evnow
Well-known member
I've been looking for a bigger display for the SOC meter/gauge. The LED display that is used now is 12x40 mm with 4 characters. The idea is to take Gary's SOC software and modify it to make it work with the bigger display in an open source effort.
Must have for the bigger display are
- It must have serial interface
- Libraries for AVR needed in case the display is not a character display (i.e. the display is a graphic one)
- A reliable supply i.e. not a one off unit on e-bay.
Nice to have
- The bigger the better. 16x2 LCD is what I'd consider the smallest.
- The cheaper the better. $50 delivered is the highest I think we should look for.
Ideas ?
The candidates, so far.
1. Sparkfun 16x2 character LCD adapted for serial interface $24.95
Comes in different colors. 71.4x26.4mm.
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9395
2. Sparkfun 20x4 character LCD adapted for serial interface $29.95
Black on Green only 87.3 x 41.8 mm.
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9568
3. Sparkfun Graphic LCD 128x64 adapted for serial interface $34.95 (out because it needs 6 to 7V input)
The firmware by SparkFun isn't too good - but difficult to update the firmware. 65x35 mm ?
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9351
4. Sparkfun Serial Miniature OLED Module 0.96" $39.95
This would be very nice. It even has a microSD that can be used for logging ! The problem is it is very small - Display Area: 20mm x 14mm.
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/8538
5. 132x132 Serial Color Graphic LCD - $35.99
This is the very popular color LCD used by Nokia in 6610 phone. Display is 30 mm x 30 mm (so more than twice the size of OLED above). Works well in day light (like the Nokia phone does). LCD is made by either Epson or Philips.
They are available from multiple sources and on e-bay. For eg. from gravitech.
http://www.gravitech.us/13secogrlcd.html
The LCD is available for $15 from sparkfun or even lesser on e-bay. But it takes 3.3V and can be difficult to solder. So, a breakout board that takes 5V directly from AVR makes it easy for $20 more.
There are a lot of different libraries available to drive the display.
Must have for the bigger display are
- It must have serial interface
- Libraries for AVR needed in case the display is not a character display (i.e. the display is a graphic one)
- A reliable supply i.e. not a one off unit on e-bay.
Nice to have
- The bigger the better. 16x2 LCD is what I'd consider the smallest.
- The cheaper the better. $50 delivered is the highest I think we should look for.
Ideas ?
The candidates, so far.
1. Sparkfun 16x2 character LCD adapted for serial interface $24.95
Comes in different colors. 71.4x26.4mm.
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9395
2. Sparkfun 20x4 character LCD adapted for serial interface $29.95
Black on Green only 87.3 x 41.8 mm.
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9568
3. Sparkfun Graphic LCD 128x64 adapted for serial interface $34.95 (out because it needs 6 to 7V input)
The firmware by SparkFun isn't too good - but difficult to update the firmware. 65x35 mm ?
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/9351
4. Sparkfun Serial Miniature OLED Module 0.96" $39.95
This would be very nice. It even has a microSD that can be used for logging ! The problem is it is very small - Display Area: 20mm x 14mm.
http://www.sparkfun.com/products/8538
5. 132x132 Serial Color Graphic LCD - $35.99
This is the very popular color LCD used by Nokia in 6610 phone. Display is 30 mm x 30 mm (so more than twice the size of OLED above). Works well in day light (like the Nokia phone does). LCD is made by either Epson or Philips.
They are available from multiple sources and on e-bay. For eg. from gravitech.
http://www.gravitech.us/13secogrlcd.html
The LCD is available for $15 from sparkfun or even lesser on e-bay. But it takes 3.3V and can be difficult to solder. So, a breakout board that takes 5V directly from AVR makes it easy for $20 more.
There are a lot of different libraries available to drive the display.