Skip to main content
Version: ver. 1.5.0

Typical development workflow

Create a New Project​

The first step is to create a new SquareLine Studio project. For further information, please check Getting Started section. At this moment you can create only a simulator project. Using the simulator project, you can create a platform independent application. (In the later versions various development boards will be supported.) You have nothing to do but

  • give a name to your project
  • select its location
  • choose the resolution, color depth and a theme you prefer

By doing this, a new blank screen will be created automatically. Besides a new folder for the project will be added to the selected location containing some project files and an Assets folder.

Create and Organize Screen Content​

Images, created in Photoshop or any other designer software, should be copied into the Assets folder of the project. Fonts, needed by the project, should be placed into the Asset/Font folder. These images and fonts will be appeared in the Assets Panel.

Create Widgets and Events on the Screen​

You can find widgets (e.g. button, label, image, etc.) in the Widgets Panel. To add these widgets to the screen you should click on the icon of the widget or simply drag it onto the screen. If a widget is selected, you can add events to it at the bottom of the Inspector Panel to create interactions or play an animation.

Simulate and Export Your Project​

Uniquely, you can test your working project directly in the SquareLine Studio in a blink of an eye. Using the Play button in the top-right hand corner of the Screen area view, you can start the simulation of your project. In "Play mode", you have the opportunity to refine the settings of the widgets, including the parameters of styles and animations connected to them.

Export a project​

In the current version you can export ready to use simulator project for C/C++ and MicroPython languages. In File/Projet Settings you can set the target language and IDE/SDK. You can select either MicroPython with MakeFile project or C/C++ with Eclipse project. In this window you can also change the resolution and color depth of the display.

After that, by clicking the Export/Export Project menu you can browse where to export the project. By selecting a location project will be there in a few seconds.

The exported project doesn't contain the UI itself. Typically the project is exported only once (or a few times) and later only the UI files are updated in it. It ensures that your modifications in other parts of the project are not overwritten.

Export UI files​

To actual UI files can be exported from the Export/Export Files menu. It will also ask for a location for the files. This location is saved and if you export files later this path will be used. (It can be modified in the File/Project Setting/Export Path field.)

The exported projects contain a "README" file which tells which is preferred location for the UI files inside the project.

The UI files also can be exported without having a project exported by SquareLine Studio. It means if you have prepared a project (e.g. for an embedded system) you can export the UI files there too. In this case, you need to write the drivers and take care of building the files.

In case of C/C++ the following folder created:

  • screens folder which contains the the C files for each screen
  • images folder which contains the images converted to C files
  • fonts folder which contains the fonts converted to C files
  • components folder which contains the C files for each component.

These special files will be created as well:

  • ui.c the main file of the UI which initializes the screen, components, styles, animations, etc
  • ui.h you need to include this the see the widgets and functions
  • ui_helper.c and ui_helper.c used by ui.c internally
  • ui_events.c skeletons for functions used as "Call function" event. You can add the implementation of the functions here.
  • components/ui_comp_hook.c you can add custom code which will be called at the end of the component creation to customize the given components
  • CMakeList.txt can be used in CMake build system to add the ui folder. Just add add_subdirectory(ui) to the parent CMakeList.txt file
  • filelist.txt the list of C files separated by \n. Can be used by any build system if needed.

To set up a C/C++ UI

  1. Include ui.h
  2. Call lv_init();
  3. Set up the display and input device drivers
  4. Call ui_init();

For MicroPython these files are created

  • ui.py the UI code itself
  • ui_helper.py used by ui.py internally
  • ui_images.py all the the converted images
  • ui_font_*.bin the converted fonts
  • ui_events.py skeletons for functions used as "Call function" event. You can add the implementation of the functions here.

To set up a MicroPython UI

  • import lvgl and initialize it by lv.init()
  • Set up the display and input device drivers
  • import ui

The new versions (min. 1.3.0) of SquareLine Studio export the Arduino UI projects as an Arduino library.

If you would like to export only the UI files into a custom Arduino project, you need to add this folder this folders to your library folder and export the UI files into the src folder.

"this folder" link: https://github.com/SquareLineStudio/board_arduino_tft_espi/tree/v1.1.0/__ui_project_name__/libraries/ui