Anyone looked into using Electronic Price Tag screens with HA?

arganto · February 6, 2024, 6:35pm

Did you read, that these calls formats are deprecated? So a removal is not out of range. I would suggest to start directly with the drawcustom. Well described here:

github.com

jonasniesner/open_epaper_link_homeassistant/blob/47969bf8a5d2d11c2c84896f5c5a772e2b913d0b/docs/drawcustom/supported_types.md

# drawcustom

With `drawcustom`, you can create an image in Home Assistant and send the rendered image to an OpenEpaperLink AP.

The basic service call, looks like this:

```yaml
service: open_epaper_link.drawcustom
target:
  entity_id:
    - open_epaper_link.0000028DF056743B
data:
  background: white
  rotate: 90
  payload:
    - type: text
      value: "Hello World!"
      font: "ppb.ttf"
      x: 0
      y: 0

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stevemann · February 6, 2024, 6:49pm

Drawcustom is actually what I am doing with the tags I am making for around the house. The question was just a curiosity.
Here is the screen resolution of 296 x 128:

GR2900-Screen-Dimensions_sm

arganto · February 6, 2024, 7:12pm

What do you mean?

stevemann · February 6, 2024, 8:00pm

From: 2.9″ ST‐GR29000 · jjwbruijn/OpenEPaperLink Wiki · GitHub

Specs
2.9” ePaper display SSD1619 or UC8151 (BWR) 296x128px

arganto · February 6, 2024, 9:35pm

Still not get it. So spec is equal to you picture and not different.

stevemann · February 6, 2024, 10:19pm

I need stronger glasses.

grey-trunk · February 8, 2024, 3:15pm

Apart from the Tindie link does anyone have a shop they’ve purchased from to get either the APs or the tags?

Hellis81 · February 19, 2024, 8:32pm

I just got my tags today.
They are really cool, so much fun tinkering with these.
I will spend so much less time with my family from now on.

Hellis81 · February 21, 2024, 5:56pm

Anyone know why the tags sometimes does not update?
I managed to get one update done just a few minutes ago, then I made some changes to the code and sent a new one and then the price tag just doesn’t respond.
It checks in as it should but it won’t take the new image.

I have tried to clear the pending and send it again. I also tried the force refresh button but none of it has worked.

Tried to unplug the AP and then plug it back in and it started working again.
Seems a bit unreliable, anyone else noticed this? I had the same issue yesterday

arganto · February 21, 2024, 6:15pm

Is the new image generated? And only not send? Perhaps you used simulation?

Anyway: I would try a new battery.

Hellis81 · February 21, 2024, 6:19pm

Kind of the same as before, I just moved some text a bit down.
No, it was not a dry run. It was the same code.

Perhaps batteries could help. But I tried to send the same code to two tags just to see if it was the tag. None of them responded until I had power cycled the AP.

stevemann · February 21, 2024, 6:27pm

Probably don’t need to say this, but the tag only updates when it wakes up and sees an update pending. The “1” in the lower corner of your image shows that one update is pending. Unless you have changed it, I believe the tags check for updates every 40 seconds.

Hellis81 · February 21, 2024, 6:29pm

Yeah… But I waited several cycles. Probably upwards to 10 cycles and it did not respond.

arganto · February 21, 2024, 6:38pm

Do you have the newest integration version? There were recently some fixes/problems with disconnecting the access point.

Hellis81 · February 21, 2024, 6:41pm

There is no updates in HACS.
I installed the integration monday, so I guess I have the latest

Hellis81 · February 21, 2024, 8:53pm

Now both of them went in to this mode while I was getting the kids to sleep

I’ll get a bunch of batteries. It could be that there is enough battery to check-in but not to update the screen

stevemann · February 22, 2024, 4:32am

Try removing the batteries, short the contacts in the tag then reinsert the batteries.
I don’t know if it matters, but be near the Access Point when you reinsert the batteries.

Hellis81 · February 22, 2024, 5:09am

I didn’t do that. But this morning they both were back as they where commanded yesterday.
I managed to send one new image and then it stopped responding again.

The tags are still in development and are just beside the laptop and the AP, so it shouldn’t be a range issue.
I´ll see what new batteries will do.

john2014 · February 22, 2024, 6:45am

I personally noticed that a low battery can result in some strange behavior, so that would probably be a good step indeed.

And make sure to reset them (so shorting the battery contacts).

r2k · February 24, 2024, 6:43am

I got my AP and my tags a few days ago, I love them. I was lucky to get a 4.2" and im using your code for the weather update in the hallway.

I figured out a small issue with the code, in my environment it does not like the Monday (like most people ) Monday will not be displayed:
Screenshot 2024-02-24 at 07.33.00

I could track it down to this section of the code but I really have no clue how to solve it. Yesterday it was the last row, today its the middle day - so based on my understanding is related to Monday.

        {% set temp = (state_attr('weather.home', 'forecast')[2].templow |
        float) | round(0)|string  %} {% set tag =
        ['Mo','Di','Mi','Do','Fr','Sa','So'][as_datetime(state_attr('weather.home',
        'forecast')[1].datetime).strftime('%u')|int] %} {% if temp|length == 1
        %} {{tag ~ "  " ~ temp ~ "°"}} {% elif temp|length == 2 %} {{tag ~ " " ~
        temp ~ "°"}} {% elif temp|length == 3 %} {{tag ~ " " ~ temp}} {% endif
        %}

wrong output (MO is missing):

right output but wrong array position:

its reproducable in my HA in the developer tool (states) and in my test HA as well (both docker based) / Version 2024.2.3

I hope this helps - sorry for the long post but I try to provide as much information as possible

Best regards
Marco