Microchip | AY0438-I/P

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LCD drivers are semiconductor chips used to power and control liquid crystal displays (LCDs). An LCD driver or LCD controller also provides an interface for various LCD components. There are many types of LCD drivers. Examples include LCD monitor drivers, LCD display drivers, LCD inverters, super twist pneumatic (STN) drivers, and thin film transistors (TFT). An LCD monitor driver informs the operating system (OS) about supported screen resolution.. An LCD display driver uses multi-line addressing LCD technology to provide a high-resolution color display and high-speed moving images. A super twist pneumatic (STN) LCD driver provides good resolution for many colors and offers a high-contrast display over a wide range of viewing angles. A thin film transistor (TFT) driver is capable of providing very high resolutions. In thin film transistors (TFT) LCDs, the transistors are embedded inside the panel. This improves image stability and reduces cross talk between pixels.

LCD drivers differ in terms of specifications and features. A standard LCD driver consumes less power, but still supports high-speed moving images. An LCD monitor driver provides high resolution for a number of colors. An LCD display driver uses an exponentially greater current during operation than during shutdown. A common supply voltage is 5 V +/-10%. A common external clock frequency is 488 Hz. In terms of features, an LCD inverter provides uniform backlighting and brightness. Some examples of LCD controller specifications include screen resolution and operating temperature.

The AY0438 is a CMOS integrated device that drives a liquid crystal display, usually under microprocessor control. The part acts as a smart peripheral that drives up to 32 LCD segments. It needs only three control lines due to its serial input construction. It latches the data to be displayed and relieves the  microprocessor from the task of generating the required waveforms. The AY0438 can drive any standard or custom parallel drive LCD display, whether it be field effect or dynamic scattering; 7-, 9-, 14- or 16-segment characters; decimals; leading + or -; or special symbols. Several AY0438 devices can be cascaded. The AC frequency of the LCD waveforms can either be supplied by the user or generated by attaching a capacitor to the LCD input, which controls the frequency of an internal oscillator. The AY0438 is available in 40-lead dual in-line plastic and 44-lead PLCC packages. Unpackaged dice are also available.

AY0438-I/P is a 32 segment CMOS LCD Driver in a 40-pin PDIP package in an industrial temperature range. It can drive up to 32 LCD segments of arbitraty configuration, CMOS and TTL-compatible inputs, and requires only three control lines.