mangavalk/nixie-clock
1
0 Fork 0
Code Issues Pull Requests Actions Packages Projects Releases Wiki Activity

Map stock firmware GPIO use from disassembly

Browse Source 
Disassembled the SV1.3 app image and confirmed the shift-register
(HSPI 13/14 + latch 15), WS2812 (12), LDR (A0) and button pins, the
16-bit bit map and the tube order. The stock firmware has no I2C code
and drives a DFPlayer on UART0. Adds the ELF/xref helper tools.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
This commit is contained in:
mangavalkandClaude Opus 5.5 committed 2026-10-25 20:42:56 +01:00
1 parent 9ffcfb95d2
commit 8efa810e4e
4 files changed
+598 -15
Download Patch File Download Diff File Expand all files Collapse all files

No files matched your search

docs/stock-firmware-pins.md
+276
View File
@@ -0,0 +1,276 @@
# Stock firmware SV1.3: GPIO use from disassembly
Offline analysis of the app image in `firmware/stock/nixie_stock_SV1.3_full_4MB.bin`
(0x1000 slot only; SPIFFS was not read). The binary has no symbols, so the Arduino core
functions were identified by the registers they touch and matched against core 2.x source.
Bottom line: the 16-bit shift-register word, the WS2812 pin, the latch pin and the light
sensor all match the 12 V v2 schematic exactly. **The firmware never uses I2C**, so it does
not talk to a DS3231 at all; time comes from NTP only. It also drives a DFPlayer Mini on
UART0 and reads GPIO0/GPIO2 as inputs.
## Pin summary
| Function | GPIO | How it is driven | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| 74HC595 DATA | 13 | Hardware HSPI MOSI (`SPI.begin()`, pin set to SPECIAL) | High |
| 74HC595 CLOCK | 14 | Hardware HSPI SCK (`SPI.begin()`) | High |
| 74HC595 LATCH | 15 | `pinMode(15, OUTPUT)`, `digitalWrite(15, 0/1)` around each 2-byte transfer | High |
| WS2812 data | 12 | Adafruit_NeoPixel bit-bang, `Adafruit_NeoPixel(12, 12, NEO_GRB+NEO_KHZ800)` | High |
| Light sensor | A0 (ADC) | `analogRead(17)` → `system_adc_read()` | High |
| GPIO0 (BTN1 pad) | 0 | `pinMode(0, INPUT_PULLUP)`, polled with `digitalRead(0)`; LOW triggers an action | High (pin), medium (meaning) |
| GPIO2 (BTN2 pad) | 2 | `pinMode(2, INPUT_PULLUP)`, `digitalRead(2)` when a feature flag is set; a change resets the "Time to sleep" timer and wakes the display | High (pin), medium (meaning) |
| DFPlayer Mini | 1 (TX), 3 (RX) | `Serial.begin(9600, SERIAL_8N1)` on UART0, DFRobotDFPlayerMini frames | High |
| DS3231 SDA / SCL | (4 / 5) | **Not used**: no I2C code in the image | High |
| GPIO16 | – | Not used by the app (only the core's generic pin-16 branches) | High |
| SPI MISO | 12 | Set to SPECIAL by `SPI.begin()`, then taken back as GPIO by the NeoPixel `begin()` | High |
## Core functions identified
| Address | Function | How it was recognised |
|---|---|---|
| `0x40100b44` | `__digitalWrite(pin, val)` (IRAM) | `1<<pin` to GPOS `0x60000304` / GPOC `0x60000308`; pin 16 branch to `0x60000768` |
| `0x40100ba8` | `__digitalRead(pin)` (IRAM) | reads GPI `0x60000318`; pin 16 reads `0x6000078c` |
| `0x4021ae84` | `__pinMode(pin, mode)` | GPC `0x60000328+4*pin` (literal `0x180000ca`<<2), GPF table `esp8266_gpioToFn` at `0x4025d194`, GPES/GPEC, SPECIAL = 0xF8, GPIO16 via `0x60000790`/`0x60000774` |
| `0x4021ae30` | `analogRead(pin)` | pin 0 or 17 → `system_adc_read()` (`0x4024f270`), else `digitalRead()*1023` |
| `0x4010066c` | Adafruit_NeoPixel `espShow(pin, pixels, n)` (IRAM) | `rsr.ccount` loop with 32/64/99 cycles (800 kHz at 80 MHz) writing `1<<pin` to GPOS/GPOC |
| `0x40216ea0` | `SPIClass::begin()` | `pinMode(14/12/13, SPECIAL)`, `SPI1C(0x60000108)=0`, `SPI1U=0x08000041`, `SPI1U1=0x000e0700` |
| `0x40216d18` | `SPIClass::setFrequency()` | writes SPI1CLK `0x60000118`, IOMUX bit 9 via `0x40216ccc` |
| `0x40216f44` | `SPIClass::transfer(uint8_t)` | SPI1 base `0x60000100` (SPI1CMD), called with the SPI object `0x3ffeee30` |
| `0x40217188` | `Adafruit_NeoPixel::Adafruit_NeoPixel(n, pin, type)` | calls updateType, updateLength, setPin (`0x40217138`, stores pin at `this+6`) |
| `0x40217ec8` | `HardwareSerial::begin()` | only caller is the app's `Serial.begin(9600)` |
| `0x402175d0` | `DFRobotDFPlayerMini::volume(v)` | `sendStack(this, 0x06, v)`; default frame `7E FF 06 00 01 00 00 00 00 EF` at `0x3ffe85b2` |
All register literals and their users can be listed with `python tools/xref.py <dump> lit 0x60000304` etc.
GPES/GPEC (the registers software I2C uses for open-drain SDA/SCL) are written only by `pinMode`.
## 1. Shift registers: hardware SPI + GPIO15 latch
### Setup (`setup()`, from `0x402085b0`)
```
402085b0: addi a1, a1, -32
402085b3: movi.n a3, 1 ; OUTPUT
402085b5: movi.n a2, 15
402085bd: call0 0x4021ae84 ; pinMode(15, OUTPUT)
402085c0: l32r a12, =0x3ffeee30 ; SPI object
402085c5: call0 0x40216ea0 ; SPI.begin()
402085c8: l32r a3, =0x017d7840 ; 25 000 000
402085cd: call0 0x40216d18 ; SPI.setFrequency(25 MHz)
402085d0: movi.n a2, 15 ; movi.n a3, 0
402085d4: l32r a0, =0x40100b44 ; callx0 a0 ; digitalWrite(15, LOW)
402085de: call0 0x40216f44 ; SPI.transfer(0)
402085e5: call0 0x40216f44 ; SPI.transfer(0)
402085e8: movi.n a2, 15 ; movi.n a3, 1
402085ec: l32r a0, =0x40100b44 ; callx0 a0 ; digitalWrite(15, HIGH)
402085f2: movi.n a2, 0 ; movi.n a3, 2
402085f6: call0 0x4021ae84 ; pinMode(0, INPUT_PULLUP)
402085f9: movi.n a2, 2 ; mov.n a3, a2
402085fd: call0 0x4021ae84 ; pinMode(2, INPUT_PULLUP)
```
`SPI.begin()` (`0x40216ee2`):
```
40216ee2: movi.n a2, 14 ; movi a3, 248 ; call0 0x4021ae84 ; pinMode(14, SPECIAL) SCK
40216eea: movi a2, 12 ; movi a3, 248 ; call0 0x4021ae84 ; pinMode(12, SPECIAL) MISO
40216ef3: movi.n a2, 13 ; movi a3, 248 ; call0 0x4021ae84 ; pinMode(13, SPECIAL) MOSI
40216efb: l32r a2, =0x60000108 ; s32i.n a13(=0), a2, 0 ; SPI1C = 0 -> MSB first
```
`SPI1C` has no other writer, so `setBitOrder(LSBFIRST)` is never called: **MSB first**.
The hardware chip select (`setHwCs`, `pinMode(15, SPECIAL)`) is only reached in the
`HSPI_OVERLAP` branch, which this firmware does not use. GPIO15 stays a plain output.
### Frame: 2 bytes per tube, high byte first
Each update is `digitalWrite(15, LOW); SPI.transfer(hi); SPI.transfer(lo); digitalWrite(15, HIGH)`.
The simpler of the two multiplex routines, at `0x402010f8`:
```
4020110c: l32r a13, =0x3ffee828 ; current tube slot (0..3)
4020110f: l32r a3, =0x3ffee87e ; hi[] per slot
40201118: l8ui a12, a3[slot]
4020111b: l32r a3, =0x3ffe8527 ; P1 enable (default 1)
40201121: beqz a3, ... ; bnei a2(slot), 1, ...
40201127: movi a3, 4 ; or a12, a12, a3 ; hi |= 0x04 (P1) only in slot 1
4020112d: l32r a3, =0x3ffe854f ; P2 slot (default 4 = never)
40201133: bne a3, a2(slot), ...
40201136: movi a2, 128 ; or a12, a12, a2 ; hi |= 0x80 (P2)
4020113c: digitalWrite(15, LOW)
4020114d: call0 0x40216f44 ; SPI.transfer(hi)
40201153: l32r a3, =0x3ffee87a ; lo[] per slot
4020115f: call0 0x40216f44 ; SPI.transfer(lo)
40201162: digitalWrite(15, HIGH)
40201170: slot = (slot + 1) & 3
```
There are two multiplex routines, chosen in `setup()` by the flag at `0x3ffee9a5`: when it
is set, `0x402010f8` is registered as a callback (`0x40208681`, most likely a Ticker); when it is clear,
the IRAM timer1 ISR at `0x40100208` is attached (`0x402086d4`). The ISR also does the digit
crossfade and sends the same sequence at `0x4010055c..0x401005ad`.
### Encoding (`0x40207800`)
```
40207811: l32r a11, =0x3ffe8810 ; T_hi[10]
40207814: l32r a12, =0x3ffee882 ; digit[4]
40207817: l32r a10, =0x3ffee87a ; lo[4]
4020781a: l32r a9, =0x3ffe8806 ; T_lo[10]
4020781d: l32r a8, =0x3ffee87e ; hi[4]
movi.n a7, 6 ; movi.n a6, 1
loop i=0..3:
d = digit[i]
lo[i] = T_lo[d]
hi[i] = T_hi[d] | (1 << (6 - i)) ; sub a4,a7,a2 ; ssl a4 ; sll a4,a6 ; or
```
Tables in `.data`:
```
T_lo (0x3ffe8806) = 01 02 04 08 10 20 40 80 00 00 ; digits 0..7 -> lo bit 0..7
T_hi (0x3ffe8810) = 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 01 02 ; digits 8, 9 -> hi bit 0, 1
```
Digit slots (`0x40207694` onwards, `__umodsi3`=`0x4000e268`, `__udivsi3`=`0x4000e21c`):
`digit[0] = min % 10`, `digit[1] = min / 10`, `digit[2] = hour % 10`, `digit[3] = hour / 10`.
So slot 3 is the hour-tens tube and slot 0 the minute-ones tube.
### Resulting 16-bit word
With two cascaded 74HC595s, the first byte shifted (MSB first) ends up in U2 and the second
in U1, with byte bit *k* on output Q*k* (QA = bit 0). Written as one 16-bit word
(hi byte = bits 15..8):
| Bit | 595 output | Function (firmware) | Schematic (CLAUDE.md) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0..7 | U1 QA..QH | cathode for digit 0..7 | cathodes 0..7 ✔ |
| 8 | U2 QA | cathode for digit 8 | cathode 8 ✔ |
| 9 | U2 QB | cathode for digit 9 | cathode 9 ✔ |
| 10 | U2 QC | neon dot P1 (only during slot 1) | P1 ✔ |
| 11 | U2 QD | anode, slot 3 = hour tens (leftmost) | A1 ✔ |
| 12 | U2 QE | anode, slot 2 = hour ones | A2 ✔ |
| 13 | U2 QF | anode, slot 1 = minute tens | A3 ✔ |
| 14 | U2 QG | anode, slot 0 = minute ones (rightmost) | A4 ✔ |
| 15 | U2 QH | P2 / decimal point, only in the slot stored at `0x3ffe854f` (default 4 = off) | P2 ✔ |
All bits are active-high and one anode is on at a time, as in the schematic. New fact:
**A1 is the leftmost tube (hour tens) and A4 the rightmost**. This follows from the slot
order above, assuming the stock clock shows HH:MM left to right (it does). Blank = `0x0000`
(`setup()` and the sleep code at `0x40207873` both send two zero bytes).
## 2. WS2812: GPIO12, 12 pixels, GRB 800 kHz
Static constructor (`0x4020ccae`):
```
4020ccae: movi.n a3, 12 ; n = 12 pixels
4020ccb0: l32r a2, =0x3ffee8b4 ; strip object
4020ccb3: or a4, a3, a3 ; pin = 12
4020ccb6: movi a5, 82 ; 0x52 = NEO_GRB + NEO_KHZ800
4020ccb9: call0 0x40217188 ; Adafruit_NeoPixel(12, 12, NEO_GRB + NEO_KHZ800)
```
`setPin` (`0x40217138`) stores the pin at `this+6` and, once begun, calls `pinMode(pin, OUTPUT)`
and `digitalWrite(pin, LOW)`. `begin()` runs in `setup()` (`0x4020861d`) after `SPI.begin()`,
so GPIO12 ends up as a GPIO output, not HSPI MISO. `setBrightness(50)` is called at `0x40208629`.
Output is the bit-bang loop at `0x4010066c` (GPOS/GPOC, ccount timing), not UART or DMA.
The firmware is configured for **12 pixels**; the board has 8 (CLAUDE.md). The LED loops
also run to 12 (`bnei a13, 12` at `0x40201cbc`). The extra 4 pixels' data is shifted out past the last LED and has no effect.
## 3. I2C / DS3231: not used
- No I2C library in the image: no strings ("Wire", "RTC", "DS3231", "twi"), no `twi_init`.
- Software I2C on this core drives SDA/SCL with GPES/GPEC (`0x60000310`/`0x60000314`). The
only code that writes those is `pinMode` (`0x4021ae84`); the one other byte-offset match
(`0x4024cb5e`) is in the middle of an unrelated instruction.
- No `pinMode(4|5, …)`, `digitalWrite(4|5, …)` or `digitalRead(4|5)` call exists (all call
sites of the three functions were enumerated; see below).
So the stock firmware keeps time with NTP only. Whether a DS3231M is fitted on this 5 V
board is unknown; if it is, it sits unused. ESP_UniClock can still try SDA=4/SCL=5 from the
schematic.
## 4. Light sensor: A0
```
4020cab5: movi a2, 17
4020cab8: call0 0x4021ae30 ; analogRead(A0) - auto-brightness
4020b151: movi.n a2, 17
4020b153: call0 0x4021ae30 ; analogRead(A0) - "<p>Light: " on the brightness page
```
`analogRead` (`0x4021ae30`) calls `system_adc_read()` (`0x4024f270`) for pin 0 or 17.
## 5. Other GPIO use
All call sites of `digitalWrite`, `digitalRead` and `pinMode` with their pin arguments:
| Call site | Call | Context |
|---|---|---|
| `0x402085bd` | `pinMode(15, OUTPUT)` | setup |
| `0x402085f6` | `pinMode(0, INPUT_PULLUP)` | setup |
| `0x402085fd` | `pinMode(2, INPUT_PULLUP)` | setup |
| `0x40216ee7/ef0/ef8` | `pinMode(14/12/13, SPECIAL)` | `SPI.begin()` |
| `0x40216c2d/c3e` | `pinMode(15, SPECIAL/…)` | `SPI.setHwCs()`, not reached |
| `0x40216fd2/ffa/715d/716f` | `pinMode(strip.pin, …)` | NeoPixel (pin 12) |
| `0x4021b1f7` | `pinMode(0..16 except 6..11, INPUT)` | core `resetPins()` |
| `0x4021c812..0x4021cac3` | UART pin setup | core `uart_set_pins` / `uart_init` |
| `0x40100562/58e/5ad`, `0x40201140/167/1b9/1d4`, `0x40207875/890`, `0x402085d4/5ec`, `0x4020ca2f/a4b` | `digitalWrite(15, …)` | latch |
| `0x40217176` | `digitalWrite(strip.pin, LOW)` | NeoPixel `setPin` |
| `0x40218b13` | `digitalWrite(_ledPin, …)` if `_ledPin != -1` | core `Updater` (no LED set) |
| `0x4020c2dd` | `digitalRead(0)` | LOW → DFPlayer call at `0x4021767c` and sets flag `0x3ffee9a9` |
| `0x4020ca7c` | `digitalRead(2)` | only when flag `0x3ffee999` is set; on change reloads the sleep counter `0x3ffe8554` and clears "display off" `0x3ffee998` |
- **GPIO0 / GPIO2**: read as active-low inputs with pull-ups. The pads are not fitted on this
board. GPIO2 looks like the input for a presence/motion sensor: the display blanks itself
after the "Time to sleep" (`st`) count (`0x40207852..0x40207893`), and a level change on
GPIO2 resets that count. GPIO0 is a button-style input tied to the DFPlayer (probably
"stop alarm"). Both need pull-ups at boot anyway (boot strapping).
- **DFPlayer Mini on UART0**: `Serial.begin(9600, SERIAL_8N1, SERIAL_FULL, tx_pin=1)` at
`0x402086f7` on the UART0 object `0x3ffeee78` (constructed with uart_nr 0 at `0x40217fd4`),
then `dfplayer.begin(Serial, true, true)` (`0x40208712`) and `volume(13)` (`0x40208719`).
So GPIO1 = TX to the DFPlayer RX and GPIO3 = RX. `Serial1` (UART1, GPIO2 TX) is constructed but
never started. The programming header uses the same pins.
- **GPIO16**: no call with pin 16; `0x60000768`/`0x6000078c`/`0x60000790` only appear in the
pin-16 branches of the core functions.
- **GPIO4, GPIO5**: unused (see section 3).
## Differences from the 12 V schematic
| Item | Schematic | Stock firmware |
|---|---|---|
| RTC on GPIO4/5 | DS3231M on I2C | No I2C code at all; NTP only |
| WS2812 count | 8 on this board | Firmware assumes 12 |
| Extra peripherals | – | DFPlayer Mini on UART0 (GPIO1/3, 9600 Bd); GPIO2 used as motion/presence input |
| Tube order | unknown | A1 = leftmost (hour tens) … A4 = rightmost (minute ones) |
Everything else (DATA/CLOCK/LATCH = 13/14/15, WS2812 = 12, LDR = A0, buttons = 0/2, and
the 16-bit map) matches.
## Notes for ESP_UniClock
- The display can use hardware SPI: MOSI 13, SCK 14, latch on GPIO15 by `digitalWrite`,
MSB first, high byte (anodes/dots/8/9) first. Stock uses 25 MHz; a slower clock is safer.
- GPIO15 must stay low at boot (it has the 1 k pull-down), so keep it a plain output.
- After `SPI.begin()`, reclaim GPIO12 for the WS2812 with `pinMode(12, OUTPUT)`.
- Stock shows the dots only during one multiplex slot. Keeping a dot bit set in every slot will
make it brighter.
## Reproduce
```sh
D=firmware/stock/nixie_stock_SV1.3_full_4MB.bin
python tools/esp8266_image_to_elf.py $D /tmp/app.elf # ELF of the app image for objdump
python tools/xref.py $D lit 0x60000304 # GPOS users -> digitalWrite, espShow
python tools/xref.py $D calls 0x4021ae84 # all pinMode call sites
python tools/xref.py $D ctx 0x402085bd,0x402085f6 20 4 # aligned disassembly around call sites
python tools/xref.py $D dis 0x40207800 0x40207896 # digit encoder
python tools/xref.py $D str "<p>Light: " # string xrefs
```
Tools: `xtensa-lx106-elf-objdump` from the PlatformIO `toolchain-xtensa` package (already
installed) and Python 3 standard library. `xref.py` finds `l32r`/`call0` references by
decoding every byte offset, so a few hits are false positives in the middle of other
instructions (noted above where they came up).