VFD Display by NEC: FC20X2JA-AA

[anymohr]

Hello! I have a VFD display from NEC called FC20X2JA-AA. It is neither listed in JoeDaltons plugin nor in LCDHype.
The way it is addressed is very simple: one can send characters simply by a terminal program and they will be displayed. Does anyone know how to use such a display with MediaPortal? Maybe there are listed displays that behave the same way so that I could use their drivers?

[cybrmage]

The NEC-FC20x2JA display is used in the Noritake T series VFD displays...
There is a LCDHype driver for these displays... try it... it should work.

[anymohr]

Thanks, but did not work. The Noritake T series LCDHype driver only allows for a parallel port setup and so do the other Noritake drivers. The NEC-FC20x2JA gets data through the serial port. Any idea?

[cybrmage]

Try the CybrDisplay plugin, available HERE

Select "Generic Serial Character VFD/LCD Display Driver" as the driver... Click on "Advanced", and set the commands as follows:

Display Init: x01 x11 x14
Clear Display: x0c
Cursor Left: x08
Cursor Right: x09
Cursor Up: (leave blank)
Cursor Down: x0a
Cursor Home: (leave blank)
Display Close: (leave blank)

[anymohr]

Hello Cybrmage! Thank you very much for your efforts and your support! I really appreciate it.
I tryed out what you said and something was moving on my display but nothing that one could understand.
When hitting "test display" button I get 42 random characters within about 1s starting anywhere on the display and then it takes 4s until the "test display" button highlights again. Nothing happens on the display during that time. Right after that one more character is displayed. When running Mediaportal 40 random characters appear constantly with a break of the set "scroll delay". It feels a bit like the baud rate is not set correctly. I set it to 9600 in your plugin and that is the baud rate my display works well with when connected to a terminal program. Can you help me any further?
Log file is attached.

[cybrmage]

Originally Posted by anymohr

Hello Cybrmage! Thank you very much for your efforts and your support! I really appreciate it.

no problem.

Originally Posted by anymohr

When hitting "test display" button I get 42 random characters within about 1s starting anywhere on the display and then it takes 4s until the "test display" button highlights again.

The "Test display" button initializes the driver, sends text to each line on the display, sleeps for 5 seconds, then shuts down the display... So the behavior you describe is correct... except it should only send 40 characters to the display... can you describe exactly what characters are displayed by the test?

try adding a "x0c" to the end of the "Display Init" command... The init may need a clear screen command to set the initial cursor position so the driver can track the cursor position properly (This display does NOT have absolute positioning commands)...

[quote=anymohr;246696]It feels a bit like the baud rate is not set correctly. I set it to 9600 in your plugin and that is the baud rate my display works well with when connected to a terminal program.

If you set the baud rate rate 9600, it should use 9600 baud... and the logs indicate that the port is indeed opened at 9600 baud... It may be that some of the other comm port parameters are incorrect... What are the parameters that you use for the port with the terminal emulator??

And... just out of curiosity... how did you get this device?? was it included with a case? did you find it at a surplus store? ebay? scavenged from a cash register??

[anymohr]

The behaviour of my display is very strange indeed. It drives me crazy!
1. Adding x0c did not change anything. The characters im getting seem completely random, nothing repeats. I get §, },{, =, letters, numbers, all kinds of special characters like a clock, wave, rectangles, dotet rectangles, square root, triangles. You name it I got it.

2. The baud rate must be right:
a. using com2 or com3 at 9600 as the output and connecting it to com1,2,or3 gives me the desired output from your plugin. Using 2 terminal programs.
b. using com2 (or 1 or 3) at 9600 I can send chacters to the display with a terminal program and they are displayed correctly. All this without any initializing characters.
c. using com2 or 3 with your plugin gives these crazy characters.
d. com1 I can not use with your plugin. Using it and pressing "test display" nothing happens and the button re-appears within milliseconds. That is very strange, I think!

3. com1 on my machine is the legacy com port of the mainboard, com2 and 3 are added through a PCI card.
a. com1: 9600 (had it at 115200, no change), 8 data bits, no parity, 1 stop bit, no flow control
b. com2 and 3: same as com1

4. I work for a distributor of electronic components and those displays crossed my way one day. They were not in a housing. I have one each: 16x2, 20x1, 20x2, 40x1, 40x2. All the same controller: FIPC8367 from NEC (1989!)

Even though the control commands (x0...) are in accordance with the "datasheet" (attached) I found on the web could it be the display does understand them in a wrong way?

[cybrmage]

Originally Posted by anymohr

The behaviour of my display is very strange indeed. It drives me crazy!

Imagine how it feels trying to get one working without ever having seen the device.... 8-}

Originally Posted by anymohr

1. Adding x0c did not change anything. The characters im getting seem completely random, nothing repeats. I get §, },{, =, letters, numbers, all kinds of special characters like a clock, wave, rectangles, dotet rectangles, square root, triangles. You name it I got it.

Did the display clear?? x0c should clear the display...
When you use the terminal program... does the display shut off when you close the port? does the display clear when you open the port?? what happens if you put some text onto the display, then run mediaportal configuration and test the display?? does the existing text remain on the display?? does the display clear then display garbage??

The description you give of the characters displayed seems to indicate that some of the port parameters are incorrect... but the parameters I hardcoded (Parity, stop bits) are the same as you indicate you are using in the terminal program...

[quote=anymohr;246918]a. using com2 or com3 at 9600 as the output and connecting it to com1,2,or3 gives me the desired output from your plugin. Using 2 terminal programs.

So this indicates that the driver sends the data that it should... which means that the data is being sent to the display too fast, or one of the port parameters is incorrect.

Originally Posted by anymohr

d. com1 I can not use with your plugin. Using it and pressing "test display" nothing happens and the button re-appears within milliseconds. That is very strange, I think!

Please post the log from this... it is curious...

Originally Posted by anymohr

could it be the display does understand them in a wrong way?

I suspect that the data is being sent to the display faster than it can process them. I haven't added use of the inter character delay to the driver yet... I'll do that next... hopefully that will be the trick... check the driver thread later for a new version... (not the 03_22_2008 version)

EDIT: try the 03_22_2008b version... Also, run configuration and set the comm delay (not the scroll delay) to 100... this allow the display enough time to process each of the command characters... If it doesn't work, try increasing the comm delay and see if it makes any difference...

[anymohr]

"Did the display clear?? x0c should clear the display...
When you use the terminal program... does the display shut off when you close the port? does the display clear when you open the port?? what happens if you put some text onto the display, then run mediaportal configuration and test the display?? does the existing text remain on the display?? does the display clear then display garbage??"
Display does not clear with x0c. It does not shut of when closing the port, the garbage stays on. Same when opening port. The existing text remains on the screen. The garbage starts after the last displayed character. It does not clear before displaying garbage.
Using COM1 and starting Mediaportal puts out garbage from the current position on. Log file attached.
Thanks once more for your patient support!

[cybrmage]

I actually meant for you to post the configuration.log (since the configuration "test display" showed the problem)... I should have been more specific... however, the mediaportal.log does not show any problems.. the port is opened and it indicates that it sends command and data to the display.


EDIT: Looking at the data sheet for the FIPC8367, the commands are send to the display with the with various combinations of the WR and A0 pins set... which means that the display may need to have various command lines (RTS and DTR) set while the commands are sent to the display... Can you describe how the wires in the serial cable are connected to the data cable connector on the display?