Raspberry Pi Animated Display

This project creates an animated display for Raspberry Pi with an LCD screen that shows:

1. System stats for 20 seconds at boot
2. Raspberry Pi logo that transitions from red to green
3. Matrix digital rain effect during the green phase

Features

• Stats Display: Shows system information for 20 seconds after boot
• Animated Logo: Smooth color transition between red and green Raspberry Pi logos
• Matrix Rain: Digital rain effect (all green characters, reduced by 30%) appears behind the logo during green phase
• Continuous Loop:
  • 30 seconds red logo
  • 30 seconds transition to green (matrix rain starts)
  • 30 seconds green logo with matrix rain
  • 30 seconds transition back to red (matrix rain stops)

Installation

1. Install Required Python Packages

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y python3-pip python3-pil python3-numpy fonts-noto-cjk
sudo pip3 install evdev pillow numpy

2. Copy Files to Raspberry Pi

Copy the following files to /home/pi/:

• display.py - Main display manager
• matrix.py - Matrix digital rain effect
• raspberry_animation.py - Raspberry logo animation
• stats.py - System stats display (from your original setup)
• raspberry.png - Red raspberry logo image
• raspberry_matrix_large.png - Green raspberry logo image

# Copy the images
cp raspberry.png /home/pi/
cp raspberry_matrix_large.png /home/pi/

# Copy the Python files
cp display.py /home/pi/
cp matrix.py /home/pi/
cp raspberry_animation.py /home/pi/

3. Verify LCD Library Path

Make sure your LCD library is installed at:

/home/pi/LCD_Module_RPI_code/RaspberryPi/python

If it's in a different location, update the path in display.py:

sys.path.append('/home/pi/LCD_Module_RPI_code/RaspberryPi/python')

4. Enable SPI

sudo raspi-config

Navigate to: Interface Options → SPI → Enable

5. Set Up Autostart (Optional)

To run the display automatically at boot:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/display.service

Add the following content:

[Unit]
Description=Raspberry Pi Display Manager
After=multi-user.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=pi
WorkingDirectory=/home/pi
ExecStart=/usr/bin/python3 /home/pi/display.py
Restart=always
RestartSec=10

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Enable and start the service:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable display.service
sudo systemctl start display.service

Usage

Manual Run

cd /home/pi
python3 display.py

Check Service Status

sudo systemctl status display.service

View Logs

tail -f /home/pi/display.log

Or with systemd:

sudo journalctl -u display.service -f

Stop the Service

sudo systemctl stop display.service

Timing Configuration

You can adjust the timing in the respective files:

display.py:

• STATS_DISPLAY_TIME = 20 - How long to show stats at boot (seconds)

raspberry_animation.py:

• DISPLAY_TIME = 30 - How long to hold each color before transitioning (seconds)
• TRANSITION_TIME = 30 - How long each transition takes (seconds)

matrix.py:

• self.columns = 20 - Number of matrix rain columns (reduced by 30% from ~28)
• self.update_interval = 0.05 - Speed of matrix animation

Troubleshooting

Display doesn't work

1. Check SPI is enabled: lsmod | grep spi
2. Check wiring connections
3. Verify LCD library is installed correctly

Images don't load

1. Verify image paths in raspberry_animation.py
2. Check file permissions: ls -l /home/pi/raspberry*.png
3. Make sure PIL can read the images: python3 -c "from PIL import Image; Image.open('/home/pi/raspberry.png')"

Matrix characters not displaying correctly

1. Install Japanese fonts: sudo apt-get install fonts-noto-cjk
2. Alternative fonts will be tried automatically if the primary font isn't available

Service won't start

1. Check logs: sudo journalctl -u display.service -n 50
2. Test manually first: python3 /home/pi/display.py
3. Verify all file paths are correct

File Structure

/home/pi/
├── display.py                    # Main display manager
├── matrix.py                     # Matrix rain effect
├── raspberry_animation.py        # Logo animation handler
├── stats.py                      # System stats (existing)
├── raspberry.png                 # Red logo
├── raspberry_matrix_large.png    # Green logo
├── display.log                   # Log file
└── LCD_Module_RPI_code/          # LCD library
    └── RaspberryPi/
        └── python/
            └── lib/
                └── LCD_1inch69.py

Animation Timeline

Boot
 │
 ├─► [0-20s]    Stats Display
 │
 ├─► [20-50s]   Red Raspberry Logo (static)
 │
 ├─► [50-80s]   Transition to Green + Matrix Rain Starts
 │
 ├─► [80-110s]  Green Raspberry Logo + Matrix Rain (static)
 │
 ├─► [110-140s] Transition to Red + Matrix Rain Stops
 │
 └─► [Loop back to 20s]

Customization

Change Colors

Edit the blending in raspberry_animation.py to create custom color transitions.

Adjust Matrix Density

In matrix.py, modify:

• self.columns - Number of falling streams
• Stream activation probability in the update loop

Different Images

Replace raspberry.png and raspberry_matrix_large.png with your own images. They should be:

• PNG format with transparency (RGBA)
• Similar aspect ratio
• Clear subject matter (will be scaled to 80% of display height)

Credits

Based on the original Raspberry Pi LCD display code with enhancements for animation and matrix effects.