Show information in a clear and easy-to-read way with LTP-3862 and ATmega32

Dual-digit 16-segment alphanumeric green display

Published Dec 22, 2023

Click board™

AlphaNum G 2 Click

Dev. board

EasyAVR v7

Compiler

NECTO Studio

MCU

ATmega32

Use a vibrant 16-segment alphanumeric display to illuminate your projects with clear numerical and textual information – perfect for applications that demand visibility and a touch of modern display sophistication

Hardware Overview

How does it work?

AlphaNum G 2 Click is based on the LTP-3862, a dual-digit 16-segment alphanumeric green display from Lite-ON. It has a 75mW of power disipation per segment. The TLC5947, a 24-channel 12-bit PWM LED driver from Texas Instruments, drives all these LED segments. It is a constant current sink LED driver with adjustable 4096 pulse width modulation (PWM) on each channel individually. The PWM control is repeated automatically with the programmed grayscale data. An external resistor sets the constant current to around 10mA.

The LED driver features thermal shutdown, auto display repeat, noise reduction, and more. AlphaNum G 2 Click uses a standard 4-Wire SPI serial interface to communicate with the host MCU, supporting a clock frequency of up to 30MHz. A Blank BLK pin can turn all constant current outputs OFF while initializing the grayscale PWM timing. This can be achieved by writing the High logic state on the Blank pin. You can also turn off every display separately, no matter the LED driver IC, over the CA1 and CA2

pins. These pins control the common anode pins of the displays. This Click board™ can operate with either 3.3V or 5V logic voltage levels selected via the VCC SEL jumper. This way, both 3.3V and 5V capable MCUs can use the communication lines properly. Also, this Click board™ comes equipped with a library containing easy-to-use functions and an example code that can be used as a reference for further development.

AlphaNum G 2 Click hardware overview image

Features overview

Development board

EasyAVR v7 is the seventh generation of AVR development boards specially designed for the needs of rapid development of embedded applications. It supports a wide range of 16-bit AVR microcontrollers from Microchip and has a broad set of unique functions, such as a powerful onboard mikroProg programmer and In-Circuit debugger over USB. The development board is well organized and designed so that the end-user has all the necessary elements in one place, such as switches, buttons, indicators, connectors, and others. With four different connectors for each port, EasyAVR v7 allows you to connect accessory boards, sensors, and custom electronics more

efficiently than ever. Each part of the EasyAVR v7 development board contains the components necessary for the most efficient operation of the same board. An integrated mikroProg, a fast USB 2.0 programmer with mikroICD hardware In-Circuit Debugger, offers many valuable programming/debugging options and seamless integration with the Mikroe software environment. Besides it also includes a clean and regulated power supply block for the development board. It can use a wide range of external power sources, including an external 12V power supply, 7-12V AC or 9-15V DC via DC connector/screw terminals, and a power source via the USB Type-B (USB-B)

connector. Communication options such as USB-UART and RS-232 are also included, alongside the well-established mikroBUS™ standard, three display options (7-segment, graphical, and character-based LCD), and several different DIP sockets which cover a wide range of 16-bit AVR MCUs. EasyAVR v7 is an integral part of the Mikroe ecosystem for rapid development. Natively supported by Mikroe software tools, it covers many aspects of prototyping and development thanks to a considerable number of different Click boards™ (over a thousand boards), the number of which is growing every day.

Microcontroller Overview

MCU Card / MCU

Architecture

AVR

MCU Memory (KB)

Silicon Vendor

Microchip

Pin count

RAM (Bytes)

2048

Used MCU Pins

mikroBUS™ mapper

Blank Input

PA7

ID SEL

PA6

RST

SPI Select / ID COMM

PA5

SPI Clock

PB7

SCK

SPI Data OUT

PB6

MISO

SPI Data IN

PB5

MOSI

Power Supply

3.3V

Ground

GND

Common Anode Enable 1

PD4

PWM

Common Anode Enable 2

PD2

INT

SCL

SDA

Power Supply

Ground

GND

Take a closer look

Click board™ Schematic

Step by step

Project assembly

EasyAVR v7 front image hardware assembly

Start by selecting your development board and Click board™. Begin with the EasyAVR v7 as your development board.

NECTO Output Selection Step Image hardware assembly

In the advanced settings, pay special attention to the Redirect standard output field. By default, it is set to Application output as the method of displaying final results. To show results via a UART terminal, select the “UART” option in that field and click the “SAVE” button. You will be returned to the Compiler field, and now you can move on to the next step by pressing the “NEXT” button.

Buck 22 Click front image hardware assembly

EasyAVR v7 MB 1 - upright/background hardware assembly

NECTO Compiler Selection Step Image hardware assembly

Necto DIP image step 7 hardware assembly

EasyPIC PRO v7a Display Selection Necto Step hardware assembly

Track your results in real time

Application Output

1. Application Output - In Debug mode, the 'Application Output' window enables real-time data monitoring, offering direct insight into execution results. Ensure proper data display by configuring the environment correctly using the provided tutorial.

2. UART Terminal - Use the UART Terminal to monitor data transmission via a USB to UART converter, allowing direct communication between the Click board™ and your development system. Configure the baud rate and other serial settings according to your project's requirements to ensure proper functionality. For step-by-step setup instructions, refer to the provided tutorial.

3. Plot Output - The Plot feature offers a powerful way to visualize real-time sensor data, enabling trend analysis, debugging, and comparison of multiple data points. To set it up correctly, follow the provided tutorial, which includes a step-by-step example of using the Plot feature to display Click board™ readings. To use the Plot feature in your code, use the function: plot(*insert_graph_name*, variable_name);. This is a general format, and it is up to the user to replace 'insert_graph_name' with the actual graph name and 'variable_name' with the parameter to be displayed.

Software Support

Library Description

This library contains API for AlphaNum G 2 Click driver.

Key functions:

alphanumg2_display_character - AlphaNum G 2 display character function.
alphanumg2_set_led_output - AlphaNum G 2 set LED output function.

Open Source

Code example

The complete application code and a ready-to-use project are available through the NECTO Studio Package Manager for direct installation in the NECTO Studio. The application code can also be found on the MIKROE GitHub account.

/*!
 * @file main.c
 * @brief AlphaNum G 2 Click example
 *
 * # Description
 * This example demonstrates the use of the AlphaNum G 2 Click board™ 
 * by writing and displaying the desired alphanumeric characters.
 *
 * The demo application is composed of two sections :
 *
 * ## Application Init
 * Initialization of SPI module and log UART.
 * After driver initialization, the app executes a default configuration.
 *
 * ## Application Task
 * The demo application displays digits from '0' to '9', 
 * symbols: colon, semicolon, less-than, equals-to, greater-than, question mark, at sign 
 * and capital alphabet letters, on both alphanumeric segments of the click. 
 * Results are being sent to the UART Terminal, where you can track their changes.
 *
 * @author Nenad Filipovic
 *
 */

#include "board.h"
#include "log.h"
#include "alphanumg2.h"

#define ASCII_CHARACTER_DIGIT_0        '0'
#define ASCII_CHARACTER_UPPERCASE_Z    'Z'

static alphanumg2_t alphanumg2;
static log_t logger;
static uint8_t character = ASCII_CHARACTER_DIGIT_0;

void application_init ( void )
{
    log_cfg_t log_cfg;  /**< Logger config object. */
    alphanumg2_cfg_t alphanumg2_cfg;  /**< Click config object. */

    /** 
     * Logger initialization.
     * Default baud rate: 115200
     * Default log level: LOG_LEVEL_DEBUG
     * @note If USB_UART_RX and USB_UART_TX 
     * are defined as HAL_PIN_NC, you will 
     * need to define them manually for log to work. 
     * See @b LOG_MAP_USB_UART macro definition for detailed explanation.
     */
    LOG_MAP_USB_UART( log_cfg );
    log_init( &logger, &log_cfg );
    log_info( &logger, " Application Init " );

    // Click initialization.
    alphanumg2_cfg_setup( &alphanumg2_cfg );
    ALPHANUMG2_MAP_MIKROBUS( alphanumg2_cfg, MIKROBUS_1 );
    if ( SPI_MASTER_ERROR == alphanumg2_init( &alphanumg2, &alphanumg2_cfg ) )
    {
        log_error( &logger, " Communication init." );
        for ( ; ; );
    }
    
    if ( ALPHANUMG2_ERROR == alphanumg2_default_cfg ( &alphanumg2 ) )
    {
        log_error( &logger, " Default configuration." );
        for ( ; ; );
    }
    
    log_info( &logger, " Application Task " );
    log_printf( &logger, "------------------------\r\n" );
    Delay_ms( 100 );
}

void application_task ( void )
{
    log_printf( &logger, " %c %c\r\n", character, character + 1 );
    if ( ALPHANUMG2_OK == alphanumg2_display_character( &alphanumg2, 
                                                        character, ALPHANUMG2_BRIGHTNESS_MAX, 
                                                        character + 1, ALPHANUMG2_BRIGHTNESS_MAX ) )
    {
        character++;
        if ( ASCII_CHARACTER_UPPERCASE_Z <= character )
        {
            character = ASCII_CHARACTER_DIGIT_0;
            log_printf( &logger, "------------------------\r\n" );
            Delay_ms( 1000 );
        }
    }
}

int main ( void ) 
{
    application_init( );
    
    for ( ; ; ) 
    {
        application_task( );
    }

    return 0;
}

// ------------------------------------------------------------------------ END