I've had a bit of experience with this sort of thing, I used one with a PIC for a uni project I did last year - but if it's for a PC, you might be better off getting a program for it instead of coding it yourself, but that might depend on your needs.
Its actually pins 1 and 2 that are the power pins, pin 3 is the contrast (should be grounded).
As for the rest, if i can remember correctly, they are as follows:
4: Register select (changes the device from instruction to data mode)
5: Read/Write Mode (leave as write by pulling it low)
6:Enable (effectively the "clock")
7-14: Data
This is assuming that it is a Hitachi 44780 chipset, but that is almost certainly the case - try searching for it and you might get some advice on using it.
If you get a program for it, it should explain what connections need to be made. This link might help also:
http://www.overclockers.com.au/techstuff/a_diy_lcd/
If you are trying to program it, I might be able to give you a few tips, but it's a fair bit different throught a parallel port - communicating with the ports in windows can be a pain in the **** if you don't know what you are doing.
Its actually pins 1 and 2 that are the power pins, pin 3 is the contrast (should be grounded).
As for the rest, if i can remember correctly, they are as follows:
4: Register select (changes the device from instruction to data mode)
5: Read/Write Mode (leave as write by pulling it low)
6:Enable (effectively the "clock")
7-14: Data
This is assuming that it is a Hitachi 44780 chipset, but that is almost certainly the case - try searching for it and you might get some advice on using it.
If you get a program for it, it should explain what connections need to be made. This link might help also:
http://www.overclockers.com.au/techstuff/a_diy_lcd/
If you are trying to program it, I might be able to give you a few tips, but it's a fair bit different throught a parallel port - communicating with the ports in windows can be a pain in the **** if you don't know what you are doing.
Stu said:
Never ground the contrast pin! If you do that you might chase non-existing problems for a long time... Some displays will work with 0V on the contrast pin, but most will stay blank. You need a trimmer (10k is often used) between 5V and ground, so you can adjust the contrast voltage.
Also note that some displays will need a negative voltage on the contrast pin to display anything.
Best regards,
Mikkel C. Simonsen
I've grounded the contrast pin on four different models without issue, but it could be considered good practice to use a potentiometer instead - it wouldn't be much more complicated, and you will be able to adjust to your tastes.
Maybe I shouldn't have said you 'should' ground it, but it is rare for this to be a problem, and it does simplify the design somewhat.
Maybe I shouldn't have said you 'should' ground it, but it is rare for this to be a problem, and it does simplify the design somewhat.
Um, you guys are assuming its a HD44780 LCD.
It may not be.
If it is though, see my guide here:
http://www.overclockers.com.au/~mwp/cc/guides/setup-hd44780.htm
It may not be.
If it is though, see my guide here:
http://www.overclockers.com.au/~mwp/cc/guides/setup-hd44780.htm
Whoops, ignore what I have said so far... I think I assumed that it was a Hitachi because of the same number of pins.
In my opinion, it may be too tricky to try and do something like this yourself - if you are looking for a DIY friendly display, one with the 44780 chipset I mentioned would help and has a lot of supporting information/projects you'll be able to find on the net (that may also be why I assumed you were using one). Even a simple graphic display may be a lot easier, but I don't really have any experience with those.
Maybe you'll get lucky and find someone who will be able to help you, but you might want to rethink what you are trying to do.
In my opinion, it may be too tricky to try and do something like this yourself - if you are looking for a DIY friendly display, one with the 44780 chipset I mentioned would help and has a lot of supporting information/projects you'll be able to find on the net (that may also be why I assumed you were using one). Even a simple graphic display may be a lot easier, but I don't really have any experience with those.
Maybe you'll get lucky and find someone who will be able to help you, but you might want to rethink what you are trying to do.
There's a link near the top of the page for a fairly simple diy solution using such an LCD, but here it is again:
http://www.overclockers.com.au/techstuff/a_diy_lcd/
Here is another good one I just found (a bit more complicated though).
http://www.myrolypoly.com/lcd_project/lcd_project.html
They both use only simple character displays (i.e. not graphic), but depending on your application, that should be sufficient.
I've got a bit of an idea of how they function, but are you planning of programming it yourself or getting a custom designed program for it? That is an important factor to take into account.
http://www.overclockers.com.au/techstuff/a_diy_lcd/
Here is another good one I just found (a bit more complicated though).
http://www.myrolypoly.com/lcd_project/lcd_project.html
They both use only simple character displays (i.e. not graphic), but depending on your application, that should be sufficient.
I've got a bit of an idea of how they function, but are you planning of programming it yourself or getting a custom designed program for it? That is an important factor to take into account.
If you still insist on using your LCD, I won't be able to help you, and I doubt that anyone else will be able to either.
If you decide to use a different LCD, and program it yourself, this link might help:
http://www.epanorama.net/links/project_display.html
If you decide to use a different LCD, and program it yourself, this link might help:
http://www.epanorama.net/links/project_display.html
I think a Nokia display has been connected and used with a PC before, but i dont know the details.
You might want to look through the PowerLCD software site.
HD44780 based LCDs are easy to get going... guides are everywhere, so is software.
Like the software i wrote: http://www.crystalfontz.com/software/crystalcontrol
You might want to look through the PowerLCD software site.
HD44780 based LCDs are easy to get going... guides are everywhere, so is software.
Like the software i wrote: http://www.crystalfontz.com/software/crystalcontrol
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