My external System Monitor in action. Source code and instructions: https://t.co/0AIhIvl8Bz @Raspberry_Pi pic.twitter.com/pTqXqzlsPU
— Dmytro Panin (@dr2mod) August 11, 2022
A very responsive USB-connected resource monitor for a laptop has been created by embedded developer Dmytro Panin using a Raspberry Pi Pico and Pimoroni Pico Display add-on, complete with a magnetic mounting solution
Panin describes the motivation for the concept. Therefore, he created an external resources monitor that uses magnets to attach to my laptop.
The RP2040 microcontroller running CircuitPython on a Raspberry Pi Pico development board serves as the project's brain. To offer a color screen that is continually refreshed using data supplied by the host system through USB, a Pimoroni Pico Display add-on is connected.
The resultant system monitor selects from the host Apple MacBook to which it is attached the metrics Panin is most interested in: CPU utilization, GPU usage, RAM usage, storage usage, network throughput in both directions, and the temperature of the system CPU. There is also room for more, with a visible opening at the bottom-right for anyone wishing to add extra readouts to the construction.
Panin has also created a 3D-printed casing that snaps onto the back of the laptop's own display via magnets to provide at-a-glance system readouts independent of what is displayed on the laptop screen in order to make utilizing the display simpler. There is an optional LED that shines through a diffuser opposite the magnet end to provide further feedback.
While Panin has stated that 3D print files for the magnetic mount would soon be posted on Printables, they were not yet accessible at the time of writing. Panin has shared the source code for the project on GitHub under an undisclosed open-source license.
