Waveforms

The LIFX LAN protocol supports changing the color of a device over time in accordance with the shape of a waveform. For devices that support multiple zones, these effects will treat all zones as one zone and the entire device will perform the waveform effect as a single color.

These waveforms allow us to combine functions such as fading, pulsing, etc by applying waveform interpolation on the modulation between two colors.

The available waveform values are as follows:

Explaining the waveforms

Note that if transient == true or the waveform is SINE or TRIANGLE then the device will return to the original color after the effect. Otherwise the device will not revert to the original color after the effect.

The waveform types can be best explained with the following images:

SINE

• Where waveform == SINE, the color will cycle smoothly from current color to color and then end back at current color
• The duration of one cycle will last for period milliseconds

PULSE

Pulse waveforms use the skew_ratio parameter:

Where waveform == PULSE, the color will be set immediately to color, then to current color after the duty cycle fraction expires

The duty cycle percentage is calculated by applying 1 - skew_ratio as a percentage of the cycle duration and changes the time spent on the original color vs the new color

• duty_cycle == 0.5: color will be set to color for the first 50% of the cycle period, then to current color until the end of the cycle

• duty_cycle == 0.25: color will be set to color for the first 25% of the cycle period, then to current color until the end of the cycle

Note that skew_ratio in the message is a signed Int16 that is scaled from 0 to 1.

Half-sine

• waveform == HALF_SINE: light interpolates smoothly from current color to color
• Duration of each cycle lasts for period milliseconds

Triangle

• waveform == TRIANGLE: light interpolates linearly from current color to color, then back to current color
• Duration of each cycle lasts for period milliseconds

Saw

• waveform == Saw: light interpolates linearly from current color to color
• Duration of each cycle lasts for period milliseconds