4 ms·

Yeah, the HDSP-2132 is a common display component in military hardware. I'm sure that readability figures into it (especially for NVGs), but so does hardiness.

by tal8d 6y ago

Yeah, the HDSP-2132 is a common display component in military hardware. I'm sure that readability figures into it (especially for NVGs), but so does hardiness. My hopes of an 80x24 dumb terminal were dashed when I finally learned the unit replacement price... I don't need a rad hardened serial display that bad.

parsecs 6y ago
I've been looking into those Avago/Broadcom dot matrix displays recently. I don't think it'd be too hard to recreate something similar with tiny SMD LEDs on a PCB and a slightly intelligent driver board, for much cheaper. Would there be a market for something like that?
- exmadscientist 6y ago
  Only if you can get them listed at Digi-Key/Mouser/etc. Even if it's under a "maker" brand like Adafruit, Sparkfun, etc. Anyone who can replacement TIL311 and friends displays in there, and advertise them, will sell quite a few. They're not hard to make, but they're the sort of thing that no one really wants to make in-house, since they're a means to an end rather than an end in themselves. Great thing to sell, though!
- tal8d 6y ago
  It has been done a few times, but I doubt there would be any kind of market for it. https://hackaday.io/project/85515-redotmatrix https://hackaday.io/project/85515-redotmatrix Electroluminescent glass panels on the other hand... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2o_Sp2-aBo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2o_Sp2-aBo
  - zokier 6y ago
    That redot project seems like perfect candidate for a kickstarter
- mng2 6y ago
  In grad school I taught a electronics lab class where the students would burn through a bunch of HDSP-0772 every semester. I thought about coming up with a replacement, but at the time you could still get them for a somewhat reasonable price (like $10 or $20?). At today's price of $50 it might be cost effective to do as you say, but I imagine there's not a huge market.
tyingq 6y ago
That would be roughly a 0.75mm pitch. Not rad hardened, and not quite 0.75mm, but you can buy a 1.25mm pitch LED matrix panel for a relatively low cost. It's an RGB panel instead of monochrome for the HDSP-2132. https://www.alibaba.com/pla/Hot-sale-small-pitch-led-display_62575493208.html?mark=google_shopping&biz=pla&pcy=US&src=sem_ggl&mark=shopping&cmpgn=11637237034&adgrp=120122066104&locintrst=&locphyscl=9027211&ntwrk=u&device=c&dvcmdl=&position=&pla_adtype=&pla_mrctid=262039527&pla_channel=online&pla_prdid=62575493208&pla_country=US&pla_lang=en&pla_group=298190246337&pla_localcode=&gclid=CjwKCAiAkJKCBhAyEiwAKQBCkqzsIl6I4boxl9Ws-Z2WBlcqrk4xyRjmqqPxZ5H-8hh-pt2mtL4qqxoCDzcQAvD_BwE#shopping-ads https://www.alibaba.com/pla/Hot-sale-small-pitch-led-display...
- parsecs 6y ago
  Is over $100 that low cost? Surely there could be better prices.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
  - tyingq 6y ago
    19,200 RGB LEDs plus all the mux chips adds up, but these signage modules are significantly cheaper than anything else with discrete separate LEDs.
- tal8d 6y ago
  Unless I'm misreading the page, it is claiming a resolution of 104x78. So that means 8,112 LEDs. The HDSP-2132 is made of 8 character elements, each element has a resolution of 5x7. So a 80x24 terminal would have a resolution of 400x168... 67,200 LEDs. So about a magnitude off, even before ignoring the built in character spacing :)
  - tyingq 6y ago
    I wasn't suggesting one of them would settle the matter. I was suggesting it would be cheaper to use them instead. They are made to be grouped together, and daisy chained to a single controller. I believe each module would be 160 x 120 dots (19,200 dots total) though, based on module size and LED pitch. I'm unclear on where you got 104x78.

by tal8d 6y ago

parsecs 6y ago

I've been looking into those Avago/Broadcom dot matrix displays recently. I don't think it'd be too hard to recreate something similar with tiny SMD LEDs on a PCB and a slightly intelligent driver board, for much cheaper. Would there be a market for something like that?

exmadscientist 6y ago
Only if you can get them listed at Digi-Key/Mouser/etc. Even if it's under a "maker" brand like Adafruit, Sparkfun, etc. Anyone who can replacement TIL311 and friends displays in there, and advertise them, will sell quite a few. They're not hard to make, but they're the sort of thing that no one really wants to make in-house, since they're a means to an end rather than an end in themselves. Great thing to sell, though!
tal8d 6y ago
It has been done a few times, but I doubt there would be any kind of market for it. https://hackaday.io/project/85515-redotmatrix https://hackaday.io/project/85515-redotmatrix Electroluminescent glass panels on the other hand... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2o_Sp2-aBo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2o_Sp2-aBo
- zokier 6y ago
  That redot project seems like perfect candidate for a kickstarter
mng2 6y ago
In grad school I taught a electronics lab class where the students would burn through a bunch of HDSP-0772 every semester. I thought about coming up with a replacement, but at the time you could still get them for a somewhat reasonable price (like $10 or $20?). At today's price of $50 it might be cost effective to do as you say, but I imagine there's not a huge market.

tyingq 6y ago

That would be roughly a 0.75mm pitch. Not rad hardened, and not quite 0.75mm, but you can buy a 1.25mm pitch LED matrix panel for a relatively low cost. It's an RGB panel instead of monochrome for the HDSP-2132. https://www.alibaba.com/pla/Hot-sale-small-pitch-led-display_62575493208.html?mark=google_shopping&biz=pla&pcy=US&src=sem_ggl&mark=shopping&cmpgn=11637237034&adgrp=120122066104&locintrst=&locphyscl=9027211&ntwrk=u&device=c&dvcmdl=&position=&pla_adtype=&pla_mrctid=262039527&pla_channel=online&pla_prdid=62575493208&pla_country=US&pla_lang=en&pla_group=298190246337&pla_localcode=&gclid=CjwKCAiAkJKCBhAyEiwAKQBCkqzsIl6I4boxl9Ws-Z2WBlcqrk4xyRjmqqPxZ5H-8hh-pt2mtL4qqxoCDzcQAvD_BwE#shopping-ads https://www.alibaba.com/pla/Hot-sale-small-pitch-led-display...

parsecs 6y ago
Is over $100 that low cost? Surely there could be better prices.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- tyingq 6y ago
  19,200 RGB LEDs plus all the mux chips adds up, but these signage modules are significantly cheaper than anything else with discrete separate LEDs.
tal8d 6y ago
Unless I'm misreading the page, it is claiming a resolution of 104x78. So that means 8,112 LEDs. The HDSP-2132 is made of 8 character elements, each element has a resolution of 5x7. So a 80x24 terminal would have a resolution of 400x168... 67,200 LEDs. So about a magnitude off, even before ignoring the built in character spacing :)
- tyingq 6y ago
  I wasn't suggesting one of them would settle the matter. I was suggesting it would be cheaper to use them instead. They are made to be grouped together, and daisy chained to a single controller. I believe each module would be 160 x 120 dots (19,200 dots total) though, based on module size and LED pitch. I'm unclear on where you got 104x78.