#16 How to Re-program (reverse engineer) e-ink (epaper) Price Tags (Shelf Labels) with an Arduino
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 14 พ.ค. 2024
- Recently I realized my local grocery store replaced traditional price tags with electronic e-ink (epaper) price tags / shelf labels. I found out that you can easily buy the same ones from e-bay, and I was able to re-program / hack them.
These devices can be used as cheap Arduino E-Ink Displays, and you can easily program these with usb-TTL adapter, or any Arduino board.
The brand of the e-paper display I re-program is Hanshow, and the model is Stellar.
Here are the links which is mentioned in the video:
Blog page (in Chinese, but auto translation works fine):
javabin.cn/2022/epaper.html
github.com/reece15/stellar-L3...
Other projects you might think interesting:
github.com/atc1441/ATC_TLSR_P...
github.com/reiyawea/HanshowClock
github.com/rbaron/pricetag-pr...
github.com/dustybee/HanshowESL
github.com/ieiao/hanshow-2in9...
github.com/search?q=hanshow
▬ Contents of this video ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
0:00 - Intro
0:32 - Contents of the package
1:20 - Tear-down
5:00- Investigation existing projects
6:25 - How to make connections and upload custom firmware
8:18 - Bluetooth operations (updating the time, sending comments, and OTA)
12:48 - Further development ideas and conclusion
I am working at a company that installs and programms these tags. They are normally updated via a special access point which is connected to a local server in the market. For big market chains they are getting their prices from a central server somewhere in the world. For smaller markets they can enter the prices manually in a special software.
I there a way to program a single one using a device you hold near to it? NFC or RFID style interface?
@@devinholland2189t shouldn’t be too hard to make this yourself. These are off the shell price tags. So if you buy one you’ll get access to the api for sure. And seeing this it’s just a simple http session that you can sniff and use
Yourself.
And the contents is just an image.
So it’s just a post of a base64 encoded image.
Acutally these tags are super encrypted! I once talked with the local installer of the Imagotag brand and it is super secure. Once you setup the tag in a network it is set for life on it, only a special encryption key can be used to reset the tag...
@@karlfrankeser Oh wow 'super encrypted', is that like military-grade or even better? They're set up in the network and then are set up for life? Wow, so even if the network goes down they are still in the network, that's really super-network.
Basically the same as practically any wireless network, such as Wifi, where you setup the access method (WPA2-PSK for example) and then it will be able to connect indefinitely...
Sorry to burst the bubble, but the guy taking these out of the box and registering them as he hangs them on the shelves is not an engineer and usually has no clue how they work, just how he is supposed to set them up... Same as how a taxi driver is usually not aware of the exact design details of the engine in his car...
@@CallousCoder "odd the shell" you mean "off the shelf"?
Maker of this project here :)
nice to see it being used, on my channel you can find some in-depth videos about the reversing and creating of this firmware and more E-Paper and price tag related content
Thanks! I've been staring at these for months thinking about using them for inventory management. You've managed to make it easy enough to try, thank you!
Hi Aaron, Nice project. I already told them to check your channel in the video ;)
@@makersfunduck - this comment should be pinned.
Small world. I contacted you on Twitter and got a few from you. I haven’t made an effort on them yet but I will soon!
How much would you charge to hack these for me? I have about 10? I can pay for shipping both ways.
These things make sense in my country! Prices are recalculated almost daily, and i can assure you, never downwards 😂
In my country, they go sometimes 50% OFF, but only after they go 50% up the day earlier😅
@@Mavi222that is still a discount though. +50% and then -50% means -25% in the end
Argentina?
@@huhnXXIII Zimbabwe
@@huhnXXIII damn i was about to ask the same, the situation is very dire here
BestBuy has had these for a while now, but as far as I can tell they work with IR, like a TV remote. We just scan the barcode for the tag at the register, then enter in the product we want to link to the tag, then the tag updates automatically. There are these large chrome saucer looking things hanging from the ceiling all around the store, and if you point a camera at them while setting a tag you can see a ton of IR LEDs blinking.
That makes a lot of sense, it's a big investment but over time it pays off.
@@TheFPSPower they are pretty handy. They update automatically so we don't have to go around changing labels when the price changes. Ours also have an LED so when we can't find where an item is supposed to be we can make the tag linked to that item flash a green LED. I'm sure the labor saved alone makes it worth the investment.
@@MrFastFox666 you know inflation is out of control when price tags have OTA update capabilities
@@josephhacker6508 The paper tags in my supermarket show the week they've been updated on, recently been seeing some Week 42/22 at 1,49 and then Week 2/23 at 2,39 .. Crazy.
@@TheFPSPower idk man it's also a lot of e waste. The paper method used before required paper but at least that's recycable. Also out of all the things to optimize or investing into bringing out their own brands... this? come on.
They have these in a large department store here in Canada. They use the built-in LED to more easily find products in some cases. For example, when buying a light bulb for your car, you can look up the model you need on a touch screen (by entered your car brand, model, year etc) and then there's a button that says something like "flash price tag". When you press it, the LED on the price tag for the bulb you selected starts flashing bright green, which makes it really easy to spot it among the hundreds of other similar looking bulbs.
That’s really normal
very helpful tho
I’m also in Canada. Which store does the flashing? That’s really cool
@@MikeKolcun Canadian Tire. In the automotive section, they have these touch screens to find parts like oil filters, light bulbs etc by brand and year of your car. When it shows a list of search results, there's a button on the individual product that says something like "flash label" or something. It makes a green LED flash on the price tag.
We use the exact same tags in the netherlands, the flashing function is so usefull
I was hoping for a wireless hack that could change the display of tags deployed in a supermarket…purely for scientific purposes of course. But this is very cool nonetheless!
Wonder if you can capture the frequency or signal with the Flipper Zero or something...
It'd be funny to put a Rick Roll on one of those (or all of them if you're feely extra evil) 😈
Same, but I know that if that existed these would go away instantly where I live.
People everywhere would use them probably to protest against the supermarket rising prices, etc
My local supermarket has these, they often throw out boxes of them into their bins, I just take the boxes and I currently have a big wall of them with various article titles that I've written (I'm a journalist).
The supermarket doesn't mind because I'm getting rid of their illegally dumped e-waste for free, and I get some cool little electronics that are very versatile.
Why the heck would they throw them away?
I also talked the manager of the supermarket. They simply dont have time for troubleshooting, and since they are buying it with huge quantities, they are very cheap for them, and dont care. They did not gave any to me though :(
@@makersfunduck I work as shelf restocking stuffs, when i see one "tilting" or just with broken plastic i'll ask if i can take it, or even i may ask for "some to take home", i hope they give them to me. Usually they keep the battery died or the broken pieces ready to dump, somewhere... Like, 100-150 pieces every couple months!! But as i see, there are at least 18-19 different models (standard, ice, double ice, no logo, with "S" logo only, with "S" logon and ice (or TWO ice) logo, with led, without led, red and black, black only, square shape, rectangular shape, double size shape, etc....)
@@Ale_giro Usually, if they have the same brand, only specs are changing, and you can still re-program those. for example some of them have smaller screens, so you need to send of course smaller images to them. some of them have cold resistant, apart from that they can use same firmware. So I suggest all of the ones that you can find :)
What about recycling the wonky tags into E bike power meters?
luckily these are available from my local supermarket ;)
Just dont steal it :P
@@makersfunduck I'm not stealing it, just permanent borrowing ¶:
😂
They often throw out "broken" ones that still actually work fine.
If you want to program 50 of them without soldering, I made a tool that would work a couple months ago. There was a similar physical interface on a GMRS radio that I was trying to troubleshoot. I measured the hole pattern and drilled a 1/4" piece of plastic. I then used pieces rigid wire connected to a mini-grabber. Gravity held the rigid wire down to the connectors well enough to program it. In this case if the plastic adapter is cut(or 3d printed) to the size of the opening of that case then it will line up the pins for you.
thanks for the tip. Pogo pins are literally life saver
I was apart of a Best Buy remodel team that put these up, they're so cool! I had asked a lot of questions about them. One being if they could update automatically (like in a price change) and the answer was yes!
There are transmitters in the ceiling that can send information to individual tags, even when they're close together.(I've even had them go off my mistake in the box or in my hand probably due to the same id?) Unfortunately I get the chance to have a the PDA to program them myself but basically it's scan that barcode on the tag then the product, wait a bit then it starts strobing!
My guess is, the PDA sends this info to a centralize computer that then sends the programing data to the tags through those transmitters via IR. That little blip from the tag after programing probably means 'complete'.
They had them in this size and a *much* larger size too, for the appliances, I think something like 2½"x3" maybe? Those for sure can be used in projects and would be cheap!
In the next video, I tried to do something similar (#17) for personal practical purposes. It uses the Bluetooth on your PC and your PC acts as a transmitter. and you can get a regular updates from any website.
A German supermarket chain I shop at here (UK) has recently rolled those tags out to our local stores, and the larger size is about 4" x 6".
Likely intended for bigger ticket items, but they've been deployed mostly throughout their "Middle of Lidl" section. (Discounted non-food items).
I'd love seeing this implemented as a LP counter for yugioh
not a bad idea, but the colored ones are better for this
Then again, battery is rated for ~10 years with 2 rewrites per day. So, that'd be a quick drain.
Love the "will it run doom" in the tags of this video :)
I love the fact that we're starting to create a real world watch-dogs
My local supermarket just put these up, and I was already planning to try and hack them when your video showed up in my feed. 😄
Did it work?
Cool (interesting), thanks for making this video (producing this content)
Have you tried pogo pins connectors to temporary connect to the board? You can even make your own socket using 3D-printing. They work like a charm.
Oops, I just post the same tip, didn't read all the comments before I posted.
Made exactly that for them a while ago th-cam.com/video/HVyQKORKj1g/w-d-xo.html
What do you mean with socket? like the Tag Connect?
@@rick_er2481 - the pogo pins need to be held in position. With a PCB they have the various pad positions and can drill holes wherever a pin is to be used. In this case, the suggestion was to 3D print something with holes in the proper size and position rather than drilling.
@@stevebabiak6997 @Rick_er Pins are great for a short period of time (p.e. testbeds/bed of nails, ...), but if you need a more permanent connection using SMT connectors (p.e. debugging) it is useful to place the PCB in a 3D printed socket that perfectly fits and holds the board in position, so P-Pins are always at same place.
Hi. Thanks a lot for the video!
Hi, You are so welcome!
Y good work
these things are super helpful. Where i work we have got the exact same esl's . you can let it blink to find the product, it updates the price automatically, and you only have to scan the product and the esl to pair it. Also the battery lasts around 5 years.
Albert Heijn zeker?😉
@@Joepert exact!
@@benvanoers1118keicool
Instead of soldering pins to those pads, I use the thin wires from telephone cables. Hold them down with kapton tape because they break easily. You can glue headers to the edge of the board/case, or splice them to thicker wires and let those hang loose.
Thanks for the tip.
I can see a use for these in a facility where you have a watchman who must either use a Dallas Key device on his time clock. The time clock can scan the barcode and register the time they arrived at a particular post in their tour. If properly synchronized the correct time of day will appear at each post of the tour.
I know in Albert Heijn employees can log in on those handheld terminals (ZEBRA android devices with special software and barcode scanner) and log in to a software that allows you to change what product is displayed on those tags/fix them if the display isn't working correctly/refresh it. You can also find the product by activating a green LED that flashes
they normally communicate (well in bigger setups) via special wifi access points that additionally to 2.4 and 5gh wifi have an rf receiver and transmitter, biggest producer is ses imagotag and the V:IoT protocol, connections to the server (where the prices and images are stored) are verified through x.509 certificates to combat mitm attacks.
I use these things in the store I work. And it saves about 14-23 hours of labor per week of just manually changing prices. With this system it’s all automatic.
We have special access points they connect to all around the store and all price info gets sent from there.
Batteries need to be replaced every 2-3 years depending on how often the displays are changed or how much the LED is used.
I once saw once of these displays blink in my local grocery store. They look EXACTLY like they are printed.
Wish this was a thing 25 years ago when I worked in retail. It took us forever to update shelves sale prices from the weekly flyers.
In Norway they are programmed via IR I pressume. There is these IR blasters connected via ethernet cable hanging from the ceiling.
That's interesting. I wonder how they handle the blockages between the shelves.
@@makersfunduck Extremely bright IR LED which just reflects off most surfaces. It illuminates the entire room the same way a light fixture does, but with IR pulses. My air conditioner remote works like this, allowing it to be mounted on the wall near the door and still work without having to pick it up and point it at the air conditioner.
I guess the IR pulse sequence includes a serial number to only update one particular price tag. They only need to change the prices overnight, so even if it takes 6 hours to update them all, that's still fast enough.
There are also some that are Zigbee based, meaning they can be centrally updated while creating a mesh.
In Italy, in the superstore i work for, those are connected and updated via WiFi (a modem) for a great number of changes,or by their remote controller if changes are for few products.
It would be nice to mod them with smartphone (nft? Wifi? Bt?) without the needed of tear it down and soldering.
I doubt the tags themselves use Wi-Fi, it would be a total calamity trying to have thousands of tags on a Wi-Fi network, and the battery life would be dreadful.
I am quite late to the party. I had a shower thought that E-ink displays could be used for price tags, and I am quite delighted to know that it exists! I am definitely not going to see it anytime soon in my country though.
Very useful when prices are increasing every week.
Unfortunately yeah..
I was once given a bunch of these as a gift because some of them started to fail and acted funny. I have them in a drawer and I think I'm going to try to do something interesting with them.
There are tons of possible use cases I can think of for this tags. If want me to try something, I can also do that for the next video;)
Best low power screen tech :)
The e-ink is very innovative! Although be careful because you can get in trouble and I don't think a skull is a price unit yet. But if you want to do that, maybe talk to someone about it. You have great ideas, so put them to good use instead of pranking stores.
looks like fun day out with spark gap e.m.p toy
That duck was FRICKING loud
It is quacking less loud now in the next video :)
@@makersfunduck T H A N K !
Have seen these at my supermarkets i am also dutch and always wondered if these where e-ink and they are. I saw them life updating the e-paper tags in the Albert Heijn and jumbo. I also saw some of them blinking a green light. Always wanted to mess with them and now i will! Nought some e-paper tags the same ones as the Albert Heijn got a set of 50 for 90 euro
Hah, I did the same about two years ago. I just walked up to the storemanager and asked if I could have one for "experimentation" :D
Dude really thanks for the tip. I didnt know that they would give them for free. So now I got a box of them :D
@@makersfunduck nice 👍
Would be great for a bedside clock that also, naturally, tells you when the power went off during the night.
Hallo Jumbo, best store in the Netherlands! (Don’t worry, I’m not a psycho to think that, I just work there 😅)
Thanks for the Video, do you know if it supports partial updates, for quicker updates to the display ?
I had no idea these things exist! Neat! I wonder how soon I'll see them in use here in England? At least I'll know what they are when I see them.
I can see a lot of benefits during this period of rapidly increasing prices. The supermarkets have got to invest that extra profit somewhere! (Grumble grumble...)
Weird, is England really that far behind the rest of Europe?
E-ink displays look amazing under microscope. It's like film grain instead of pixels.
I was wondering the same thing!
Gutes video!
Danke
- How many tags do you want?
- Yes!
Cool video! just got it recommended to me by the yt algorithm, really didn't know they had so much potential! Very cool!
Ps. I hope that it isn't your own postalcode you just showed..😅
Next time to to an Aldi or Rewe store. If you talk to the store manager you might get some(I did). All the information to find the datasheet is on the back of them and they are good ePaper displays. Interestingly just like the ones you got Aldi uses hansbow nebular-350R-N, same manufacturer but different module than you got
Himm, nice tip. thanks :)
Were you able to repurpose a nebular? I was given one but I'm struggling to mess with it
Awesome, thank you
You're welcome!
The rally english is strong with this one. New subscriber, interesting stuff you have here.
Btw any experience in re-using small printer screens, with or without touch screen? I'm in under the impression that they are pretty hard to re-use but my knowledge on this matter is at least a decade old.
I think he's not Finnish, but rather Dutch, German, or somewhere around there
We have had these for many many years already in scandinavia
I guess almost all stores will have them in near future
Can buy some pogo test pins and make a 4 pin program header with them, works great for SMD program pads.
I really wished to have those when I made this video, but I didnt have. Definitely they are quite nice.
Would it be possible to make a Sonos display? Just the info of the current song that is playin and maybe the next song. And even better add volume, next song and previous song. Great video, thanks
very nice, could it be used to read an analog input different than the battery voltage?
Good thinking
I think it wont be possible, at least with the ones with this Microcontroller. I did not see any analog GPIO pin exposed in the datasheet.
I'd like to see one of those price tags turned into a Thermostate for wall/window unit air conditioners, with a DHT temp/humidity sensor and an IR LED
Put an ESP inside it and use the deep-sleep functionality to get more or less decent battery life
I tried this but even with the full "deep sleep" the battery only can last a few days. ESPs are not designed for long life battery applications. or anything with wifi really. wifi sucks out the battery like crazy
I noticed they are using e-ink price tags in few medium and large stores in my country, and certain chain.
To me weirdest thing was inclusion of red color for specials and sales, as I never heard that color even single one was a possibility for eInk displays, though many don't talk about advancements in the field.
I remember vaguely a satire article that printed in a local newspaper three or four decades ago about shelf tags like this, where the posited communications medium was a cathode ray tube or other modulated light, and each scan just raised the price, and the TV in the electronics department kept raising the prices. Obviously this was well before the formal invention of this product.
It's a crying shame there isn't a better way than we have now to recycle these things. Even if they can be reused for a long time, the need for new batteries to be installed periodically would be a valid issue. Could entire shelves have low voltage power and communication outlet strips on them, obviating the need for each tag to be autonomous and hopefully rendering the whole system hack resistant?
How fast can these tags update their image? Could they do a kind of crude video?
Maybe use NFC for comms and wireless charging for power! 😎
Yes these tags could be made much cheaper by using wireless charging coils for power and something nfc like for data. The scanner would be unique but one scanner can change infinite tags. I don't like the battery and Bluetooth/ir system big stores now use. As it's intentionally more expensive up front so all tags can be remotely updated just to put one more employee out of work. Technology is supposed to make life easier, not put us out of work.
They can refresh at about 2FPS but for better display health you need to do a full refresh every few frames which takes about 5 seconds. So, not good for video. (I don't know if this controller supports fast refresh.)
In normal store usage, the battery only gets used when it has to update the display or you use the on board LED, with an average battery life of about 3-6 years.
Would be nice to hack the rfid or wifi/bluetooth connection for the same thing, so one could maybe change what they show in a store :))
Love seeing my logo file show up in the strangest places
Aight Imma go to Target real quick
Do not try to recharge those batteries those aren't rechargeable. They are small so they will not make huge flames but it is still not recommended.
So true
Even zinc chloride/zinc air/alkaline cells can be recharged provided it's a modified sine wave 1:5 ratio and you don't force too much back, but you can only get about 18-20 charges at 80% of the original capacity at best. Used to do this a lot during the 80's & 90's before rechargeable lithium batteries were common place.
@@dennis8196 it‘s not a good idea for CR cells and will make a horrible smell. LIR cells are supposed to be rechargeable however.
They last over 15 years no need to charge them
Just an idea - it's impractical at even a small scale, but anyway... Since e-ink doesn't need a power, it should be possible to get rid of the battery and implement system similar to RFID, where the power needed to redraw the screen is provided during update process by the external reprogramming device. The problem is it would probably mean to physically access every single updated tag, which is time consuming (the device would have to know what tags to update to prevent any errors - either updating a wrong one, or forgetting some).
Are supermarkets putting these things on trolleys yet? It would be a great advertising space suppliers would pay good money for. Adding latest deals etc. You could also have it update when the trolley passes certain aisles of products.
Thats really a nice idea. I see you have a nice business mind. :)
One of my local stores did the same thing.
Super cool
Thanks.
Currently in Turkey, prices change till you arrive to the register from the shelf. Yes we have an awesome economy... So these would be pain in the ass to use here. 😂
Over 80% inflation in Türkiye.
use it for a module keyboard with a little ink display to show the volume bar or something like that
Is there a way to have one 'central' micro controller (Arduino..etc) control multiple of the e-paper units? (hardwired or not) I get it can be programmed and then 'set'..the image/pic will stay. But if you wanted to use one to keep updating it,,using a single micro controller seems like overkill. Nice video/tutorials!
you dont even need anothermcu, to control all. You can directly control them from your PC. Check this video for example:
th-cam.com/video/BCkMu57S_YA/w-d-xo.html
Thank you, a very interesting video. Just one question, why is there a piano playing in the background?
Many people did not like the background music, so I must do something about it in the next video I guess :/
Himm, I have never thought about that. they are using NFC to register the tags, but if they were also using it for that purpose, that is a really clever.
nice video! just one thing, try not to jumpscare us on the next intro lol
Subscribed!
welcome on board
the shop i work at has some, we use the sesimagotag vusion
there alright but the screens break easliy and they randomly stop updating. there is a central wifi access point for them to connect to.
Maybe you can ask them to give those broken units to you? thats how I did and acquired a bunch of them for free. Most of them worked just fine after re-programming.
Khols has had these forever and ive always wanted to figure out how those work
please tell me im not the only one who saw the bart simpson in the pcb xD
You have a really careful eye :D it was a test image that I sent to it.
Im making a e-paper smartwatch do you have a tip for automatic updateing
what about using Bluetooth, and communicate through it with your phone? it would be possibly most energy efficient and convenient solution.
@@makersfunduck ok thanks
Hey, so everything worked but it's not centered on the display, its a bit up and to the right, all the "empty" space is filled in with a glitch pattern, what went wrong do you think?
I believe your image does not have the same resolution as your pricetag.
If you update your powershell, && will work. It has been available in cmd for a long time but it somehow took years to make it to powershell. I think it got added in pwsh 7
Thanks. I have got always annoyed when that does not work in powershell
The pricetags the shop uses are quite different, i know it, I’m one of the guys who does the data transfer. Do you want one of our tags to fiddle around with? But i don’t think you’ll get as much out of it as the cheap chinese ones. Oh, and we have some in color, up to 4 😉
Sure, that would be cool :)
Neat
@@makersfunduck you’re in the Netherlands? I can send you a tweet if you want! 😄👍
@@erebostd Sure, im in Netherlands :) @Makersfunduck
@@makersfunduck hi again 😊 - is your twitter account hidden? I can't find it. I can try again later, or you can give me q mail address you use for the community, so we can exchange the information. Or do you have a PO box I can send you the device? 👋😊
Now i finally have a reason to steal these
If you don't need the high refresh rate of an LCD, the eInk is so nice for contrast at a distance. Should you choose to continue tinkering with these displays, I'm excited to follow along. I have some ideas for YT Shorts I'll reply with.
YT Short ideas:
- program the expiration dates of your pantry or fridge and leave it on the box or bag, so you can see if something is past due.
- If you have a Pi for it: connect it to your calendar and attach it to the inside of your front door so you know if you have any events to check. Add Weekday, Month Date on top followed by # events today.
- Connect one to a YT subscriber API to display the current count via a Pi
- My Favorite: Put hidden messages on them and hide them in the background of future videos. Make it an Easter egg hunt for viewers.
I guess I covered most of your comments here : th-cam.com/video/BCkMu57S_YA/w-d-xo.html
how are they noemley programed ? wood be a bit ezer to do then tereing it apart?
It's about time I start trolling the supermarkets with this thing...
I mostly see those tags at Best Buy or target. It’s the only two store chains I notice
My local shop has Solum Newton ESL tags and I'm wondering what the best way of going about programming those is. Can someone point me in the right direction?
Those tags are for dealing with insane inflation that’s coming. The price will change every second like in venezuela
My thoughts exactly
hahahahaha cheaper then printing then so much
any way to hook these up to the twitch api? to have a dedicated live sign to tell when someone is live or if ur stream is still live and hasnt shutdown.
please do an update how to prog one wirelesly, unmodified one
Bro i live in France and we had them for lucking years at Intermarché, Leclerc, lidl,ect
Himm, no wonder the units that I bought came from France :)
@@makersfunduck yep
saw them today then went home and instantly wanted to see if they were able to be modified
Dont those displays just need one pulse to keep the data ? Then why not just connect the display to the programer ?
Hey man, great video. Where are you from? You have a really unique accent
He is dutch, he saw them at his local supermarket either jumbo or Albert Heijn both dutch super markets i also seen them at those stores
@@user-rn7vz1ec4k I thought the dutch accent was a lot more different, maybe he has different background? Excuse my ignorance if that's how it is normally, actually don't know that many dutch people so my dataset is very limited.
I saw one very early system that was solar powered and used the stores existing lighting to program them. I assume patents mean competitors have to use other ways.
That's a brilliant way to get rid of the literal tons of single-use batteries.
@@renakunisaki agree about waste, but added components (solar cell, accumulator) and complexity probably makes it too expensive. And they will have a limited component life span anyway, or they decide to change system after a few years. End result: more money and more waste. That's the way it works currently. :-(
Broadcasting through the flicker of lamps is quite interesting, but I would guess it would be mostly for the novelty. Radio is so well established and everywhere these days. And free to use spectrum and protocols keeps it safe.
But how do they get "sun" inside of the stores? regular lights dont produce enough energy to charge the batteries
@@makersfunduck Regular lights work fine have you never used a solar calculator indoors? Eink shelf labels use very little power the solar cell just needs to trickle charge a capacitor.
The battery lasts for more than 15 years so no need for solar
the 4:12, hidden antenna, a door alarm think to stop them walking out door with all the over expensive items on desplay in the shop, stuff not nailed down?
Himm, I know they are using it to register the tags to their systems, however if they are also using it for that purpose, that is very clever.
@@makersfunduck it only guess, the real that sticky labels, lumps of plastic, look very simple in construction, loop of wire and resistor or something making a wire loop, and the sticker one look even simpler in construction look like kitchen foil cut out loop shape and small blob of something, the do make dud one too mixed with real one, that look the same, so only real one will be working flashing light at the door ones? but display label tag I thing they will all be working ones, its a real circuit board so putting dud parts not going to make any since
The start of the video, was that Jumbo? Surely sounds interesting to play with tho but I'm wondering what store it is
Yes it definetely was
Yep :)
@@makersfunduck nice. Now let's troll them
I know that supermarket… Time to cause havoc at the Jumbo!
You can just ask the store managers. They give away their "broken" price tags for free. But most of them works just fine after flashing.
I’ve seen these at Kohl’s. I never knew they needed two coin batteries.
Small ones only need 1 battery.
Adamsın abi
I think these things pay for themselves faster than you might think, considering the hours/wages saved from the manual process.
where do you need to connect the wires on the esp, and do you need some special firmware on it?
Look, if you're not familiar enough with serial communication protocols to read the labels on the PCB and know what to do, this project may be too advanced for you. Try reading about the UART, SPI, and I2C protocols and then you'll be able to answer your own question. You have to answer it yourself because the answer depends on the exact board you have and the exact price tag you buy.
it is standard serial communication. so, tx, tx, vcc and ground.
I wonder if you could take an image, split it up and send it to multiple modules to make a composite display?
I had the same idea as one kindle sized epaper display is pretty pricey
Yeah, but would it look cool? Because there will be quite big gap between the tags.
BAD APPLE
@@makersfunduck You HAVE to try playing doom with these. You will become a legend. And after all, people have played doom on a light bulb before.
is there a way to use this display [or one like it] inside a pc case? to display cpu/ gpu temps, utilization, etc. ?
You can take a look at the next video (#17). The code I shared can do this with a little modification. you only need to comment out the part where it opens the browser in "main.py"
make a monitor out of many of those price tag screens
would be cool to try to connect to the rf interfaces
But this ones do not have RF interface. I heard those form the comments, but I dont have one yet.
@@makersfunduck ah I see