Here's a video of the device, when it works. This is the LED version, my main work is on the VFD tube version, versions of which can be seen in my Youtube collection. The only difference between the VFD and LED versions is the order of bitbanging data to the output SR's, and the VFD version uses CCP1 to generate 40V via a boost convertor
The VFD Version
This is the version which started it all off.
Note that in the last video (the first incarnation) each display tube has it's own controller IC, a PIC16F690, where the two previous versions now multiplex 4 display elements and have independent transition effects, operated by a 18426j50 driving an output shift register.
The displays are daisychained via a serial connection and form a self arranging linear network. They take simple ascii text commands at the input and organise themselves so that the correct character is displayed on the correct tube. For example the message $B7MTest , would put the letter T on the first tube, e on the next, and so on.<$B7M> is the header used for display 'M'essages.
if they are all connected together then each element has it's own 'place' in the display array (very much like the DMX protocol uses individual addresses too) then larger arrays of mixed display media can be built, such as this
I keep most of the detail at my Yahoogroup
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/smartsockets/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/smartsockets/
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