serial lcd example board

Chet

Is there a board available somewhere for the serial lcd controller in the SX/B example?· If so, who and cost?

I need two for a project.

Thanks

Chet

John Couture

Chet,

It is difficult to "build your own" for less than what you can buy a Serial LCD. By the time you buy the parts, design the board and then have the board fabricated, you have exceeded the manufactured cost.

For example, Parallax has a 16x2 for $30, Jameco has similar for $49. PHAnderson has a 20x4 for $20. (www.phanderson.com and www.moderndevice.com/LCD.shtml). On EBay and you can probably get them for under $20 if you are patient. All Electronics has an LCD module (#LCD-107) for $4 that plugs directly into the Professional Development Board.

The only reason to build your own would be for the experience or if you have a special LCD like a 40x4 or something like that. In my case I do it for the heck of it but at $1000 per module after I figure in time, burned out parts, aggrevation and everything else, I just chalk it up to "on-the-job-training".

Having said that, build your first one on a breadboard. Put the time in to learn WHY you have to switch the RS and ENABLE lines. Learn how to vary the backlight intensity. My first "kit" was PHAnderson's LCD kit that now sells for $7. You can breadboard it and connect it to any standard LCD module and you have a "homebrew" serial LCD. Mount it in a little project box and, trust me, it will bring a smile to your face everytime you use it.

Finally, to answer your question, if you just need a simple controller, check out the moderndevice link above which uses a PIC processor. I don't know of anyone that has a board available for the SX processor.

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John J. Couture

San Diego Miramar College

Chet

The purpose for the query was because I have two 40x2 lcds and wanted to use a sx controller chip as in the examples with the additional outputs. I have two 107s already. I also have parallax 4x20 lcds. The 40x2 just fit the my project better.

Thanks for your reply.

Regards

Chet

John Couture

Chet,

In that case I guess I would prototype it on a breadboard then transfer the design to a perfboard.· The perfboard takes a little planning and a lot of patience but you can have it done in an afternoon.· Several of the guys that know what they are doing on this forum, generally recommend designing and having a PCB made for anything but the simplest design.· This, of course, adds to the cost and the time (a week maybe?) but you do get a nice design.· ExpressPCB is often cited because of their free and integrated design / order IDE.

In the one time (so far) that I have ordered a board, I used EagleCAD (a free schematic / board design program) and ordered my boards from PCBCart.··· I wanted 25 of them and it came out to about $4.70 each.· I guess I like PCBCart better because they give you nice green boards (Matt Color), a green overlay (Soldermask) along with white writing (Silkscreen Legend) for the base price.· Next time I'll order a jazzy color (offered in Green, Blue, Red, Black, Yellow and White) just for the heck of it.· The only downside is that EagleCAD has a relatively steep learning curve but I wanted a piece of software that I could use with any fabrication house not just a single one.

The main thing is to have fun with it.· I wasn't in a hurry but still made a few mistakes (like forgetting to connect the output of the voltage regulator to the +5 bus!) but all in all I am proud of my first attempt (pictures attached).

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John J. Couture

San Diego Miramar College