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You are here: Home / Projects / ColorMax MMStick Projects / CGMMSTICK Vacuum Fluorescent Display

CGMMSTICK Vacuum Fluorescent Display

I’ve had a couple of these display modules sitting around for a while. They have a 10-pin connector, not the ‘normal’ 14 that an LCD module has. I also don’t have a data sheet for the display, but a couple of old data sheets for different but somewhat similar displays. Every time I bump into the modules in my box of stuff I wonder what they look like when activated.

It is pretty easy to use MMBasic to just try these modules, even if I’m not confident that the data that I have on the modules is correct. I’ll give it a good try with the limited information that I have.

Vacuum Fluorescent Display (VFD) Module

I decided to wire up the display to a CGMMSTICK to test them. It is a 5V display, so I’ll use OC outputs pulled to 5V through a 10k resistor. The display has a reset line, data in (serially transmitted, synched with the clock line), and clock. Data is most significant bit first.

According to the info I had:

Pins 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 are ground

Pin 1 +5V

Pin 3 clock

Pin 5 data

Pin 7 reset

I powered the module before connecting to the CGMMSTICK. Nothing appeared on the display, but I didn’t get a cloud of smoke either.

VFD Test Circuit

The data sheet for a similar module says that the value that it takes to write “A” is 1, “B” is 2. This doesn’t follow ASCII.

Below is the code I used to test the display:

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' VFD test code
 
' I/O init
' Open collector data
SETPIN 12, 9 : PIN(12) = 1
 
' Open collector clock
SETPIN 13, 9 : PIN(13) = 0
 
' Open collector reset
SETPIN 15, 9 : PIN(15) = 1
 
' Values for characters
_A = 1 : _B = 2 : _C = 3 : _D = 4 : _E = 5
_F = 6 : _G = 7 : _H = 8 : _I = 9 : _J = 10
_K = 11 : _L = 12 : _M = 13 : _N = 14 : _O = 15
_P = 16 : _Q = 17 : _R = 18 : _S = 19 : _T = 20
_U = 21 : _V = 22 : _W = 23 : _X = 24 : _Y = 25 : _Z = 26
 
_AT = 0 : _SPACE = 32
 
_ZERO = 48 : _ONE = 49 : _TWO = 50 : _THREE = 51
_FOUR = 52 : _FIVE = 53 : _SIX = 54 : _SEVEN = 55
_EIGHT = 56 : _NINE = 57
 
' Initialize and display message
VFDRESET
VFDDATA _SPACE
VFDDATA _C
VFDDATA _I
VFDDATA _R
VFDDATA _C
VFDDATA _U
VFDDATA _I
VFDDATA _T
VFDDATA _SPACE
VFDDATA _G
VFDDATA _I
VFDDATA _Z
VFDDATA _M
VFDDATA _O
VFDDATA _S
VFDDATA _SPACE
 
END
 
 
' VFD display reset routine
Sub VFDRESET
  ' pulse the reset line
  PIN(15) = 1 : PAUSE 1
  PIN(15) = 0 : PAUSE 1
  PIN(15) = 1 : PAUSE 1
 
  ' Clear the display
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &;h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
  VFDDATA &h20
 
  ' Turn display on
  VFDDATA &hFF
 
End Sub
 
' Write data to display, MSB first
Sub VFDDATA (valu)
  PIN(13) = 1
 
  PIN(12) = valu AND &B10000000
  PIN(13) = 0 : PIN(13) = 1
 
  PIN(12) = valu AND &B01000000
  PIN(13) = 0 : PIN(13) = 1
 
  PIN(12) = valu AND &B00100000
  PIN(13) = 0 : PIN(13) = 1
 
  PIN(12) = valu AND &B00010000
  PIN(13) = 0 : PIN(13) = 1
 
  PIN(12) = valu AND &B00001000
  PIN(13) = 0 : PIN(13) = 1
 
  PIN(12) = valu AND &B00000100
  PIN(13) = 0 : PIN(13) = 1
 
  PIN(12) = valu AND &B00000010
  PIN(13) = 0 : PIN(13) = 1
 
  PIN(12) = valu AND &B00000001
  PIN(13) = 0 : PIN(13) = 1
 
End Sub
 

And the result:

” CIRCUIT GIZMOS ” written to the VFD. Looks better to the eye than to the camera.

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