SAINTCON 2018 · United States · 2018

SAINTCON 2018 ESP32 Badge

ESP32 MicroPython badge with 8x32 LED matrix and twelve minibadge spots

The SAINTCON 2018 ESP32 Badge was an electronic conference badge built around a LOLIN D32 / ESP32 module running MicroPython, an 8x32 LED matrix, three buttons, a rechargeable battery, Wi-Fi configuration behavior, Hacker Challenge score display, and twelve minibadge spots.

SAINTCON United States Utah Provo ESP32 LOLIN D32 MicroPython LED Matrix I2C Minibadge Hackers Challenge North America

EventSAINTCON 2018

SeriesSAINTCON

LocationUtah Valley Convention Center, Provo, Utah

CountryUnited States

People

Authors & Credits

badge code co-author

bashninja

The main MicroPython source header credits compukidmike and bashninja for the SAINTCON 2018 badge code.

Source

badge designer and repository publisher

Michael Whiteley / compukidmike

The official badge page names compukidmike as the badge designer, and the repository preserves the 2018 badge source, documentation, hardware, and minibadge notes.

Source

event and official archive publisher

UtahSAINT / SAINTCON

The official 2018 archive and badge page establish the event timing, venue context, electronic-badge announcement, and minibadge direction.

Source

Why It Mattered

It fills the year before SAINTCON's Enigma badge and shows the Utah lineage already treating the attendee badge as a programmable platform: firmware, schematic, Gerbers, BOM, flashing instructions, minibadge protocol notes, and event contest integration were all public.

Hardware

The badge README documents an ESP32 Wi-Fi module, 8x32 LED matrix display, three buttons, twelve minibadge spots, and rechargeable battery. The repository preserves a build sheet, KiCad source, Gerbers, schematic PDF, assembly BOM, and LOLIN D32 / LED-driver footprints.

Software & Apps

The public source tree preserves MicroPython badge code. The README documents esptool flashing of `Saintcon2018.bin`, MicroPython/uPyCraft editing, Wi-Fi configuration access-point behavior, selectable LED-matrix screens for SAINTCON, custom message, Hacker Challenge score, and Hacker Challenge ID, plus brightness, Wi-Fi status, Wi-Fi config, and minibadge menu items.

Lore

The official badge page says SAINTCON would again provide an electronic badge, names compukidmike as the new badge-team member, and explains that the event was doubling down on minibadges with many more spots, included female headers, and I2C support in the main badge code.

Lifecycle

Add-ons & Upgrades

add-on protocol documented

I2C minibadge protocol

The minibadge notes define I2C address coordination plus polling, button, text, pixel, timed-pixel, custom-data, score-update, and brightness-change messages.

Compatibility: SAINTCON 2018 ESP32 Badge and minibadges

Source

badge interface documented

8x32 LED matrix menu

The badge uses an 8x32 LED matrix and three buttons to show SAINTCON, a custom message, Hacker Challenge score, Hacker Challenge ID, brightness, Wi-Fi status/configuration, and minibadge controls.

Compatibility: SAINTCON 2018 ESP32 Badge

Source

configuration workflow documented

Wi-Fi configuration access point

The badge README and firmware document a Wi-Fi configuration mode where the badge displays an SSID and password, then hosts a configuration flow for network settings and the custom message.

Compatibility: SAINTCON 2018 ESP32 Badge

Source

expansion hardware source-backed

Twelve minibadge spots

The official badge page and README document twelve minibadge spots, included female minibadge headers, and expanded minibadge support for the 2018 event.

Compatibility: SAINTCON 2018 minibadges

Source

hardware and firmware platform source-backed

ESP32 MicroPython badge core

The badge README documents an ESP32 Wi-Fi module running MicroPython, and the repository preserves the source tree and binary image used to operate the badge.

Compatibility: SAINTCON 2018 ESP32 Badge

Source

Operational history

Issues & Camp Impact

missing rights-cleared image note

No SAINTCON 2018 ESP32 Badge image is published because the current public source trail has not been paired with a reusable original badge or artifact photo or official upstream raster render with source URL, license or permission basis, attribution, and processing notes.

The United States record remains source-backed and image-free rather than copying source-page media, documentation screenshots, event photos, social media, placeholders, or generated approximations.

Confidence: local project policy
Status: needs licensed original replacement
Timeframe: current catalogue build
Source note: badge.gallery image policy and SAINTCON 2018 official archive, badge page, venue page, and compukidmike/Saintcon2018 repository source trail.

power and minibadge caveat note

The badge README notes the badge lacks an on/off switch and tells owners to unplug the battery when not using it; the minibadge README warns that the 5 V rail may actually be battery voltage and asks minibadge makers to be conservative with power draw.

The record preserves operational and add-on-design constraints rather than presenting the badge as a frictionless reference platform.

Confidence: primary documentation
Status: documented
Timeframe: badge operation and minibadge design
Source note: SAINTCON 2018 badge README and minibadges README.

repository-license caveat note

The public GitHub repository exposes source, PDFs, hardware files, firmware image, and site imagery, but this pass did not recover a top-level license or image-specific reuse grant.

The catalogue cites the repository as evidence but does not republish repository media or treat design files, PDFs, or images as reusable publication assets.

Confidence: GitHub metadata and repository tree
Status: documented for source only
Timeframe: current catalogue build
Source note: compukidmike/Saintcon2018 repository tree and badge.gallery image policy.

Resources

SAINTCON 2018 Gerbers manufacturing files · Repository Gerber outputs for badge manufacturing evidence. SAINTCON 2018 archive official event archive · Official mirror source for September 25-28, 2018 event timing and Provo, Utah context. SAINTCON 2018 badge README badge documentation · Primary badge documentation for ESP32, MicroPython, 8x32 LED matrix, three buttons, twelve minibadge spots, rechargeable battery, flashing, charging, menu behavior, Wi-Fi configuration, Hacker Challenge score, and uPyCraft editing. SAINTCON 2018 badge page official badge page · Official badge page documenting the 2018 electronic badge, compukidmike design credit, expanded minibadge support, I2C support, repository link, and included female minibadge headers. SAINTCON 2018 build sheet assembly guide · Repository PDF assembly guide for building the badge. SAINTCON 2018 hardware tree hardware source · Repository hardware directory preserving KiCad design files, schematic, BOM, Gerbers, position files, footprints, and related board assets. SAINTCON 2018 main.py firmware source · Primary MicroPython source for display states, I2C buses, button handling, minibadge polling, brightness events, Wi-Fi setup, and Hacker Challenge score updates. SAINTCON 2018 minibadge notes minibadge protocol · Repository minibadge-maker notes documenting I2C address coordination, power caveats, polling messages, text and pixel display messages, custom data, and event messages. SAINTCON 2018 source tree firmware source · Repository source-code tree preserving MicroPython modules and web configuration assets for the badge. SAINTCON 2018 venue page official venue page · Official venue page documenting Utah Valley Convention Center in Provo, Utah as the SAINTCON 2018 venue. Saintcon2018 repository README source · Repository overview stating that the archive contains badge building, flashing, operating, and minibadge-maker information. compukidmike/Saintcon2018 source repo · Public repository preserving the 2018 badge source code, build sheet, binary firmware image, KiCad hardware files, Gerbers, schematic, BOM, and minibadge notes.

Sources