Patternflow is an open-source LED synthesizer that lets you play generative light patterns with four rotary encoders.

An ESP32-S3 drives a 128×64 HUB75 RGB LED matrix to create real-time interactive visuals.

The project is inspired by Nam June Paik's Participation TV (1963), reinterpreting participation as hands-on visual creation. Instead of only watching the artwork, you directly shape and perform the light patterns. This page hosts the current v3.0 board — the verified, recommended revision: - Hybrid power input: USB-C, plus a 2-pin screw terminal on the back of the board as a beginner-friendly bypass (skip the tricky Type-C through-hole soldering entirely) - All through-hole assembly — no SMD passives; the whole board is hand-solderable - ESP32-S3 DevKit mounted on sockets (never soldered), four EC11 rotary encoders, HUB75 output Patternflow includes runtime pattern switching, a browser-based firmware flasher, a Live Editor, and AI-assisted custom pattern creation. This page provides a brief project overview. For the complete documentation — detailed build guide, full BOM with exact part numbers, sourcing links, firmware, hardware files, enclosure files, and step-by-step assembly instructions — please visit:

Build guide (GitHub): https://github.com/engmung/Patternflow/blob/main/BUILD_GUIDE.md

Official website: https://patternflow.work/pcbway

Rather have one pre-assembled? Patternflow is coming to Crowd Supply — subscribe for launch updates:

https://www.crowdsupply.com/engmung/patternflow

See the patterns in motion on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/patternflow.work

Patternflow is released under the MIT License for firmware and web code, and CC BY-SA 4.0 for hardware and design files.