build-and-test.md.

Programming over USB

The fancy-node device can be programmed either using an STLink, or via USB port. To program via USB, you must first install stm32loader using pip (pip install stm32loader). You may also need to pass the port (typically /dev/ttyUSB0), e.g. pio run -e fancy-node-usb -t upload --upload-port /dev/ttyUSB0.

Saving device description in flash

Both node and fancy-node support reading the DeviceDescription from flash. The modes are defined by the DeviceMode enum within DeviceDescription.hpp. They work as follows:

  • CURRENT_FROM_HEADER: use the current device defined in Devices.hpp
  • READ_FROM_FLASH: read the device saved in flash, if present. If not present (determined by the validity of check_value), fall back to current.
  • WRITE_TO_FLASH: write current to flash, and then use it. This will only write the device to flash if it is different, to avoid causing flash wear.

Tests & linting

The platform-independent core (lib/, src/generic/) builds on the host against fakes, with ASan + UBSan on (and fatal). Requires cmake and a GCC/Clang toolchain (on Windows, use WSL or similar):

bash
mkdir -p build && cd build
cmake .. -DBUILD_SIMULATOR=false   # true builds the SDL desktop simulator too
make && make test
./smalltests --gtest_filter=RadioStateMachineTest*
bash
./lint.sh check     # clang-format, Google style — CI enforces this
./lint.sh format    # format in place
./ci.sh             # exactly what CI runs: cmake + smalltests + largetests
node --test "sim/test/cases/*.test.mjs"   # simulator suite, incl. firmware byte-exactness
npm run test:e2e    # served UI/API/canvas journeys in Chromium and Firefox

CI (GitHub Actions): host tests, lint, node/fancy-node/controller firmware builds, the simulator suite, and CodeQL C/C++ security scanning.

Repo layout

PathContents
lib/, src/generic/Platform-independent core: radio protocol, mesh, effects, LED management
src/arduino/Hardware backends (FastLED, RadioHead RFM69)
src/devices/One main per device target (node, fancy-node, controller, dmx)
test/Host GoogleTest suites + FakeNetwork multi-node mesh simulation
sim/Browser simulator (production C++ renderer via committed Wasm, usable without hardware)
docs/Architecture and per-subsystem notes — start at docs/index.md
hardware/, boards/, bootloader/PCB designs, PlatformIO board definitions, bootloaders
specs/Spec-kit feature specs (spec → plan → tasks workflow, see CLAUDE.md)

For agents & contributors

  • CLAUDE.md — the canonical guidance for Claude Code and Codex, including build commands, architecture, and the invariants you must not break. Codex reaches the same file through AGENTS.md; shared skills remain canonical under .claude/skills/ and are exposed to Codex through .agents/skills/.
  • docs/ — per-subsystem research notes (radio/network, LED/effects, devices, build/test, hardware). Update them when you change documented behavior.
  • Substantial features go through the spec-kit workflow (speckit-specify → plan → tasks → implement; use / in Claude Code or $ in Codex); specs live in specs/.

Parts

45
QtyValueFootprintReferences
20100nFCapacitor_SMD:C_0402_1005MetricC1, C2, C3, C4, C5, C10, C11, C12, C13, C14, C15, C16, C17, C18, C19, C20 +4
20XL-1010RGBC-WS2812BHomebrew:XINGLIGHT-XL-1010RGBC-WS2812BD1, D2, D3, D4, D5, D10, D11, D12, D13, D14, D15, D16, D17, D18, D19, D20 +4
2560Resistor_SMD:R_0603_1608Metric_Pad0.98x0.95mm_HandSolderR1, R2
2Conn_01x03Connector_PinHeader_2.54mm:PinHeader_1x03_P2.54mm_VerticalJ1, J2
122uFCapacitor_SMD:C_0805_2012MetricC21

More from candykingdom/firefly2

4
  • 2 layers150 × 68 mmController, the printed circuit board in 3D

    Controller

    candykingdom/firefly2

    Small blinkenlight boards that sync up using radios

    194 parts5
  • 4 layers47.1 × 30.7 mmFancy node, the printed circuit board in 3D

    Fancy node

    candykingdom/firefly2

    Small blinkenlight boards that sync up using radios

    67 parts5
  • 4 layers21 × 63 mmRfboard, the printed circuit board in 3D

    Rfboard

    candykingdom/firefly2

    Small blinkenlight boards that sync up using radios

    67 parts5
  • 2 layersMagnet connector, the printed circuit board in 3D

    Magnet connector

    candykingdom/firefly2

    Small blinkenlight boards that sync up using radios

    2 parts5

Similar boards

  • 2 layers52.8 × 55 mmILDAWaveX16, the printed circuit board in 3D

    ILDAWaveX16

    stanleyondrus/ILDAWaveX16

    ILDAWaveX16 is an open-source, high-resolution, wireless laser DAC with SD-card playback, network control, and ILDA output.

    95 parts42
  • 2 layers30 × 30 mmSoundMixer, the printed circuit board in 3D

    SoundMixer

    LeKoYa/SoundMixer

    A deej-powered Soundmixer for individual volume control with rotary encoders, leds, buttons and oled support

    41 parts41MIT
  • 2 layers111.2 × 210.4 mmPanel 50 1, the printed circuit board in 3D

    Panel 50 1

    floxcap/fly2040

    Basic RP2040 board

    909 parts19MIT
  • 8 layers35 × 35 mmOpenAIO, the printed circuit board in 3D

    OpenAIO

    OpenDrone-hw/OpenAIO

    Open-source AIO for 2-6S toothpick quads: flight controller, 4-in-1 AM32 ESC and ExpressLRS receiver, 25.5x25.5 mm.

    343 parts19CERN-OHL-S-2.0
  • 6 layers17 × 15.7 mmOpenRX Gemini, the printed circuit board in 3D

    OpenRX Gemini

    OpenDrone-hw/OpenRX-Gemini

    Open-source dual-radio, dual-band ExpressLRS receiver for Gemini and Xrossband.

    86 parts11CERN-OHL-S-2.0
  • 2 layers60 × 50 mmWactrollerLogic, the printed circuit board in 3D

    WactrollerLogic

    hykilpikonna/OpenHardware

    Open-sourced Hardware Experimentation <3

    36 parts10
  • 2 layers76.1 × 87.9 mmBadge ESC 2025, the printed circuit board in 3D

    Badge ESC 2025

    endsummercamp/badge-2025

    120 parts9
  • 6 layers10 × 11.5 mmOpenRX Lite, the printed circuit board in 3D

    OpenRX Lite

    OpenDrone-hw/OpenRX-Lite

    Open-source 2.4 GHz ExpressLRS receiver with an on-board ceramic antenna.

    47 parts6CERN-OHL-S-2.0

Questions

How big is the Ring-40mm PCB?

It measures 40.2 × 46.4 mm and has 2 copper layers, 1.6 mm thick.

What parts does the Ring-40mm use?

45 parts, built around the XL-1010RGBC-WS2812B-DZ. The full list of its parts is on this page, with links to each part's symbol and footprint where PCBKit's library has them.

Where can I download the Ring-40mm KiCad files?

From the candykingdom/firefly2 repository on GitHub, at the commit this page was made from: the board is hardware/ring-40mm/ring-40mm.kicad_pcb and its schematic hardware/controller/controller.kicad_sch. PCBKit opens the board in the browser, with nothing to install.

Can I use the Ring-40mm design in my own project?

Its repository states no licence, so its author keeps all rights: ask candykingdom before reusing the design.