Fruit_Jam_Logic_Gates: wire update and new connectors

[RetiredWizard]

This update to the Logic_Gates project does several things:

1. Adds the down_right corner wire so wire routes can be completed.
2. Updates the wire input logic so that signals are only transmitted across sides that have connected wires (wires no longer get values from entities near but not connected, other entities still have this feature).
3. The calculated value for a wire segment (one or more connected wire entities) is done by first tracing the wire back to both ends and locating a signal source (gate or input). once the source is located its value is applied to all wire entities in the wire segment once for each call to the update method.
4. Virtual wires have been added via a ConnectorOut (Output Connector) and ConnectorIn (Input Connector) entities. Up to 5 ConnectorOut objects can be connected to the outputs of any entity or to a wire segment. Then the signal from that location is transferred to any ConnectorIn objects that have selected a particular ConnectorOut. The ConnectorIn object can be clicked on to cycle through available ConnectorOut entities.

The json below is a saved S/R flip flop that uses Connectors, physical buttons and the Neopixel. Pressing button 1 will turn on the neopixel which will remain lit after the button is released, until button 2 is pressed which then turns the neopixel off.

logic_gates_8.json

{"entities": [{"location": [3, 2], "inputs_left": true, "class": "NandGate"}, {"location": [3, 5], "inputs_left": true, "class": "NandGate"}, {"location": [2, 4], "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [2, 5], "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [5, 3], "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [5, 6], "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [1, 2], "index": 0, "class": "PhysicalButton"}, {"location": [2, 2], "class": "NotGate"}, {"location": [2, 7], "class": "NotGate"}, {"location": [1, 7], "index": 1, "class": "PhysicalButton"}, {"location": [9, 3], "inputs_left": false, "class": "NeoPixelOutput"}, {"location": [8, 3], "class": "ConnectorIn"}]}

Edit: By the way, I found the easiest way to get the json files to the CPSAVES drive is to just copy them to CIRCUITPY and then use PyDOS to copy /logic_gates_8.json /saves (PyDOS has write access to CPSAVES even if it's running without write access to CIRCUITPY).

[RetiredWizard]

While working on the pylint errors, I noticed that the save/load wasn't quite working for connectors and I had to update the json data. The following is an updated logic_gates_8.json file:

{"entities": [{"location": [6, 7], "connector_number": 1, "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [10, 4], "inputs_left": false, "class": "NeoPixelOutput"}, {"location": [9, 5], "connector_number": 0, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [4, 6], "inputs_left": true, "class": "NandGate"}, {"location": [3, 6], "connector_number": 0, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [3, 8], "class": "NotGate"}, {"location": [2, 8], "index": 1, "class": "PhysicalButton"}, {"location": [4, 3], "inputs_left": true, "class": "NandGate"}, {"location": [6, 4], "connector_number": 0, "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [3, 5], "connector_number": 1, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [3, 3], "class": "NotGate"}, {"location": [2, 3], "index": 0, "class": "PhysicalButton"}]}

[RetiredWizard]

Here's another fun Flip Flop, it's a D type so the LED is controlled by button 1, but only changes when button 3 is held down. Another way to describe the function is that the value of button 1 is "toggled" onto the LED when button 3 is pressed.

{"entities": [{"location": [3, 2], "class": "NotGate"}, {"location": [2, 2], "state": 5, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [2, 3], "state": 4, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [4, 2], "inputs_left": true, "class": "AndGate"}, {"location": [6, 3], "inputs_left": true, "class": "NorGate"}, {"location": [6, 6], "inputs_left": true, "class": "NorGate"}, {"location": [4, 7], "inputs_left": true, "class": "AndGate"}, {"location": [8, 4], "connector_number": 0, "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [8, 7], "connector_number": 1, "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [5, 5], "connector_number": 1, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [5, 6], "connector_number": 0, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [3, 3], "connector_number": 2, "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [3, 9], "connector_number": 2, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [3, 5], "connector_number": 3, "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [3, 4], "connector_number": 3, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [3, 7], "connector_number": 3, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [11, 2], "inputs_left": false, "class": "NeoPixelOutput"}, {"location": [10, 3], "connector_number": 0, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [1, 3], "index": 0, "class": "PhysicalButton"}, {"location": [2, 5], "index": 2, "class": "PhysicalButton"}]}

[RetiredWizard]

I've been having lots of fun working on this and assuming you like the direction I've been going and this PR gets merged, I thought the next thing I'd like to do is extend the wire tap (place a ConnectorOut near a vertical line and it creates a graphical connection to the wire) to other devices that can get input from a nearby wire like output panels, neopixels and gates (I'm not sure about vertical taps though, maybe 2 input gates and neopixels will only infer signals from wires to the left and require an actual wire connection from the vertical directions).

I also thought it could be fun to add a square wave source so you could blink the neopixel. I'm not sure the performance of the simulator is sufficient but a clock signal is useful in a lot of digital circuits as well.

Edit: I was also thinking a workspace zoom (zoom out really) would be nice as well 😁

[RetiredWizard]

Here's a 10 input or gate circuit:

{"entities": [{"location": [2, 0], "pressed_state": false, "class": "VirtualPushButton"}, {"location": [2, 1], "pressed_state": false, "class": "VirtualPushButton"}, {"location": [2, 2], "pressed_state": false, "class": "VirtualPushButton"}, {"location": [2, 3], "pressed_state": false, "class": "VirtualPushButton"}, {"location": [2, 4], "pressed_state": false, "class": "VirtualPushButton"}, {"location": [2, 5], "pressed_state": false, "class": "VirtualPushButton"}, {"location": [2, 6], "pressed_state": false, "class": "VirtualPushButton"}, {"location": [2, 7], "pressed_state": false, "class": "VirtualPushButton"}, {"location": [2, 8], "pressed_state": false, "class": "VirtualPushButton"}, {"location": [2, 9], "pressed_state": false, "class": "VirtualPushButton"}, {"location": [3, 0], "state": 0, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [3, 1], "connector_number": 0, "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [3, 2], "state": 0, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [3, 3], "state": 0, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [3, 4], "connector_number": 1, "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [3, 5], "state": 0, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [3, 6], "state": 0, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [3, 7], "connector_number": 2, "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [3, 8], "state": 0, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [3, 9], "state": 0, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [4, 0], "inputs_left": true, "class": "OrGate"}, {"location": [4, 3], "inputs_left": true, "class": "OrGate"}, {"location": [4, 6], "inputs_left": true, "class": "OrGate"}, {"location": [4, 9], "state": 0, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [5, 9], "state": 0, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [6, 7], "inputs_left": true, "class": "OrGate"}, {"location": [6, 1], "state": 4, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [5, 2], "connector_number": 0, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [6, 0], "state": 5, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [7, 0], "state": 0, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [6, 2], "inputs_left": true, "class": "OrGate"}, {"location": [7, 2], "connector_number": 2, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [8, 0], "inputs_left": true, "class": "OrGate"}, {"location": [8, 3], "state": 3, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [8, 8], "state": 4, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [8, 7], "state": 1, "class": "Wire"}, {"location": [9, 7], "connector_number": 1, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [10, 5], "inputs_left": true, "class": "OrGate"}, {"location": [9, 3], "connector_number": 3, "class": "ConnectorIn"}, {"location": [10, 1], "inputs_left": true, "class": "OrGate"}, {"location": [12, 6], "connector_number": 3, "class": "ConnectorOut"}, {"location": [12, 2], "class": "OutputPanel"}, {"location": [8, 4], "inputs_left": false, "class": "OrGate"}]}

While I was first playing around with this circuit I noticed an issue with the or gate in the center. There's one or gate that uses the _inputs_left = False attribute and when the circuit was loaded from the save slot, it was drawn correctly but it appeared that it was still trying to get inputs from left (clicking on the gate twice to toggle the mode back and forth made it work again). I dug into the code a bit and I was thinking the issue came from the fact that the super class defines _inputs_left as a class variable rather than an instance variable. I did some quick testing by moving the _inputs_left initialization into the __init__ method which seemed to be a fix but then moving it back didn't cause the problem to reoccur and I can't reproduce the issue now...... 🤷

[FoamyGuy]

@RetiredWizard This sounds awesome, I'm stoked that you're enjoying working on it, and appreciate the improvements.

I'll test them out this week but it may be later on in the week after I get a bigger chunk of my current project completed.