Me Here 3192f3debc PM_X-1 0.0.1: Pimoroni Explorer sibling firmware + Kit 0.0.23 device-id reply

Adds pico-explorer/ as a parallel CircuitPython firmware target alongside the 52Pi
Kit in pico-cp/. Same engine, same program-string grammar, same programs.json, same
live-sync protocol. Read-only on the device (no on-device beat editing); the web
editor's Live sync mirrors all edits in real time and the Explorer emits its own
play/stop/bpm/sel deltas back.

Hardware (Pimoroni Explorer PIM744):
- RP2350B + 2.8" ST7789V 320x240 LCD (8-bit parallel; CircuitPython's official
  board definition pre-builds the BusDisplay so we just use board.DISPLAY).
- 6 user buttons - A/B/C on the left of the screen, X/Y/Z on the right.
- Piezo speaker on GP12 (PWM) with amp enable on GP13.
- I2C QwSTEMMA on GP20/21 - reserved, unused by the firmware.
- No touchscreen, no joystick, no RGB LED. Run state shows on a tiny on-screen dot.

Buttons:
- A = play/stop. B = tap tempo. C = menu.
- X = prev track (hold-repeat). Z = next track (hold-repeat).
- Y = tempo -1 (hold-repeat; -5 after 1.5s).
- X+Z chord = tempo +1 (mirrors Y).
- In a menu: X/Z move the row cursor, Y decrements, A cycles/increments/selects,
  B = back, C = close.

Files added:
- pico-explorer/{boot.py, code.py, app.py, programs.json, README.md}.
  app.py = 1444 lines (~73KB source -> 29.8KB compiled .mpy).
- info-explorer.html.

Files touched:
- pico-cp/app.py: bump to 0.0.23. Version-query (SysEx 0x02 -> 0x03) reply now
  includes the device id as "K;<version>" (backward-compat: editor parses
  "contains ';'?" - old firmware sent bare version, treated as K).
- editor.html + editor-beta.html: _parseDeviceReply() splits id;version, FW_PATHS
  maps id to .py/.mpy URL pair, so Update firmware now pushes the right binary.
- build.sh + deploy.sh: precompile pico-explorer/app.py -> dist/explorer-app.mpy,
  zip pm_x1_circuitpy.zip alongside pm_k1_circuitpy.zip, ship
  pico-explorer-app.{py,mpy} next to pico-cp-app.{py,mpy}.
- docs/livesync-protocol.md: new section 7 - per-device emit/apply matrix.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

2026-05-30 20:43:38 -05:00

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PM_X-1 "Explorer" — CircuitPython edition (Pimoroni Explorer · RP2350)

The CircuitPython firmware for the Pimoroni Explorer Kit (PIM744), set up as a self-contained appliance. Sibling to the PM_K-1 build in ../pico-cp/ (the 52Pi EP-0172 kit) — same engine, same program strings, same programs.json, same web editor.

This board is a **2.8″ ST7789V 320×240 LCD + 6 user buttons (A/B/C on the left, X/Y/Z on the right)

piezo speaker** built around an RP2350B (Pico 2 class chip). No touchscreen, no joystick, no RGB LED. Editing is done in the web editor with Live sync on; the device mirrors changes in real time and emits its own play/stop/bpm/sel deltas back.

Controls

Button	Action
A	play / stop
B	tap tempo
C	menu (Settings / Help / About / Practice log)
X	prev track (hold to repeat)
Y	tempo −1 (hold to repeat; after ~1.5 s the step grows to −5)
Z	next track (hold to repeat)
X + Z	tempo +1 (chord; same hold-repeat as Y)

In a menu: X / Z move the cursor up / down, Y decrements the focused value, A commits or cycles, B = back, C = close.

Install

Flash CircuitPython for Pico 2 / RP2350. Hold BOOTSEL on the Explorer, plug it in over USB-C, drop the Pimoroni Explorer (RP2350) CircuitPython .uf2 onto the RP2350 drive. A CIRCUITPY drive appears.
Copy the bundle onto CIRCUITPY — boot.py, code.py, app.mpy, programs.json, font_s.bin / font_m.bin / font_l.bin, logo.bin / midi.bin / usb.bin, editor.html (offline editor). If an old app.py is on the drive, delete it.
Power-cycle. It boots into appliance mode and runs.

Program it from the web

Open https://metronome.varasys.io in Chrome / Edge / Firefox. The set-list ⋯ menu → 📟 Save to device pushes a programs.json over USB-MIDI; the device persists it and reloads. Click 🔗 Live sync to mirror edits in real time.

Pin reference

The display, buttons, and audio are wired into the board — no jumpers required. CircuitPython's official board definition for pimoroni_explorer2350 exposes board.DISPLAY pre-initialized, so the firmware just uses it.

Function	GPIO
Button A	GP16
Button B	GP15
Button C	GP14
Button X	GP17
Button Y	GP18
Button Z	GP19
Piezo audio (PWM)	GP12
Piezo amp enable	GP13
I²C SDA (QwSTEMMA)	GP20
I²C SCL (QwSTEMMA)	GP21
Display	`board.DISPLAY` (8080 parallel bus on GP26..GP39, initialized by board.c)

Calibration (flags at the top of `app.py`)

Speaker too loud / quiet: the piezo + amp gain is fixed in hardware. MUTE_SPEAKER silences the click; SPEAKER_AUTO_MUTE auto-mutes when a MIDI host is listening.
Buttons feel inverted: the polarity is hard-coded to active-low (pull-up). If a button fires on release instead of press, check the BTN_* pin map at the top of app.py.
Display orientation: the board's CircuitPython init mounts the panel landscape (320 × 240). If your screen looks rotated, that's a board.c-level thing — file a CircuitPython bug, don't patch the firmware.

If app.py ever errors, CircuitPython prints the traceback on the screen and over USB serial — send me that.

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