Round AMOLED handlebar display for iPhone navigation

Maler Xon GitHub

A 1.75in round AMOLED mounted on a motorcycle handlebar, driven by an ESP32-S3 over BLE from an iPhone that handles location, routing and map data. It shows turn arrows, distance, a fixed-heading map and Apple Music controls.

Can I build this?Intermediate · AI 4/5 · $40–70

Difficulty: Intermediate
AI-buildability: 4/5
Time: A few weeks
Cost: $40–70

Parts

Waveshare ESP32-S3-Touch-AMOLED-1.75C ESP32-S3 QMI8658 six-axis IMU AXP2101 power management CO5300 display driver CST9217 capacitive touch

Tools

USB-C data cableXcode (for iOS app install)Computer for firmware flashing

Starter prompt

Based on "Round AMOLED handlebar display for iPhone navigation" on Afterware: https://afterware.xyz/p/round-amoled-handlebar-display-for-iphone-navigation

Write ESP32-S3 firmware using LVGL for a 466×466 round AMOLED board with a CST9217 touch controller and a QMI8658 IMU. Expose a BLE GATT service that receives turn icon, distance, and nearby road polylines from a phone, and draws a map centered on a fixed forward arrow. Add swipe gestures to switch between navigation, speed, and heading pages.

Estimates based on the original write-up. How AI-buildability is scored. Building with an AI assistant? Connect it to Afterware (free MCP server).

Story

MOTO GPS puts a round 466×466 AMOLED on the handlebar and leaves the heavy work to an iPhone in a bag. The phone handles location, place search, route calculation and map tiles, then sends a short window of nearby roads and buildings to the screen over Bluetooth Low Energy. The display draws the next turn icon, the distance to it, and a map that stays centered on a fixed forward-pointing arrow.

The screen also has a speed page, a heading page that uses the board's six-axis IMU for short-term relative turning, and a music page with previous, play/pause and next controls for Apple Music. Swipes switch pages, and a long press on the side button shuts it down.

The project is labeled an experimental prototype. The repository says the current running version is the Waveshare board plus an iPhone. Live speed limits and traffic-light countdowns are not yet connected, and background connection reliability is still being tested.

Resources · 3

Repository Web debug preview Project site