F1 Marshal Panel for F1 Sensor for Home Assistant

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I built a small project that simulates an F1 marshal LED panel using an ESP8266 (ESP-01) and a WS2812B 8×8 LED panel . The panel is connected to Home Assistant and automatically displays the current track status from the entity sensor.f1_session_track_status .

The goal of the project was to create a decorative but also functional panel that reacts to the track status during a race, similar to the real panels used in Formula One.

Panel functions

  • CLEAR – green light (automatically turns off after 10 seconds)
  • YELLOW – yellow warning pattern
  • RED – red flashing
  • SC (Safety Car) – white SC letters with a rotating amber beacon cone around the panel border
  • VSC (Virtual Safety Car) – alternating V and SC letters with an amber frame

The panel also includes several additional features:

  • a boot animation when the device starts
  • a brightness slider in Home Assistant (10–70%)
  • automatic shutdown if no data is received from Home Assistant for 30 seconds
  • test buttons in Home Assistant for manually triggering all effects

Hardware

  • ESP8266 ESP-01
  • WS2812B 8×8 LED panel (64 LEDs)
  • 5V power supply

The LED matrix is addressed as a serpentine 8×8 panel .

Software

The firmware is written in ESPHome , and the track status is received directly from Home Assistant through the sensor:

sensor.f1_session_track_status

All visual effects are implemented using the addressable_lambda feature to control each LED individually.

Project idea

While watching races, I wanted a small panel that visually shows the current track status in real time, similar to the marshal panels used around the circuit during Formula 1 events.

The result is a small F1 marshal panel simulator that integrates nicely into a smart-home setup.

If anyone is interested in the project, code here:

https://github.com/SimovicTV/F1-Marshal-Panel/tree/main

Many thanks to Stimo Niklas for the Formula 1 Racing Sensor .

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That sounds amazing! Could you share some pictures or a short GIF showing how it looks?

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youtube.com/watch?v=b7yZkRVkAVU&list=PLcgkxnzxYX_oOi6DiXRhTfannxMqxtdbX&index=3

It’s a bit hard to see; I wasn’t sure how to make it better.

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New YAML code. Corrected error in the text sensor, that it takes data from HA, and other minor changes and optimizations

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Nice!!!
Would be nice to have these animations included in the blueprint to send to existing wled panels.
I do have a wled panel, but don’t want to reflash the esp just for this :slight_smile:

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:vertical_traffic_light: F1 Marshal Panel – Version 2.0 :checkered_flag:

After a lot of testing, tweaking, and feedback, I’m happy to share Version 2.0 of my DIY F1 Marshal Panel project.

This version is a major upgrade over the original — both visually and functionally.

:wrench: Hardware

  • 16×16 WS2812 LED matrix
  • ESP8266 (Wemos D1 Mini)
  • Powered and controlled via ESPHome + Home Assistant

:rocket: What’s new in Version 2.0

  • :checkered_flag: New FINISHED mode
    Clean 4×4 checkered flag animation with smooth fade transitions, optimized for low-resolution panels.

  • :rotating_light: Improved Safety Car (SC)
    Static white “SC” with 4 independent moving “snakes” around the border (extended length for smoother motion).

  • :yellow_circle: Virtual Safety Car (VSC)
    Constant yellow border + blinking white “VSC” text.

  • :green_circle: CLEAR logic fixed
    Green signal now turns off correctly after 5 seconds (no more stuck state).

  • :red_circle: RED & YELLOW refined
    Better timing and visual clarity.

  • :bulb: Brightness control
    Adjustable directly from Home Assistant.

  • :video_game: Built-in TEST buttons
    Trigger every state manually (CLEAR / YELLOW / RED / SC / VSC / FINISHED).

  • :brain: Smart HA integration

    • sensor.f1_track_status
    • sensor.f1_session_session_status
    • Automatic reaction to session finish

:gear: Behavior

  • Panel automatically reacts to live F1 data from Home Assistant
  • FINISHED mode overrides all other states (30 seconds runtime)
  • System is stable, responsive, and designed for real-time use

:dart: Goal

The main idea was to create a portable, standalone F1 marshal-style panel that:

  • works reliably
  • looks clean even on a 16×16 matrix
  • can be easily integrated or taken anywhere

If anyone is building something similar or has ideas for further improvements, I’d love to hear feedback!

:checkered_flag: Version 2.0 is just the beginning.

YAML file HERE

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f1master (3)

Many thanks to Stimo Niklas for the Formula 1 Racing Sensor

1 Like
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That is cool!