External Alphanumeric LCD from Spare Parts

[BryanSTG]

(I wasn’t sure if this should be posted under “Displays” or the Cases & Case Modding sub-thread “Electronics”.)

My knack for reusing and salvaging electronic components led me to build this external lcd almost entirely from spare parts. The $4 black plastic enclosure is the only part I purchased; I wanted a visually appealing final product. Unfortunately I didn’t keep a worklog take any pictures of the build process but you guys should get the idea.




The lcd is from the control panel of an old Compaq TL891 tape drive library / server, which uses the very common Hitachi HD44780 lcd driver.

Control Panel’s Front Cover


Control Panel’s PCB



To control the display I’m using a parallel port and the program “LCD Smartie”. The two additional ports are both for supplying the necessary +5v; the usb port is just a convenient alternative +5v source. The silver knob is a potentiometer for adjusting the contrast.




Now that it’s finished I haven’t decided exactly what to do with it. I may connect it to my server for displaying drive space, network activity, and temperatures but who knows.




Check out the following links for schematics, diagrams, and additional information.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Beginning-LCDs/
http://lcdsmartie.org/
http://lcdsmartie.sourceforge.net/

 

[limitedaccess]

I'd be interested in doing something similar, especially since I cleared out all my 5.25inch bays, and could stick something there. But I wouldn't know where to get the spare parts.

Just wondering, was it difficult to program?

 

[BryanSTG]

Not at all, thanks to the LCD Smartie program that's probably the easiest part. I wouldn't even call it programming, it's more like configuring parameters and changing settings.