RGB LED Status Indication
Understand the RGB LED patterns that indicate BLE connection status and machine operations on your OSSM
The RGB LED on pin 25 provides visual feedback about your OSSM's current state. You can quickly identify whether the machine is homing, searching for a Bluetooth connection, or actively communicating with a connected device.
Understanding status priority
The LED displays different patterns based on the current operational state. Machine operations always take priority over BLE status indications.
| Priority | State | LED Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| Highest | Homing | Deep purple breathing effect |
| Lower | BLE Status | Varies by connection state |
Machine status patterns
When your OSSM is homing, the LED displays a deep purple breathing effect with a smooth pulsing pattern. This continues until homing completes or fails.
The homing indicator takes priority over all BLE status patterns. You won't see BLE status changes until homing finishes.
BLE connection status patterns
When your OSSM is searching for a Bluetooth connection:
- Rainbow effect displays for 1 second
- Fast breathing blue follows with rapid pulsing (10x normal speed)
- Auto-dim activates after 30 seconds, reducing to ~12% brightness with gentle pulsing
The auto-dim feature reduces visual distraction if you're using a wired remote instead of Bluetooth. The LED remains visible but won't be distracting during extended sessions.
When a device connects via Bluetooth:
- Rainbow effect displays for 1 second to confirm connection
- Blue LED fades to a dim level (~12% brightness) and stays dimmed
- Communication pulses appear as subtle brightness increases during data transfer
When no Bluetooth connection exists:
- LED turns off completely
A disconnected state differs from advertising. If you power on the OSSM, it begins advertising immediately, so you'll see the blue breathing pattern rather than no light.
Communication indication
When BLE is connected and the LED is dimmed, you'll see brief brightness pulses during:
- Receiving commands from your connected device
- Sending responses back to the device
- State updates transmitted to the device
The communication pulse is subtle—a 100ms fade with minimal brightness increase. This provides feedback without being distracting during operation.
Status indication colors
The firmware defines standard colors for different machine states. These are used by status indication functions and may appear in future firmware updates.
| Status | Color | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Idle | Blue | Default state when waiting |
| Running | Green | Active motion in progress |
| Error | Red | Error condition detected |
| Homing | Yellow | Homing sequence active |
| Connecting | Purple | BLE connection in progress |
Currently, only the homing status (deep purple breathing) is actively displayed during machine operations. Other status colors are defined for future use or custom firmware implementations.
Technical reference
| Constant | Value | Description |
|---|---|---|
ADVERTISING_TIMEOUT | 30 seconds | Time before advertising dims automatically |
| Dimmed brightness | ~12% | Brightness level when connected or after timeout |
| Communication pulse | 100ms | Duration of data transfer indication |
| Function | Purpose |
|---|---|
showBLEAdvertisingDimmed() | Displays gentle pulsing at reduced brightness |
The advertising timeout resets automatically when the BLE connection status changes (connect or disconnect events).