Pico Solar System
A miniature device depicting the relative position of the planets in Solar System.
Hardware
- Raspberry Pi Pico and time source
- Pico + Precision RTC Module (DS3231)
- OR Pico W + available Wi-Fi network
- Pico Display Pack
Software
MicroPython
The software is written in MicroPython 1.19 and uses a custom build from Pimoroni which includes drivers for the display. Download it from the official Pimoroni repository here. Please note that Pico and Pico W require different UF2 files. Here is a direct link for Pico and for Pico W
- Download the MicroPython UF2.
- Push and hold the BOOTSEL button and plug your Pico into the USB port of your computer. Release the BOOTSEL button after your Pico is connected.
- It will mount as a Mass Storage Device called RPI-RP2.
- Drag and drop the MicroPython UF2 file onto the RPI-RP2 volume.
rshell
To upload and configure your Pico Solar System you will need to install rshell. Make sure you have pip installed.
pip3 install rshell
Installing Pico Solar System
- Download Pico Solar System
git clone https://github.com/dr-mod/pico-solar-system.git
- Open the directory with the source code
cd pico-solar-system
-
(If using Wi-Fi), rename wifi_config_sample.py to wifi_config.py and edit to include your Wi-Fi information
-
Copy required python files to your pico
rshell
cp *.py /pyboard/
- (If using RTC) Set time & configure the RTC module
repl
import time
import ds3231
rtc = ds3231.ds3231()
rtc.set_time(time.time())
To account for a timezone you might want to apply an offset to the UTC timestamp in seconds:
rtc.set_time(time.time() + 60 * 60 * (+ OFFSET_IN_HOURS) )
Case
A 3d printable case for this project can be found here.
A remixed case for the Pico W and display (without the RTC) can be found here.
Support the project
If you would like to support what I do and keep me caffeinated, you can do it here:
