Looking for a good ESP32 compatible epaper (driver)

requiemmg · July 24, 2023, 9:29am

Hi everyone,

I made a solar power and statistics display in a frame with ESP32 and the Waveshare 7,5" b/w epaper.
Many users here are complaining about a grainy picture and here it is no other. I read all the hints on how to fix it, but at last nothing works really good.

So: I am looking for another epaper of the same size which has no problems with display quality and is supported by ESPhome. I looked at esphome.io’s list and found nothing…

Can also be a multicolor device if available, but should emit light like OLED displays.

Or if anyone has the ultimate tip how to make the waveshare boards work (tried different driver versions, switching the switches, batteries and fixed power supply, playing with reset_duration…nothing really better than the other. Reducing refesh interval is not an option as it displays live data.)

matzman666 · July 24, 2023, 12:19pm

Inkplates from Soldered Electronics are quite good. They are refurbished Amazon Kindle displays paired with an ESP32, and the nice thing about them is that they are all-in-one unit containing everything you need, so no need to buy additional hardware.

They are also supported by ESPHome.

requiemmg · July 24, 2023, 1:07pm

Thanks!

After a long wait, 15 Minutes ago there was a fix for the Waveshare ePapers!

github.com/esphome/issues

Waveshare 7.5in V2 e-paper dim and grainy when using lines or rectangles

opened 11:22AM - 04 Jul 21 UTC

TheStork239

integration: waveshare_epaper

**Operating environment/Installation (Hass.io/Docker/pip/etc.):**  Hass.io **ESP (ESP32/ESP8266, Board/Sonoff):**  ESP32 Waveshare Driver Board **ESPHome version (latest production, beta, dev branch)**  1.19.4 **Affected component:**  Waveshare e-paper display https://esphome.io/components/display/waveshare_epaper.html **Description of problem:** All items on a Waveshare 7.5in V2 e-paper display (black & white) go dim and grainy if the items to be displayed include horizontal lines, rectangles or filled rectangles. The wider the line or rectangle, the more marked the effect is. Other shapes or text do not cause the issue. Below is example code that has the issue. If I comment out the "it.filled_rectangle" lines in the code, then the text on screen becomes crisp and clear, but if the rectangles are included, when the screen refreshes, for a split second on refresh it is clear but the black 'ink' dims out instantly. The issue is exactly the same if I use "it.line" or "it.rectangle" of similar dimensions. If I only use very short horizontal lines or rectangles then the issue is less noticeable, but for long horizontal lines and rectangles the entire display goes dim. ![IMG_1899](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/80922293/124382920-bba6c600-dcc1-11eb-8523-e04e4189150c.jpg) **Problem-relevant YAML-configuration entries:** ```yaml esphome: name: cabin-epaper platform: ESP32 board: esp32dev on_boot: priority: -10 then: - delay: 10s - component.update: epaperdisplay wifi: networks: - ssid: [removed] password: [removed] # Enable logging logger: # Enable Home Assistant API api: ota: password: [removed] font: - file: 'fonts/Roboto-Regular.ttf' id: footer_font size: 15 glyphs: ['&', '@', '!', ',', '.', '"', '%', '(', ')', '+', '-', '_', ':', '°', '0', '1', '2', '3', '4', '5', '6', '7', '8', '9', 'A', 'B', 'C', 'D', 'E', 'F', 'G', 'H', 'I', 'J', 'K', 'L', 'M', 'N', 'O', 'P', 'Q', 'R', 'S', 'T', 'U', 'V', 'W', 'X', 'Y', 'Z', ' ', 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e', 'f', 'g', 'h', 'i', 'j', 'k', 'l', 'm', 'n', 'o', 'p', 'q', 'r', 's', 't', 'u', 'v', 'w', 'x', 'y', 'z','å', 'ä', 'ö', '/','º','µ','³'] - file: 'fonts/Roboto-Regular.ttf' id: main_sensor_unit size: 20 glyphs: ['&', '@', '!', ',', '.', '"', '%', '(', ')', '+', '-', '_', ':', '°', '0', '1', '2', '3', '4', '5', '6', '7', '8', '9', 'A', 'B', 'C', 'D', 'E', 'F', 'G', 'H', 'I', 'J', 'K', 'L', 'M', 'N', 'O', 'P', 'Q', 'R', 'S', 'T', 'U', 'V', 'W', 'X', 'Y', 'Z', ' ', 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e', 'f', 'g', 'h', 'i', 'j', 'k', 'l', 'm', 'n', 'o', 'p', 'q', 'r', 's', 't', 'u', 'v', 'w', 'x', 'y', 'z','å', 'ä', 'ö', '/','º','µ','³'] - file: 'fonts/Roboto-Bold.ttf' id: main_sensor_font size: 54 glyphs: ['&', '@', '!', ',', '.', '"', '%', '(', ')', '+', '-', '_', ':', '°', '0', '1', '2', '3', '4', '5', '6', '7', '8', '9', 'A', 'B', 'C', 'D', 'E', 'F', 'G', 'H', 'I', 'J', 'K', 'L', 'M', 'N', 'O', 'P', 'Q', 'R', 'S', 'T', 'U', 'V', 'W', 'X', 'Y', 'Z', ' ', 'a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e', 'f', 'g', 'h', 'i', 'j', 'k', 'l', 'm', 'n', 'o', 'p', 'q', 'r', 's', 't', 'u', 'v', 'w', 'x', 'y', 'z','å', 'ä', 'ö', '/','º','µ','³'] - file: 'fonts/materialdesignicons-webfont.ttf' id: mdi_wifi size: 20 glyphs: [ # Wifi '󰤫', # mdi-wifi-strength-alert-outline '󰤟', # mdi-wifi-strength-1 '󰤢', # mdi-wifi-strength-2 '󰤥', # mdi-wifi-strength-3 '󰤨' # mdi-wifi-strength-4 ] time: - platform: homeassistant id: homeassistant_time sensor: - platform: wifi_signal name: "WiFi Signal Sensor" id: wifisignal update_interval: 60s spi: clk_pin: 13 #SCK mosi_pin: 14 #DIN display: - platform: waveshare_epaper id: epaperdisplay cs_pin: 15 dc_pin: 27 busy_pin: 25 reset_pin: 26 update_interval: 600s model: 7.50inV2 lambda: |- static const char* TAG = "epaperdisplay"; ESP_LOGD(TAG, "Writing to e-ink display"); it.print(775, 17, id(main_sensor_unit), TextAlign::BASELINE_RIGHT, "E-Paper is awesome!"); it.print(0, 460, id(main_sensor_unit), "E-Paper is awesome!"); /* TOP */ it.print(10, 10, id(main_sensor_unit), "TOP"); it.filled_rectangle(98, 21, 400, 3); it.print(15, 60, id(main_sensor_font), "Test 1"); /* MIDDLE */ int offsetY = 200; it.print(10, 10 + offsetY, id(main_sensor_unit), "MIDDLE"); it.filled_rectangle(98, 21 + offsetY, 500, 3); it.print(400, 80 + offsetY, id(main_sensor_font), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "Test 2"); /* BOTTOM */ int offsetYb = 360; it.print(10, 10 + offsetYb, id(main_sensor_unit), "BOTTOM"); it.filled_rectangle(98, 21 + offsetYb, 600, 3); it.print(775, 80 + offsetYb, id(main_sensor_font), TextAlign::BASELINE_RIGHT, "Test 3"); /* FOOTERT */ it.strftime(755, 475 , id(footer_font), TextAlign::BASELINE_RIGHT , "Updated at %d/%b/%Y %H:%M", id(homeassistant_time).now()); /* WiFi Signal Strenght */ if(id(wifisignal).has_state()) { int x = 775; int y = 475; if (id(wifisignal).state >= -50) { //Excellent it.print(x, y, id(mdi_wifi), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "󰤨"); ESP_LOGI("WiFi", "Exellent"); } else if (id(wifisignal).state >= -60) { //Good it.print(x, y, id(mdi_wifi), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "󰤥"); ESP_LOGI("WiFi", "Good"); } else if (id(wifisignal).state >= -75) { //Fair it.print(x, y, id(mdi_wifi), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "󰤢"); ESP_LOGI("WiFi", "Fair"); } else if (id(wifisignal).state >= -100) { //Weak it.print(x, y, id(mdi_wifi), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "󰤟"); ESP_LOGI("WiFi", "Weak"); } else { //Unlikely working signal it.print(x, y, id(mdi_wifi), TextAlign::BASELINE_CENTER, "󰤫"); ESP_LOGI("WiFi", "Unlikely"); } } ``` **Logs (if applicable):**  ``` The logs do not display any errors. ``` **Additional information and things you've tried:** I have tried this with two separate Waveshare 7.5in V2 e-paper displays, and two separate ESP32 driver boards, and get the same results for each combination, so it does not seem to be a faulty hardware issue.