NeoPeak: Smart Terminal on ESP32 with LVGL (alfredzhang98/NeoPeak)

I’m excited to announce the completion of NeoPeak, a compact smart terminal built on ESP32. This project ports the original Peak project to ESP32 ecosystem, integrating LVGL graphics library and modular firmware architecture.

• Repository: https://github.com/alfredzhang98/NeoPeak

Project Overview

NeoPeak is an ultra-compact intelligent terminal featuring:

• LVGL Graphics Framework (v8.1) - Embedded GUI library
• MVC Architecture - Modular firmware design
• Message Framework - Pub/Sub event system
• WiFi/Bluetooth - ESP32 wireless capabilities
• 3D Engine (in development) - 3D model visualization
• Display: 240×240 16-bit color TFT, 60fps target

Key Technical Highlights

Hardware Platform: ESP32-Pico-V3-02

MCU selection requires:

• Main frequency > 150MHz
• RAM ≥ 200KB (112KB for LVGL buffer)
• SPI speed ≥ 50Mbps (for 60fps refresh)

ESP32-Pico-V3-02 chosen for:

• Dual-core, built-in WiFi/Bluetooth
• Arduino ecosystem friendly
• Cost and availability

Firmware Architecture

Three-layer design:

• HAL: Low-level drivers, sensors, MCU peripherals
• Framework: LVGL display, page lifecycle, message system
• Application: UI pages and business logic

Display Integration

• Driver: ST7789 (240×240, 16-bit) via TFT_eSPI
• SPI clock: > 50MHz (IOMUX required for maximum speed)
• LVGL buffer: 112KB, dynamically allocated
• Memory: ESP32’s fragmented 300KB dataRAM requires careful allocation order

Page Scheduling

Inspired by iOS ViewController, implements structured page lifecycle:

• onViewLoad: Initialize views
• onViewDidAppear: Transition animations
• onViewWillDisappear/onViewDidDisappear: Cleanup
• onViewDidUnload: Resource cleanup

Message Framework

Pub/Sub system for sensor data and events:

• HAL publishes sensor events (GPS, IMU, barometer)
• Data processors subscribe and compute metrics
• UI pages subscribe to processed data
• Reactive updates on event changes

Key Implementation Details

• LVGL Porting: Display/File/Input port implementations
• SPI Config: HSPI MISO pin remap to GPIO26 (avoid GPIO12 flash boot conflict)
• Memory: Dynamic allocation for display buffer, careful initialization order
• File System: lv_fs_drv_t must be static/global (not stack-allocated)

References

• Peak - Original hardware and firmware
• X-Track - Framework architecture and LVGL integration
• LVGL - Graphics library
• TFT_eSPI - SPI display driver
• ESP32 Docs - Microcontroller resources

Check out the repository and contribute!