Anynone with experience on VFD's (Customer Display ones)

[yoelian]

Hello, i'm opening this post in order to find some 'advanced' information on these diplays used mostly on Point Of Sale equipment.
I have gained some basic knoledge on this so far, i have even received help at this forum (from dperrow mainly) and got one of thes VFD's working just fine with Smartie.
What i am really after is some documentation, i have found some there are many points that are not so clear.
So i will put down what i know so far, so if anyone has got further please lead me...

-Most of these VFD displays have a 'dot' and 'comma' next to to every char (5x7 matrix), aditionally below every character on the upper row(on a 2 lines display) there's a 'solid bar/underline' and a 'triangle'(pointing down) under every character on the lower row.(those are special 'pixels' on the display and i still don't know how to work with them)
-Mosto of them use some Emulation Command modes(POS7300, EPSON ESC, CD5200, AEDEX, etc...) as a language to comunicate, they have common functions and other specific to every Command Mode. But i have found some documentation on other displays which doesn't refer to any of those emulation modes but provide a list of commands to achieve many functions. Specifically on a Futaba module documentation there were commands which would allow the control of the 'special pixels' i mentioned above, but i don't know how to use those command or if they are model specific
(have tried to send the hex codes using a serial port test program which worked with the 'emulation modes', but .. nothing happens).
-Using the EPSON command emulation mode there are some hex instructions used to 'turn on' the 'dot', 'comma' and 'triangle' but not the 'underline'.

I have been able to make my VFD work with LCD Smartie, even with the graphs using custom chars so basically it is working perfectly from Smartie's point of view, i just want to learn more about these displays for a more general/advanced use.

[dperrow]

maybe try asking the manufacturer? sometimes they can be helpful.

[yoelian]

Yep, that's always the first place i look.
I've looked at Futaba's site and downloaded datasheet of the display tube part but couldn't find no info about the whole module(icluding the circuitry board). They have there(at Futaba's) datasheet of some module which uses the same VFD tube as mine but it is a different board and the dtasheet information doesn't seem to be compatible with the one i got from LABAU which is manufacturer of the final product(the whole pole display).
The datasheet from LABAU for the 'LD220 customer display' provides documentation mostly similar to that of our 'WD202'.
I tried to use a part number(the only one on the VFD module PCB) and search for it on google with null results.

I think though this module uses a Futaba VFD tube, maybe the whole module has been manufactured by a third, but since the PCB's part number has served no reference i haven't got too far.

[dperrow]

See if you can get any contact details and fire off an email?

[hydrolisk1792]

Unfortunatly Futuba is really hard to get ahold of, and I don't know why. I have some modules that I have been trying to contact them about, but no reply, as usual lol. The only advice I can give you, as I had to do with most of mine, is troll the internet until you can find some kind of information that maybe other people have on the device. Something else you can try is, if there is any other company name on it, I.e. NCR, Logic Controls, ext. And contact them about your display.

[adu84]

Hy I have the same problem . My VFD Futaba M202MD08BA .. Same management protocol : Wincor Nixdorf Ba63 ( 2x20 ) , or BA66 ( 2x40 )

I tried LCDHype
More program and tried : maltepoeggel.de/html/vfd/
VFD work , but I do not like the programs



How to use my LCDSmartie VFD ? because this is my favorite

[hydrolisk1792]

Hy I have the same problem . My VFD Futaba M202MD08BA .. Same management protocol : Wincor Nixdorf Ba63 ( 2x20 ) , or BA66 ( 2x40 )

I tried LCDHype
More program and tried : maltepoeggel.de/html/vfd/
VFD work , but I do not like the programs



How to use my LCDSmartie VFD ? because this is my favorite

Try using the test driver. Also get some kind of program to send HEX directly to that display via the serial port. Look around online for a set of protocol commands for that display and go from there. You will need these commands to turn the display on because a lot of the time, they automatically go into powersave mode at startup after the self test. Cheers and good luck