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Designer and maker Jagi Natarajan documented a custom LED display based on the spiral patterns found in sunflowers and other plants. The 89-cell device combines 3D-printed parts, translucent paper, an STM32 controller and a digital microphone to change its light patterns in response to sound.
Jagi Natarajan has documented the design and construction of Phyllotaxis, a physical LED display shaped by the spiral arrangement of seeds in a sunflower. The completed object uses 89 individually controlled LEDs and audio analysis on an STM32 board to make its light patterns respond to sounds in the room.
Natarajan began with a computer-generated point pattern based on phyllotaxis, the arrangement of leaves or seeds around a plant stem. In the report, Natarajan describes generating points along a radial line and rotating them by successive multiples of the golden ratio. A Voronoi tessellation of those points produced adjoining, irregular cells that suggested seed pods.
To turn the digital pattern into a physical object, Natarajan exported cell-edge data from a Processing sketch and used CadQuery to model the structure. The design includes walls between cells and a hole for an LED in each one. Natarajan split the model into four sections sized for a 3D printer, then used FreeCAD to add screw holes and make a thin faceplate. Paper attached beneath that faceplate diffuses the light; Natarajan chose translucent mulberry paper for its visible fibers.
The electronics comprise 89 RGB addressable LEDs, a spare STM32 Blackpill controller and an INMP441 digital microphone. Natarajan wrote a Neopixel driver using SPI and used ARM’s CMSIS library for audio processing. The software applies automatic gain control and separates sound energy into frequency bands, which can influence the display’s patterns. A radial, pulsing sine wave became a central visual effect. The report says the device was later mounted on a circular bamboo cutting board, with the controller and microphone housed in a 3D-printed box.
How the Pattern Became a Display
The project shows how a familiar natural pattern can guide both the shape of an object and its software. Rather than placing lights in a conventional rectangular grid, Natarajan used the tessellated spiral to define a cellular display, then mapped each LED’s position so the code could generate effects around the center.
It also brings several maker techniques together in one working object: procedural geometry, 3D printing, paper diffusion, microcontroller programming and digital audio analysis. The report gives readers a concrete example of how a visual idea can move from a sketch into a fabricated object, while making clear that the result involved custom modeling and considerable electronics work.
From Sunflower Geometry to LEDs
Natarajan says the project grew from an interest in patterns found in nature and a desire to build a more unusual LED matrix. An earlier rectangular Neopixel matrix had been made in high school; the sunflower-like form offered a different layout for a new display.
The build moved through distinct stages. A Processing sketch generated the point pattern and Voronoi cells. CadQuery converted the cell geometry into printable parts, and FreeCAD was used for finishing details. After printing and assembling the frame, Natarajan soldered the LEDs and first tested them with basic patterns before adding audio input and analysis.
The report describes Jon Hopkins’ “Neon Pattern Drum” as a track that brought the display to life during development. That is an anecdote about testing and does not establish how the device performs across other recordings or environments.
Details Beyond the Build Report
The report does not give a publication date, the display’s dimensions, its power requirements or measured audio-response performance. It also does not say whether the design files, firmware or a complete parts list are available for others to reproduce the build.
The supplied report text ends during a description of the electronics enclosure, stating that the setup was prone to noise that would “cause th”. The missing ending leaves the nature of that noise problem, and whether the final arrangement resolved it, unclear. No cost, durability testing or plans for wider production are stated.
Further Build Details to Watch
The published account presents Phyllotaxis as a completed personal project, but it does not announce a release, commercial product or follow-up build. Readers seeking to reproduce it would need more information about the electronics, firmware and final enclosure than appears in the supplied report.
Any later update from Natarajan could clarify the noise issue and provide practical details such as build files or performance measurements. Until then, the confirmed account is a description of one working prototype and its design process.
Key Questions
What is Phyllotaxis?
Phyllotaxis is Natarajan’s sunflower-inspired, cellular LED display. Its individual light cells follow a radial pattern derived from the arrangement of seeds in plants.
How many LEDs does the display use?
The report says the display has 89 addressable RGB LEDs, with one LED placed in each cell.
How does it react to sound?
An INMP441 digital microphone feeds audio to an STM32 controller. The software analyzes frequency bands and audio energy, then uses that information to affect the LED patterns.
Can readers build the same display?
The report describes the modeling and electronics process, but the supplied material does not confirm that complete design files, firmware or a parts list are available.
Source: hn
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