Customer:
Can you provide a cabling diagram showing connections from an Inkplate 10 to an Arduino? I didn’t order an Arduino with my Inkplate, but a colleague has one available. I’m new to this and would appreciate pointers to explanations online.
Originally submitted via email support on 30 December 2024. Migrated to the forum for community visibility.
Soldered Support:
You don’t need to connect Inkplate to an external Arduino device. The Inkplate has an onboard ESP32, which is itself an Arduino-compatible microcontroller. When you upload code to Inkplate, you’re uploading directly to the onboard ESP32. You can use this getting started guide to upload code to Inkplate using Arduino IDE: Inkplate Get Started Page — Inkplate docs documentation
The Arduino library comes with examples that demonstrate basic functionality. Make sure to select the “Soldered Inkplate 10” board definition in Arduino IDE, not “e-Radionica” Inkplate 10, as this is a common source of errors.
Customer:
This is helpful. My next step is to connect the Inkplate to my computer. Does the Inkplate need to be powered by a battery at this point?
Soldered Support:
When Inkplate is connected via USB, it does not need additional battery power. The battery is only needed for independent usage without USB. When connected to USB, make sure to press the ON button—the display should refresh to confirm the device is on and working.
Customer:
I tried the Mandelbrot example and got an error message requiring pyserial, which I installed via Synaptics. The Arduino Appimage didn’t work, so I installed Arduino from Ubuntu’s Synaptics instead.
I asked ChatGPT to write a sketch for a slideshow of my pictures, but it doesn’t work. Can you tell what’s wrong with it? I also included the error log and some pictures from the ‘photos’ directory on my micro-SD card. I notice the Inkplate doesn’t appear as a directory when connected to my PC—is this normal?
Attachment omitted in migration: DSC04288.bmp
Attachment omitted in migration: DiapoChatGPT-quart_jan12.txt
Attachment omitted in migration: DiapoChatGPT-quart_jan12-Error.txt
Attachment omitted in migration: DSC04301.bmp
Attachment omitted in migration: DSC04286.bmp
Soldered Support:
The error requiring pyserial is odd—this should work with just the board definition. On Ubuntu, you only need to install the Inkplate library and board definition. The CH340 USB-to-Serial bridge chip on Inkplate has drivers built into Linux.
Inkplate is not supposed to appear as a directory like MicroPython boards. When you connect via USB, you’re connecting to the Serial port of the onboard ESP32. Code you upload gets permanently stored on the device.
For your slideshow project, use this example sketch: https://github.com/SolderedElectronics/Inkplate-Arduino-library/tree/master/examples/Inkplate10/Advanced/SD/Inkplate10_SD_Pictures
It loads pictures from the SD Card with comments explaining how it works. Keep images on an SD card and use the official SD card formatter.
The compilation issue is likely related to the SDFat library. Try these steps:
Use the example I linked (also available in File > Examples in Arduino)—it’s verified working.
Customer:
I’m using your sketch but getting an image error. I’ve attached one for your review. The image is 8-bit transformed with GIMP. The Inkplate reads the SD card correctly, but then shows an “Image open error” message. Bitmap images and the .jpg from GitHub next to the sketch work fine, but not mine. It seems to be an image format issue. Can you help?
Attachment omitted in migration: DSC03522.jpg
Soldered Support:
Try converting to a 24-bit BMP, or re-save the BMP in MS Paint. The ESP32 libraries that Inkplate uses for image decoding have limitations but cover a wide range in practice.
We usually use JPG without progressive encoding, as it uses the least space while maintaining quality. If you’re working in GIMP, check the output settings to change the bit depth of the BMP and other encoding options. 16-bit and 24-bit BMP work best on Inkplate. If in doubt, MS Paint can save the image in a format that should work and display on Inkplate.