4D Systems & FTDI Chip Reveal Complete Ecosystem for HMI Development on Intelligent Displays
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Facilitating the implementation process without having to sacrifice operational performance or cost-effectiveness
The cooperation between 4D Systems and FTDI Chip continues to deliver major benefits to the electronic engineering community. The two companies have now added to the recently announced 4DLCD-FT843 intelligent display solution - which incorporates the award-winning FT800 Embedded Video Engine (EVE), where display, audio and touch functionality are integrated onto a single chip - with the subsequent introduction of two further products. Profiting from the novel object-oriented approach employed by EVE, this combined product offering presents design engineers with a foundation on which to construct compelling new human machine interfaces (HMIs) in a quick and trouble-free manner.
The first of these new products is a compact Arduino-compatible shield named ADAM (Arduino Display Adaptor Module), which has been developed specifically to interface with the 4DLCD-FT843 - permitting communication between it and the Arduino via the SPI interface. With dimensions of just 47.5mm x 53.4mm, the shield is suitable for use with Arduino Uno, Due, Duemilanove, Leonardo, Mega 1280/2560 and Pro 5V, as well as variety of popular Arduino clones. It has a micro-SD card that provides the Arduino-based display system with capacious data storage. Through this the 4DLCD-FT843 can retrieve objects (such as images, sounds, fonts, etc.). Drawing power from the Arduino's 5V bus, ADAM regulates the 4DLCD-FT843's supply to 3.3V. The FT800 EVE controller can deal with many of the graphics functions that would otherwise need to be undertaken by the Arduino.
ADAM is complemented by the 4DLCD-FT843-Breakout. With a footprint of 26.5mm x 12mm, this is a simple breakout module that allows the 4DLCD-FT843 to be attached to a general host or breadboard for prototyping purposes. It features a 10-way FPC connection for attachment with the 4DLCD-FT843, along with a 10-way, 2.54mm pitch male pin header for connection directly to the host board. An operational temperature range of -10°C to +70°C is supported by both these new products.
The EVE-driven 4DLCD-FT843, which was released last month, has a 4.3" TFT QWVGA display with a 4-wire resistive touch screen. It features a 64 voice polyphonic sound synthesizer, a mono PWM audio output, a programmable interrupt controller, a PWM dimming controller for the display's backlight, plus a convenient flexible ribbon connector. Â
"The on-going collaboration between 4D Systems' and FTDI Chip's engineering teams is enabling the EVE platform to gain ever greater market traction. The comprehensive product offering that has resulted brings all the pieces of the jigsaw together, empowering engineers in the seamless integration of advanced display technology," states Fred Dart, CEO and founder of FTDI Chip.
"Thanks to these two new additional items of hardware, plus the accompanying software support, we can now furnish the Arduino development environment with a way in which to accomplish next generation HMI implementation while minimising the associated expense and allocated engineering resource," adds Atilla Aknar, 4D Systems' CEO.
Further information on these products can be found at:
http://www.4dsystems.com.au/productpages/4Display-Shield-FT843/downloads/4Display-Shield-FT843-ADAM_datasheet_R_0_4.pdf
http://www.4dsystems.com.au/productpages/4DLCD-FT843-Breakout/downloads/4DLCD-FT843-Breakout_datasheet_R_0_2.pdf
About FTDI Chip
FTDI Chip develops innovative silicon and software solutions capable of enhancing the way that people interact with today's technology. Through application of its "made easy" principle, the company is able to support engineers with highly sophisticated, feature-packed, simple-to-use and robust product platforms which enable the creation of electronic designs that have higher performance, fewer peripheral components and lower power budgets, as well as utilising less board space. These products are focussed on making advancements two fundamental areas; the transferring of data between electronic devices via Universal Serial Bus (USB) interconnects and Graphic User Interface (GUI) implementation. Its long-established and ever expanding USB portfolio, which comes with proven, ready-to-use, royalty-free firmware and driver support for all major operating systems, includes peripheral, host and bridge chips, as well as highly integrated system solutions with built-in microcontroller functionality. These are complemented by its graphic controllers which, which by taking a unique, more streamlined approach, allow engineers to dramatically reduce the development time and bill-of-materials costs involved in implementing next generation GUIs. They combine display, audio and touch functionality in a single compact package and are offered along with an array of development modules and software.
FTDI Chip follows a fab-less semiconductor model, partnering with the world’s leading foundries. The company is headquartered in Glasgow, UK, with research and development facilities located in Glasgow, Singapore and Taipei (Taiwan), plus regional sales and technical support sites in Glasgow, Taipei, Portland (Oregon, USA) and Shanghai (China).
For more information go to http://www.ftdichip.com.
Regional sales offices and distributor lists are available at http://www.ftdichip.com/FTSalesNetwork.htm.
About 4D Systems
4D Systems is a global leader in the development and manufacture of intelligent graphics solutions. We specialize in using the latest state of the art OLED and LCD technology with embedded custom graphics processors that deliver standalone functionality to suit the application needs of customers, from large scale companies requiring an embedded design to electronics hobbyists.
Our success comes from not only what we do but also how we do it. Our attention to design, documentation, as well as performance reliability and quality management principles are at the forefront of our approach. Cost effectiveness and reliability are all seen as being just as important as product features and performance.
4D Systems is headquartered in Sydney, Australia, and has distributors in every continent which allows us to efficiently service an ever expanding marker. Our production facility features ISO 9001 certification, and company-wide quality assurance procedures, ensuring we deliver high quality products.
As the electronics industry evolves, our company will continue to strive in delivering quality products that meet the ever changing needs of our consumers.
More information on 4D Systems and their products is available at http://www.4dsystems.com.au/.
For further information and reader enquiries:
Sinan Aknar - 4D Systems Pty Ltd
Unit 3/51 York Road, Penrith 2750, Australia
Tel: +61 (0)2 4721-7786
Email: sales@4dsystems.com.au
Dave Sroka - FTDI Chip
Unit 1, 2 Seaward Place, Centurion Business Park, Glasgow, G41 1HH, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 141 429 2777Â Â Fax: +44 (0) 141 429 2758
E-mail: marketing@ftdichip.com
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