A data converter is an electronic circuit that converts data from one form to another. Such converters are crucial for making different data formats compatible for different applications and systems. They enable the seamless conversion of data, such as from text to binary or from analog to digital, ensuring interoperability between different technologies.
The newly developed UDDC converts graphic or video data into electronic pulses to drive various microdisplays and provides developers with different interfaces to display images and videos on microdisplays. This facilitates the development of new products for augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and other areas of application.
A field-programmable gate array (FPGA) is used as the central component of the system. The challenge of the development was to develop a system concept that allows maximum flexibility of the FPGA on the complex central system circuit board, but requires minimal installation space in order to simplify integration into prototype systems.
The microdisplays developed at Fraunhofer IPMS can now easily use established video protocols from the industry, including D-PHY+DSI from the MIPI Alliance in the field of mobile devices (developed in the BMBF-funded “EdgeVision” project) or SMPTE SDI in the field of professional broadcasting. The UDDC is also a universal and modular platform for easy adaptation of microdisplays to customer-specific video protocols, e.g. based on LVDS.
Advantages of the new UDDC
Until now, microdisplays could either be used directly, whereby a suitable data source had to be available in the system (e.g. DPI for video displays), or a complex system with a transmitter chip had to be created, which implemented the necessary conversion. Depending on the protocol used, this could be very time-consuming.
Florian Schuster, scientist in IC and system design at Fraunhofer IPMS, explains the advantages of the new UDDC: “The flexible UDDC electronics platform means that only the video input circuit board needs to be replaced. In the simplest case, only one connector for the respective video interface needs to be replaced. In addition, the overall system is only minimally larger than the microdisplay, so it can be easily integrated into customer applications.”
For complex video protocols, it may be necessary to add additional video ICs. In all cases, the circuitry for operating the most complex system component – the FPGA – is not changed. This means that the entire PCB development effort for using an FPGA, such as creating the circuit diagram and the complex wiring of the signals on the PCB, is eliminated, as the system PCB can be used with any video input PCB. The supply PCB can be used universally in all PCB combinations.
The researchers are ready for customer-specific adaptations of the microdisplays and now also the interfaces for use in new products.
Construction of the UDDC
The UDDC is realized by a stacked structure of several PCBs. In this way, a different video protocol can be used with minimal effort by combining a different selection of PCBs. Alternatively, a customer-specific protocol can be implemented with minimal effort, as only a single PCB with low complexity needs to be developed.
The PCB stack includes the following PCBs:
- Microdisplay with display PCB
- System PCB with a Lattice FPGA for system initialization, data conversion and system management
- Video input PCB with specific video connector (e.g. FPC connectors, coaxial jacks, high-pincount micro coaxial connectors, etc.), necessary components to operate the video protocol, and the necessary components to operate the video protocol.), necessary components for operating the video interface and a GPIO connection for configuring and querying the status of the system from external systems
- Supply PCB including a connector with support for a wide voltage input and all necessary components for the system’s power supply
Easy integration into various systems is possible with:
- MIPI D-PHY+DSI data source
- SMPTE 3G-SDI data source
- LVDS data source
- Custom video protocol
The “RUBIN EdgeVision” project is funded by the “RUBIN” (“Regional Entrepreneurial Alliances for Innovation”) funding program of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research BMBF (FKZ: 03RU2U061C).
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Further links
👉 www.ipms.fraunhofer.de
Photo: Fraunhofer IPMS