Product Overview
The Proton Optics 6-Channel LED Driver Control System is an OEM module kit for precise multi-channel LED dimming, designed to be integrated into your own lighting equipment or optical setups. The kit includes an ESP32-S3 controller board, a 6-channel PWM LED driver board, a power distribution board with individual channel switches, and a power adapter, and is supported by companion desktop control software, available as a free download. LED chips are not included, so you can pair the system with the LEDs, wavelengths, and optical layout that best suit your application. Each of the 6 channels has its own brightness and PWM frequency setting, making the system a good fit for optical experiments, lighting tests, machine vision illumination, plant lighting research, and other applications where several light sources need precise, independent control.
What's Included
This is an OEM accessory kit that contains the control, drive, and power electronics:
- ESP32-S3 controller board. Handles USB, WiFi, and Bluetooth communication and generates the PWM control signals.
- 6-channel LED driver board. Drives up to six independent LED channels from the PWM signals.
- Power distribution board. Distributes power to each channel, with an individual physical power switch and green indicator light per channel.
- Power adapter. Supplies power to the system.
Not included: LED chips or LED modules. You will need to supply LEDs compatible with the driver board's output specifications. When wiring the system, make sure the driver board's power supply ground is connected to the ESP32-S3 ground (common ground) for stable PWM operation.
Key Features
Six fully independent channels. Each LED channel has its own brightness and PWM frequency, and adjusting one channel never affects the others. This is ideal for setups that combine multiple wavelengths or light sources.
Fine dimming in 0.1% steps. Brightness is adjustable from 0 to 100% in 0.1% increments, giving 1,000 levels per channel. You can drag a slider for smooth adjustment or type in an exact value.
Adjustable PWM frequency. Each channel's PWM frequency can be set independently between 100 Hz and 10 kHz. This lets you match the requirements of different LED drivers and helps reduce flicker and banding when filming or imaging.
Three interchangeable connection methods. The system supports USB Serial, WiFi (TCP over your local network), and Bluetooth Low Energy. All three use the same protocol, so you can choose whichever suits the situation: USB for bench work, WiFi for remote or shared access, and Bluetooth for short-range, cable-free control.
WiFi setup without a screen. On first boot, the device opens its own setup hotspot. Connect a phone or computer to it, choose your network in a browser, and enter the password to finish setup. Once the device is on your network, the desktop app finds it automatically via mDNS and fills in its IP address. To move to a different network, a single click in the app clears the saved settings and returns the device to setup mode.
Hardware
The system hardware has four parts. The ESP32-S3 controller board handles communication and generates the PWM signals. Its onboard RGB status LED shows the active connection: cyan for Bluetooth, blue for WiFi, green for USB Serial, and off when nothing is connected. The 6-channel LED driver board takes the PWM signals and drives the LED loads. The power distribution board gives each LED channel its own physical power switch with a green indicator light, so any channel can be powered down on its own, safely and at a glance. The included power adapter supplies power to the system.
Desktop Software
The companion desktop control software is available as a free download. It has a clean, straightforward interface. Six vertical sliders with scale markings control the channels, and each channel has input fields below its slider for entering brightness and frequency values directly. Buttons along the bottom set all channels at once to Off, 50%, or 100%. A complete user guide is built into the app. Communication runs on background threads so the interface stays responsive while you drag sliders, and a rate limiter keeps rapid adjustments from flooding the connection. The software runs as a standalone application, so no Python installation is needed.
Open Communication Protocol
The system uses a simple text-based command protocol, with commands for setting brightness, setting frequency, and updating all channels at once. The same protocol works over all three connection methods. Besides the desktop app, you can control the device from your own scripts or third-party software, which makes it easy to integrate into automated test workflows or lab control systems.