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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : (MM/DM) Display Options
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Gizmo Admin Group  Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5078 |
Working on a little project, a battery monitor and regulator, and thinking about display options. First up, has anyone tried the Altronics 40*4 LCD display. I image it would be similar to the standard 16*2 line displays, but want to check there isn't a compatibility issue before I buy one. http://www.altronics.com.au/index.asp?area=item&id=Z7032 Also, looking into a small display that can be used with the Maximite's VGA or Composite video output. A small video monitor, maybe 3 to 6 inches wide. I was looking at car headrest displays but they are a little expensive. Any suggestions? Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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| Gadget Regular Member  Joined: 22/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 70 |
Hi Glenn, Having a brief look at the datasheet for that display it mentions compatibility with the HD44780 (which i think is the most commonly used for LCD's) controller so to me that suggests that it should work. Terry |
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CircuitGizmos Guru  Joined: 08/09/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 1425 |
Glenn: A couple of years ago I bought a surplus color composite LCD about 4-5" diag. I can't recall where it came from, but it was made by Intec for a game console. Gamecube? I use it sometimes and it works pretty slick. You might also look into a portable DVD player. I have one by Philips that has a second screen, and that screen by itself works as a composite display. Micromites and Maximites! - Beginning Maximite |
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| rhamer Senior Member  Joined: 06/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 174 |
Be aware that 4 *40 displays are usually 2 displays in a single housing. The lines often alternate as well, so display 1 is lines 1 and 3 while display 2 is lines 2 and 4 All the control lines are common between displays, except the enable line, so you have to run the init routines twice, once for each display. Regards Rohan Rohan Hamer HAMFIELD Software & Hardware Solutions Makers of the Maximite Expander. http://www.hamfield.com.au |
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trippyben Regular Member Joined: 26/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 91 |
I've used the 4x40's a couple of times. If you're not using the R/W feature to check the busy flag and just using delays to make sure stuff happens, you can toggle both enables during the init routines and enable both displays at once without too much drama. |
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TassyJim Guru Joined: 07/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 6098 |
Ebay have 4.3 inch monitors for under $30 posted. Search for "4.3 TFT Rear View Monitor" and you will find them. Jim VK7JH MMedit MMBasic Help |
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| Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5078 |
Thanks for the feedback. I dug up an old DVD player that was given to me because it stopped playing DVD's. 
The display worked, so I opened it up to see if I could separate the screen from the rest of the unit. No luck, the video controller is part of the main circuit board. 
But the unit does have a video input, so I wired in a cable to connect it to a SM1 Maximite set to PAL output. The screen swivels around and folds down, cool, but when I power it up, I need to press several buttons in sequence to select external video source, bummer. It will do for testing. 
I'll look into those reversing camera screens. I hope their current draw isn't too much, as I would prefer to leave the screen turned on all the time. Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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| trippyben Regular Member Joined: 26/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 91 |
Just use some of the Maxi's digital outs to trigger the buttons in sequence as part of your program init!!! |
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pcaffalldavis Senior Member Joined: 17/10/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 187 |
The MM SM1 from Dontronics, I don't see that it offers composite video output. Does that mean that the 4.3 TFT displays can't be used with the SM1's? Could they perhaps be used with a VGA to composite convertor? How fuzzy would the image be? Does anyone have a clear screen shot of a MM screen full of text displaying on a 4.3" TFT? This might be much better than a 40x4 LCD, and most seem to use only two watts. A very reasonable energy cost as long as they are on the grid. Pete in Hyder We're all here 'cause we're not all there. |
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| CircuitGizmos Guru Joined: 08/09/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 1425 |
U5 Right next to the VGA connector is composite out. Jumper U4 and reboot to get composite. Micromites and Maximites! - Beginning Maximite |
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| pcaffalldavis Senior Member Joined: 17/10/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 187 |
Thank you CircuitGizmos. I think I'll order up a 4.3" TFT. Does anyone happen to have a good quality screen shot of one hooked to a MM with a screen full of text? These 4.3" screens are on Ebay right now for as little as a 20x4 LCD, $20 USD. It might be nice to see just how readable they are though. The text should be very small on a 4.3" screen. Pete in Hyder We're all here 'cause we're not all there. |
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| TassyJim Guru Joined: 07/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 6098 |
My 4.3 inch monitor is a CZ7 model. Current draw when displaying is 124mA from 13V 68mA when no input. 
Pete, If you are running long distances and multiple monitors you might need to install a video amplifier. I think the monitors come in NTSC or PAL depending on where you live. Mine is PAL. They are also wide screen so you either loose some screen area by running in 4x3 mode or have a stretched display. If you do your own fonts, they can compensate for the wide screen easily. Jim VK7JH MMedit MMBasic Help |
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| Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5078 |
That looks good Jim, just what I need. Can anyone recommend a ebay seller? There are several that sell the CZ7 and most have good feedback. Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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| TassyJim Guru Joined: 07/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 6098 |
This is the one I have but I don't think there is much difference between suppiers: www.ebay.com.au/itm/4-3-TFT-LCD-reverse-Rear-View-Car-Video- Monitor-cz7-/280684496311 Jim VK7JH MMedit MMBasic Help |
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Bryan1 Guru Joined: 22/02/2006 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1344 |
Hi Jim, All I got off that link was : HTTP Error 404 Page Not Found Oops! Looks like that page doesnt exist. The problem is on the link the backshed.com/forum/ is infront of the link. I had to manually remove it before I could get the page to show. Cheers Bryan |
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donmck Guru Joined: 09/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1313 |
URL corrected: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/4-3-TFT-LCD-reverse-Rear-View-Car -Video-Monitor-cz7-/280684496311 Thanks Jim, at that price, I had to give one a try. Trouble is it may be delivered after Christmas, which means early January for me. 
Cheers Don... https://www.dontronics.com |
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| Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5078 |
Ordered one. I figure for the price its worth a try. It would be good if someone in Australia could stock these  , they are a good match for the Maximite, and low current draw which suits my needs. So good in fact, why would you bother with a 16 character 2 line LCD when you can have a full 50 character 18 line screen with graphics for a few dollars more.
Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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| aargee Senior Member Joined: 21/08/2008 Location: AustraliaPosts: 255 |
I'll be interested to see what they're like Glenn. I have a couple of much older composite 7" LCD screens here, and the trouble is that they are NTSC resolution. This pixelates the graphics a fair bit, to the point of being unreadable. Geoff's support NTSC might work, I haven't tried that yet. - Rob. For crying out loud, all I wanted to do was flash this blasted LED. |
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| Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5078 |
The little LCD arived today, all the way from China. 
Have to say, for the money, its pretty good! The unit has a few menu options, like brightness, contract, colour, and aspect ratio ( 16:9 or 4:3 ). Image clarity is good, though hard to see in the picture below. 
Happy
Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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vasi Guru Joined: 23/03/2007 Location: RomaniaPosts: 1697 |
The setup looks nice! Hobbit name: Togo Toadfoot of Frogmorton Elvish name: Mablung Miriel Beyound Arduino Lang |
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