Hi Art,
I used some 4x20 VFD displays several years ago that I got from Rentron.
Worked great on my project. I think I bought some spares for future
replacement. I also bought some 4x20 Blue LCD's as a backup. I did
read about the potential problems that arise over time. I personally see
see it several times a week on my job as an alarm service tech. We have
alot of early Radionics panels that used VFD displays that have lost their
brightness.
What I did on my project was to use mesages that moved around the display
so that the same message didn't stay in the same place for more than
a few seconds. Seems to have done the job. But I do expect to have to
replace them at some point. That's how you make money in the service
business. I believe you can adjust the intensity through software so that
they aren't as bright which might help keep them going longer. You can
probably put an LDR into your micro and let it adjust the brightness
depending on the ambient light around your display.
HTH,
BobK
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