David Hamp-Gonsalves has taken Conway’s Game of Life and added an intriguing twist by introducing a circadian rhythm. As Hackaday reported, the evolution of the game is now influenced by the amount of ambient light detected through a solar cell. As the solar cell charges a battery, the voltage level of the battery dictates the speed at which the Game of Life progresses. This creates a dynamic where the game is more active during daylight when the solar cell generates more power and slows down or even halts during nighttime when there is less available energy.

To implement this concept, an ESP32 microcontroller is used to run the Game of Life simulation and display the results on a power-efficient 400 x 300-pixel E Ink display. The main processor core of the ESP32 is intentionally put into deep sleep mode most of the time to minimize power consumption. Instead, the Ultra Low Power (ULP) co-processor continuously monitors the lithium battery’s voltage as it charges from the solar cell.

When the battery voltage reaches 3.3 V, signaling sufficient energy availability, the main CPU wakes up and calculates the next state of the Game of Life. This results in the game progressing at different speeds depending on the amount of sunlight the solar cell receives. During bright sunlight, the game updates every few seconds, while on cloudy days, it might take minutes or even hours for a single update.

The clever integration of this energy-dependent behavior transforms the Game of Life into something akin to a cold-blooded animal, where its activity levels are influenced by its external energy source. This idea adds an extra layer of complexity and realism to the traditional cellular automaton, making it more life-like and dynamic. Similar concepts have been explored previously with a “solar creature” that ran a Life-like simulation on a seven-segment LCD, but David’s implementation with an e-ink display and an ESP32 showcases a novel and interesting approach.

For those seeking speed in Conway’s Game of Life, an FPGA-based implementation would be a better choice.

The post Solar-powered E Ink: Conway's Game of Life with circadian rhythm first appeared on Good e-Reader.

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