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Display modules

LCD controllers handle resolutions from VGA to 4k UHD with 10-bit color

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DATA MODUL Inc. offers with its eMotion product line state-of-the-art LCD controller boards, which are specially tailored to the high-performance requirements of industrial customers. All boards are developed by Data Modul’s in-house R&D department and manufactured in Germany, offering the highest quality, product stability, and long-term availability.

Thanks to its wide selection, the eMotion family offers boards for a variety of applications. The range of products stretches from boards for standard TFTs with single/dual-channel LVDS interface and up to 1920×1200 pixels to boards for TFTs with quad-channel LVDS, eDP ( up to 8 lanes ), VbyOne ( 8 lanes ) with a resolution of up to 3840 x 2160. Multiple video inputs can be supported, like DisplayPort, VGA(RGB), DVI, HDMI, CVBS/YC. Other special features that can be integrated are DDC/CI support, OSD through RS232, PIP, PBP or FRC, ambient light sensors and proximity sensors, daisy Chain function for video wall applications allowing monitor makers to create sophisticated products.

Data Modul programs and optimizes its eMotion boards to match specific sizes and resolutions of LCD displays. The series supports all key LCD lines from DATA MODULs partners such as AUO, Innolux, or KOE and every board solution comes configured as a complete LCD controller board kit including LCD cable, LED driver, and cable as well as along with an OSD Board. Therefore, and due to its wide range of sizes and functions, Data Modul offers the right solution for every display controller need.

Contact your Data Modul Inc. Sales Engineer for full or short specifications, sample lead time, and mass production timeline.

SBC drives four displays for graphic-intensive embedded apps

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Review Display Systems Inc. announced the availability of the Kontron D3713-V/R industrial specification SBC (single board computer). Able to drive four independent displays, with resolutions of up to 4K, the highly integrated Kontron D3713 is ideally suited for use in a wide range of embedded systems featuring graphics-intensive applications.

Designed by Fujitsu, and manufactured in Germany, the Kontron D3713-V/R mini-ITX motherboard series supports fan-less operation with AMD Ryzen Embedded V1000 and R1000 series processors. The D3713-V/R provides exceptional graphics performance with the integrated AMD Radeon Vega GPU (graphics processor unit) providing support for up to four DisplayPort (DP V1.4), one embedded DisplayPort (eDP V1.4) and one dual-channel 24-bit LVDS display interface connections, and display resolutions of up to 4K (4096 x 2160 pixels).

Five D3713-V/R motherboard versions are available supporting a range of AMD Embedded Ryzen processors including the V1202B, V1605B, V1807B, R1305G, and R1606G, which enables the graphics performance of the board to be easily adapted for many varied applications such as process control, industrial automation, digital signage, medical imaging, public information kiosks, and facilities management systems.

Support for a wide range of embedded systems is enabled with an extensive range of on-board peripherals and interfaces including ethernet 10/100/1000, RS-232/422/485 serial comms, GPIO, USB 2.0 and 3.1, SATA III, Mini-PCIe interfaces, and HD audio.  The D3713-V/R can be uniquely configured with memory options of up to 32GB DDR4 3200 SDRAM in dual SO DIMM sockets.

The compact mini-ITX form factor of the D3713-V/R has mechanical outline dimensions of 6.7″ x 6.7″ (170mm x 170mm). A wide operating temperature range of 0°C to 70°C is supported.

The Kontron D3713-V/R SBC will operate with a Microsoft Windows 10 or Linux-64 operating system. Review Display Systems can create bespoke options for both firmware and OS support, such as custom embedded Windows system images, and exclusive configurations to provide corporate branding or logos on BIOS start-up splash screens.

Designing and delivering fully integrated embedded systems, Review Display Systems can provide turnkey solutions for the integration of computing hardware, high-resolution displays, touchscreens, interconnect, mechanical fixtures and fittings, firmware, and OS support.

The Kontron D3713-V/R mini-ITX motherboard series is available immediately from Review Display Systems, Inc.

Projected capacitive touch screens come unassembled for more flexible design options

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DATA MODUL presents easyTOUCH Plus, a new standard off the shelf product line which consists of printed cover glasses optically bonded to its proprietary easyTOUCH PCAP products alongside a matching controller.

In contrast to DATA MODUL’s established easyTOUCH Display line, easyTOUCH Plus products are delivered without a pre-assembled display. This approach offers customers more flexibility in selecting a suitable display for their PCAP application.

Initially, the easyTOUCH Plus products will be available in diagonals 7.0 and 10.1 inches and this soon this will follow up with diagonals of 12.1, 13.1, 15.6, 18.5, and 21.5 inches.

The first easyTOUCH Plus release of 7.0 and 10.1-inch sizes will provide a complete touch solution with a glass/touch unit and a matching, newest USB controller generation (e.g. mXT640U), which makes integration to the customer’s system significantly easier.

Display shield leverages 32-bit MCUs for HMI designs

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The new STM32 Nucleo display shield from STMicroelectronics leverages the affordability of STM32G0 microcontrollers (MCUs). The new X-NUCLEO- GFX01M1 SPI shield is supported in the latest TouchGFX software, version 4.15.0, which introduces additional new features including support for low-cost non-memory-mapped SPI Flash ICs.

Designing with STM32G0 and TouchGFX lets developers target a bill of materials as low as $5 to add a small graphical display to any project. Simple devices such as timers, controllers, and home appliances can thus offer a smartphone-like user experience.

The new X-Nucleo-GFX01M1 shield is supported by a new X-cube-display package that offers simple “hello world” example. The shield contains a 2.2-inch QVGA (320×240) SPI display, 64-Mbit SPI NOR Flash, and a joystick and is ready to use with various STM32 MCU development boards such as the NUCLEO-G071RB. The STM32G071RB is a mainstream Arm Cortex-M0+ MCU that integrates up to 128kBytes Flash, 36kBytes SRAM, extensive communication interfaces, analog peripherals, fast I/Os, hardware security ID, and a USB Type-C Power Delivery controller

The latest TouchGFX software builds on the TouchGFX Engine’s partial framebuffer, which can reduce the GUI RAM footprint by up to 90% and allow a simple user interface in as little as 16-20KB of internal MCU RAM. A new rendering algorithm enhances GUI performance by realizing partial screen updates in an optimized order to allow extra updates and avoid visually distracting tearing effects. Also new, support for non-memory-mapped SPI Flash allows more complex GUIs to use low-cost off-chip storage for memory-hungry graphics assets such as images and fonts.

To ease user-interface prototyping, an optimized application template for the STM32G071 Nucleo board and display kit is available in TouchGFX Designer. It is also possible to introduce an RTOS to the setup if required and use TouchGFX Generator to change to other hardware.

All elements are available now, including the X-cube-display package and TouchGFX 4.15.0 with code examples for running the G071RB. The X-NUCLEO- GFX01M1 and STM32G0 products are in mass production and available through the normal ST distribution channels.

In addition, a new graph widget simplifies showing sequential data using lines, bars, area plots, histograms, or combined visualizations. The widget works smoothly with any STM32 MCU and developers can customize aspects such as colors and layout using TouchGFX Designer.

Also new in TouchGFX 4.15.0, full out-of-the-box support for the STM32H725 lets developers run microprocessor-class graphics on ST’s Cortex-M7 MCUs. With 550MHz core frequency, ST’s Chrom-ART Accelerator™ for faster graphics performance, an Octal-SPI interface for high-speed connections to external Flash and RAM, and an XGA TFT-LCD controller, the STM32H725 is the new graphics flagship for the STM32 family. TouchGFX Designer contains sample source code and a demonstration video is available here.

Medical image signal processor boards optimized for endoscopes, catheters

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OmniVision Technologies, Inc., a leading developer of advanced digital imaging solutions, announced the OH0120 and OH0130 ASIC-based boards—the newest members of its award-winning OVMed medical image signal processor (ISP) family, designed to pair with its high performance medical image sensors for quick integration into single-use and reusable endoscopes as well as catheters. The OH0120 provides a cost-effective, off-the-shelf, board-level option with HDMI connectivity and LCD screen support, as well as external USB memory-card storage. The OH0130 supports all of OmniVision’s HD and analog medical image sensors, enabling customers to expand to full HD imaging with no ISP system redesign.

The OH0120 provides medical designers with a cost-effective solution for developing analog-input and HDMI-output systems with up to 720p resolution. It features LED light control and LCD-screen drivers for integrating the display directly into a handheld or rack-based camera control unit (CCU). The OH0120 also includes on-board memory and a USB 2.0 port for external memory cards with up to 64GB, which can store up to 30 hours of video recordings. These features, along with native support for Android applications, help designers get to market quickly.

The OH0130 offers a cost-effective option for creating a CCU system platform that can process higher, full-HD resolution images of up to 1080p from a broad range of image sensors with a single board. It accepts dual inputs for either a MIPI interface or a 4-wire analog interface, making it compatible with OmniVision’s entire portfolio of medical image sensors. The OH0130 offers these high performance features, along with USB 3.0 Type C, HD output, in a small form factor that can fit into the handle of a larger endoscope or into a CCU. USB-C connectivity enables developers to create their own user interfaces and perform post-processing of the image for enhanced diagnostics. OmniVision also provides a software development kit (SDK) to speed the design of interfaces and applications. This SDK features callable APIs, eliminating the need to write lower-level code.

The OH0130 also includes an LED control board that can adjust the image brightness. These features make the OH0130 an ideal imaging solution for a wide range of endoscopic procedures, including airway management and urology, using esophagoscopes, laryngoscopes, thorascopes, pleuroscopes, bronchoscopes, mediastinoscopes and utero-renoscopes.

The OH0120 and OH0130 are both medically pre-certified to comply with IEC 60601 (ESD, EMC, EMI, patient isolation). Additionally, they are compliant with REACH and RoHS, and are manufactured in facilities certified to the ISO 13485 and ISO 9001 standards.

Samples of OmniVision’s new OH0120 and OH0130 OVMed ISP boards are available now.

TFT LCD provides VGA resolution, exceptional optical performance

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TX14D203VM0BAA displayIndustrial LCD manufacturer KOE (Kaohsiung Opto-Electronics) have announced the introduction of a new high-performance 5.7-inch TFT display module. The TX14D203VM0BAA display features VGA resolution (640 x 480 pixels), a 4:3 aspect ratio, and the latest IPS (in-plane switching) technology which delivers exceptional optical performance. Additionally, the new 5.7-inch TFT display module also provides a fully compatible, performance upgrade for the existing KOE 5.7-inch VGA TX14D23VM5BAA display.

The new KOE TX14D203VM0BAA provides the ideal display solution for use in process control systems, industrial HMI, and medical monitoring equipment. Featuring the latest IPS display technology, the 5.7-inch display delivers excellent color saturation and image stability, high contrast, and highly saturated black levels. Exceptional all-round viewing angles of up to 170° are enabled (left/right, up/down).

The 5.7-inch display module provides exceptional optical performance, with a contrast ratio of 1000:1 and a white LED backlight with a specified brightness rating of 800cd/m². These key features ensure that display images are bright, concise and exhibit high accurately color reproduction.

The 5.7-inch module has mechanical outline dimensions of 131.0mm (w) x 102.2mm (h) x 7.6mm (d) and an active display area of  115.2mm (w) x 86.4mm (h). Storage and operating temperature range of -30°C to +80°C is supported.

The TX14D203VM0BAA display module provides a direct, plug-in enhancement for the existing KOE 5.7-inch VGA TX14D23VM5BAA TFT display. Both display modules feature the same mechanical outline dimensions and an identical, fully compatible 40-pin CMOS data interface. 6-bit RGB color data enables a color palette up to 262K colors. KOE will also shortly be introducing an LVDS interface version of the new 5.7-inch VGA display.

KOE’s new TX14D203VM0BAA can now be sourced and supplied for a minimum period of 5 years. The KOE 5.7-inch TX14D203VM0BAA TFT display module is available from KOE’s worldwide sales channel and distribution partners.

LCDs incorporate selective dimming, backlighting

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7” WUXGA displayData Modul announces the launch of its new LCD display series featuring an innovative full-area local dimming (FALD) backlighting solution. The backlight incorporates a dense array of LED zones which can be individually and dynamically controlled in harmony with the display content.

The first available display from this series is the 7” WUXGA display with 360 zones, a wide color space of 105 % DCI-P3, a high contrast of 10,000,000:1, a typical brightness of 1800 nits and a 10-finger in-cell touch on board. DATA MODUL plans to extend the range of displays with FALD technology, from the 7” WUXGA displays now available to the 10.1” FHD, along with 13.3″, 17.3″ and 24″ UHD sizes. All displays will be available in combination with a suitable HDMI (or DP input) control card for signal and backlight control. 

The advantages of DATA MODUL’s professional-grade FALD technology compared to conventional backlighting technology are OLED-level contrast and color, superior image quality, and true sunlight readability. Beyond that, the power consumption is significantly lower compared to similarly bright displays. This makes the new series ideal for the automotive industry, medical imaging, or marine and military applications.

 

E-paper displays deliver higher rez in larger formats

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E-paper displaysPervasive Displays (PDi) announces the introduction of the E24581JS084 5.8-inch and E2969JS084 9.7-inch tri-color Electronic Paper Display (EPD) modules offering high bi-stable image resolution of 134 dpi and 121 dpi respectively.

Along with their high resolution, ultra-low power operation and fast update cycle, the displays also feature integrated timing controllers, an extended operating temperature range of 0°C to +40°C and one-time programmable (OTP) capability.

The new additions to Pervasive Displays’ extensive portfolio of EPD modules meet the demands of more challenging environments, such as in healthcare, out-of-home digital signage and information displays, as well as delivering greater functionality for retail applications such as Electronic Shelf Labelling (ESL).

By integrating the timing controller, manufacturers are able to realize simpler designs and get to market faster. The potential reduction in PCB area and bill of materials will also allow a reduction in total size and weight, or more space to be dedicated to the battery, allowing the displays to operate even longer on a single primary cell.

The OTP feature of the E24581JS084 and E2969JS084 works alongside the internal timing controller, allowing an image waveform to be stored inside the display driver. This removes the need for the host processor to load an image at start-up, delivering a shorter time to first image and enhancing the overall user experience.

Low-power, Wi‑Fi-enabled e-paper features wireless control via internet, MQTT protocol

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simplelink-wi-fi-cc3200-wireless-mcu-e-paper-displayPervasive Displays (PDi), a world leader in e-paper displays (EPDs), today announced it has made the process of updating displays easier with the rollout of a low power, Wi‑Fi®-enabled EPD. The result of collaboration with Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI), the SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC3200 wireless MCU-based EPD design  is compatible with any of five different EPD panel sizes, and can be easily and wirelessly controlled, locally or remotely over the internet using the MQTT protocol.

The battery-powered, low power design comprises a SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC3200 LaunchPad development kit that contains a single ARM Cortex®-M4-based wireless microcontroller, and the EPD display placed on a BoosterPack™-compatible plug-in board. This board accommodates a choice of five e-paper display sizes from 1.44 to 2.7 inches and communication between the MCU and the display is via SPI.

Operating from a battery source in the range of 2.3 to 3.6 VDC, which is typically 2 x AA alkaline batteries, the battery life is use-case dependent. One set of batteries will usually last for several years, with polling frequency and number of updates determining the exact lifetime.

The EPD display can be updated locally, via an attached network, or via the internet from anywhere through a cloud-based application. Application firmware running on the MCU permits control of the displayed image either via an embedded HTTP page or via an MQTT client. The HTTP client provides a variety of text and image format templates to be displayed and configured according to the application requirements. Typical applications for this design include use in indoor signage, IoT applications, smart home and smart factory developments.

The SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC3200 SDK contains an MQTT example together with the Pervasive Displays driver. The MCU uses a FreeRTOS environment with two threads; one for the SimpleLink functions and the second for the display communication.