LCD Module Interface Information
This section will provide additional information on how to use the different
interfaces that are present on the LCD Modules from Pacific Display Devices.
LCD Interface Overview:
There are four basic types of interfaces you select when integrating an
Liquid Crystal Display into your product, They are:
1. External LCD Controller and Drivers. (LCD Glass) This level
is the basic level where you are responsible to provide the complex AC
waveform that will control the status of the opacity of each segment/dot on
the Liquid Crystal Display. This can be done by specialized driver chips
typically used for stand-alone Liquid Crystal Display Glass (non-module)
applications, which come as an individual ICs, or integrated into a
microprocessor IC.
2. LCD Drivers w/ CPU Embedded Controller. (LCD Module) The
module needs complex AC voltage waveforms for the LCDs and require an
controller external to the module to keep refreshing the individual pixel
information to their drive circuitry. The configuration uses a controller
integrated into your microprocessor.
3. Integrated LCD Controller & Drivers. (LCD Module) These ICs
interface to the customers data bus and allow the user to specify the status
of the pixels in the LCD Module display. These ICs will take care of
all of the house keeping and refresh activities. These ICs are
integrated into the LCD Modules made by Pacific Display Devices.
4. LCD Drivers w/ External Controller. (LCD Module) The module
needs complex AC voltage waveforms for the LCDs and require an controller
external to the module to keep refreshing the individual pixel information
to their drive circuitry. The configuration uses an controller IC that
will interface to your microprocessor on you PCB.
Pacific
Display Devices offers a reference library of the standard LCD
Controller and Driver ICs for your product design.
It contains data sheets of LCD ICs you can use to control a Glass Only
design, and ICs that are used in Pacific Display Devices LCD Modules.
Character Module Interface - Magazine Tutorial:
Here is a reprint of an article offered by Everyday Practical Electronics
(February and March 1997). It offers a pretty complete tutorial by
describing in detail on how to use the standard parallel interface to control a
Character Display Module. This article is in two pdf files, part 1 and
part 2, and both can be downloaded below:
How to use a Character Display
Module - Part 1
How to use a Character Display
Module - Part 2
