arduino gps tft lcd brands

In this Tutorial, I will show you how easy it is, to connect the Shields toArduino, and program it withVisuinoto displayGPS Locationinformation on theDisplay.

Since theArduino UNOhas only one Serial port, and it is needed to program theArduino, you will need to program theArduino UNObefore theGPSis connected.

TheVisuino:https://www.visuino.comalso needs to be installed.StartVisuinoas shown in thefirst pictureClick on the "Arrow Down" button of theArduino componentto open the Drop Down Menu (Picture 1)From the Menu select "Add Shields..." (Picture 1)In the "Shields" dialog expand the "Displays" category, and select the "TFT Color Touch Screen Display ILI9341 Shield", then click on the "" button to add it (Picture 2)In the Object Inspector expand the "Text" property (Picture 3)In the Object Inspector set the value of the "Size" sub-property of the "Text" property to "2" (Picture 3) - This will make bigger the default text size when drawing text on the display

Next we need to add Graphics elements to display the Latitude, Longitude, and Altitude from the GPS:In the Object Inspector, click on the "..." button next to the value of the "Elements" property of the "TFT Display" Element (Picture 1)In the Elements editor select “Text Field”, and then click3 Timeson the "" button (Picture 2) to add3 of them(Picture 2)Select the3"Text Field" Elements (Picture 3)In the Object Inspector set the value of the "Auto Size" property of the3 elementsto "False" (Picture 3)In the Object Inspector set the value of the "Width" property of the3 elementsto "10" (Picture 3)In the Object Inspector set the value of the "X" property of the3 elementsto "10" (Picture 3)

Select the "Text Field1" Element (Picture 1)In the Object Inspector set the value of the "Initial Value" property of the element to "Update" (Picture 1) - this will displayUpdateuntil the first value arrives from the GPSIn the Object Inspector set the value of the "Y" property of the element to "20" (Picture 2)Select the "Text Field2" Element (Picture 3)In the Object Inspector set the value of the "Y" property of the element to "40" (Picture 3)Select the "Text Field3" Element (Picture 4)In the Object Inspector set the value of the "Y" property of the element to "60" (Picture 4)

To decode the GPS information from theGPS Shield, we need to add and connect a GPS component inVisuino:Type "GPS" in the Filter box of the Component Toolbox then select the "Serial GPS" component (Picture 1), and drop it in the design areaConnect the "Latitude" output pin of the "Location" box of theGPS1component to the "In" pin of the "Shields.TFT DisplayElements.Text Field1" element of theArduinocomponent (Picture 2)Connect the "Longitude" output pin of the "Location" box of theGPS1component to the "In" pin of the "Shields.TFT DisplayElements.Text Field2" element of theArduinocomponent (Picture 3)Connect the "Altitude" output pin of the "Location" box of theGPS1component to the "In" pin of the "Shields.TFT DisplayElements.Text Field3" element of theArduinocomponent (Picture 4)Connect the "Out" pin of theGPS1component (Picture 5) to the to the "In" pin of the "Serial[ 0 ]" of theArduinocomponent (Picture 6)

InVisuino, PressF9or click on the button shown onPicture 1to generate the Arduino code, and open the Arduino IDEIn theArduino IDE, click on theUploadbutton, to compile and upload the code (Picture 2)

TheMaketfabs GPS Shieldhas jumpers that allow you to configure the pins used for serial communication with theGPS Chip(Picture 1). We will configure them to use theHardware Serialonpins 0, and 1of theArduino UNO:Configure theTX jumperto connect theTXtoPin 0(Picture 1)Configure theRX jumperto connect theRXtoPin 1(Picture 1)Plug theTFT Shieldon top of theArduino Unoas shown onPictures 2, 3, 4 and 5

Power up theArduino UNOInitially you will see "Update" displayed on the TFT Display Shield (Picture 1)If you look from the side (Picture 2), after awhile you will see that theBlue LEDon theMakerfabs GPS Shieldwill start flashing indicating that the shield has foundGPS satellites(Picture 3)Shortly after this theGPS locationwill be displayed on theTFT Display Shield(Picture 4)

Depending on the location, it can take up to few minutes to show the location data. If after few minutes the data is still not shown, power down the project wait about a minute and power it again to reset the GPS.

In this article, you will learn how to use TFT LCDs by Arduino boards. From basic commands to professional designs and technics are all explained here.

There are several components to achieve this. LEDs,  7-segments, Character and Graphic displays, and full-color TFT LCDs. The right component for your projects depends on the amount of data to be displayed, type of user interaction, and processor capacity.

TFT LCD is a variant of a liquid-crystal display (LCD) that uses thin-film-transistor (TFT) technology to improve image qualities such as addressability and contrast. A TFT LCD is an active matrix LCD, in contrast to passive matrix LCDs or simple, direct-driven LCDs with a few segments.

In Arduino-based projects, the processor frequency is low. So it is not possible to display complex, high definition images and high-speed motions. Therefore, full-color TFT LCDs can only be used to display simple data and commands.

There are several components to achieve this. LEDs,  7-segments, Character and Graphic displays, and full-color TFT LCDs. The right component for your projects depends on the amount of data to be displayed, type of user interaction, and processor capacity.

TFT LCD is a variant of a liquid-crystal display (LCD) that uses thin-film-transistor (TFT) technology to improve image qualities such as addressability and contrast. A TFT LCD is an active matrix LCD, in contrast to passive matrix LCDs or simple, direct-driven LCDs with a few segments.

In Arduino-based projects, the processor frequency is low. So it is not possible to display complex, high definition images and high-speed motions. Therefore, full-color TFT LCDs can only be used to display simple data and commands.

After choosing the right display, It’s time to choose the right controller. If you want to display characters, tests, numbers and static images and the speed of display is not important, the Atmega328 Arduino boards (such as Arduino UNO) are a proper choice. If the size of your code is big, The UNO board may not be enough. You can use Arduino Mega2560 instead. And if you want to show high resolution images and motions with high speed, you should use the ARM core Arduino boards such as Arduino DUE.

In electronics/computer hardware a display driver is usually a semiconductor integrated circuit (but may alternatively comprise a state machine made of discrete logic and other components) which provides an interface function between a microprocessor, microcontroller, ASIC or general-purpose peripheral interface and a particular type of display device, e.g. LCD, LED, OLED, ePaper, CRT, Vacuum fluorescent or Nixie.

The LCDs manufacturers use different drivers in their products. Some of them are more popular and some of them are very unknown. To run your display easily, you should use Arduino LCDs libraries and add them to your code. Otherwise running the display may be very difficult. There are many free libraries you can find on the internet but the important point about the libraries is their compatibility with the LCD’s driver. The driver of your LCD must be known by your library. In this article, we use the Adafruit GFX library and MCUFRIEND KBV library and example codes. You can download them from the following links.

You must add the library and then upload the code. If it is the first time you run an Arduino board, don’t worry. Just follow these steps:Go to www.arduino.cc/en/Main/Software and download the software of your OS. Install the IDE software as instructed.

First you should convert your image to hex code. Download the software from the following link. if you don’t want to change the settings of the software, you must invert the color of the image and make the image horizontally mirrored and rotate it 90 degrees counterclockwise. Now add it to the software and convert it. Open the exported file and copy the hex code to Arduino IDE. x and y are locations of the image. sx and sy are sizes of image. you can change the color of the image in the last input.

Upload your image and download the converted file that the UTFT libraries can process. Now copy the hex code to Arduino IDE. x and y are locations of the image. sx and sy are size of the image.

In this template, We converted a .jpg image to .c file and added to the code, wrote a string and used the fade code to display. Then we used scroll code to move the screen left. Download the .h file and add it to the folder of the Arduino sketch.

In this template, We used sin(); and cos(); functions to draw Arcs with our desired thickness and displayed number by text printing function. Then we converted an image to hex code and added them to the code and displayed the image by bitmap function. Then we used draw lines function to change the style of the image. Download the .h file and add it to the folder of the Arduino sketch.

In this template, We added a converted image to code and then used two black and white arcs to create the pointer of volumes.  Download the .h file and add it to the folder of the Arduino sketch.

In this template, We added a converted image and use the arc and print function to create this gauge.  Download the .h file and add it to folder of the Arduino sketch.

while (a < b) { Serial.println(a); j = 80 * (sin(PI * a / 2000)); i = 80 * (cos(PI * a / 2000)); j2 = 50 * (sin(PI * a / 2000)); i2 = 50 * (cos(PI * a / 2000)); tft.drawLine(i2 + 235, j2 + 169, i + 235, j + 169, tft.color565(0, 255, 255)); tft.fillRect(200, 153, 75, 33, 0x0000); tft.setTextSize(3); tft.setTextColor(0xffff); if ((a/20)>99)

while (b < a) { j = 80 * (sin(PI * a / 2000)); i = 80 * (cos(PI * a / 2000)); j2 = 50 * (sin(PI * a / 2000)); i2 = 50 * (cos(PI * a / 2000)); tft.drawLine(i2 + 235, j2 + 169, i + 235, j + 169, tft.color565(0, 0, 0)); tft.fillRect(200, 153, 75, 33, 0x0000); tft.setTextSize(3); tft.setTextColor(0xffff); if ((a/20)>99)

In this template, We display simple images one after each other very fast by bitmap function. So you can make your animation by this trick.  Download the .h file and add it to folder of the Arduino sketch.

In this template, We just display some images by RGBbitmap and bitmap functions. Just make a code for touchscreen and use this template.  Download the .h file and add it to folder of the Arduino sketch.

I also have written code for Compass module (QMC5883L) which is also working fine independently and I am displaying the direction on my TFT (made a graphical compass dial on TFT) in real-time which is also working fine and needle varies according to my compass direction.

The latest Chinese TFT displays are quite low in price but work perfectly with Arduino and Raspberry Pi. There are two different types of TFT shields available: one with 26 pins (13×2 DIL) for Raspberry Pi and the other as Arduino TFT shield for Arduino Uno board.

Arduino TFT shield can be perfectly mounted on top of an Arduino Uno board. But a major disadvantage is that after mounting the shield on Arduino Uno board, it is difficult to use its GPIO pins for any other application.

The Arduino TFT shield has a micro SD card attached that gets connected to its serial peripheral interface (SPI) pins for communication with the microcontroller. This micro SD card is not used in this project.

This project creates an analogue dial clock along with digital date, time and temperature display using an LM35/TMP36 temperature sensor. The time signal is derived from a U-Blox NEO-6M GPS receiver module. Once the technique is understood, it can be deployed for many other applications.

The connections are easy to make as shown in Fig. 2. The pin connections of the Arduino TFT shield are straightforward; you just need to mount the shield on top of the Arduino Uno board. The pin-to-pin connection details between TFT shield and Arduino Uno are given in the table.

Since top portion of the Arduino Uno is covered by TFT shield, the connections for the TMP36 and GPS receiver are taken from the bottom side of the Arduino Uno board (refer Fig. 3). In case you want to free some Arduino pins then you should see the mcufriend_shield.h file and re-write the connections to do so.

Writing the Arduino code/sketch (GPS_analog_clock.ino) for the project is real fun! You can make TFT display in many different ways through coding. Creating a thick border line, making the hour and minutes hands move smoothly were quite challenging as Adafruit_GFX library is not so much developed. High school trigonometry is all that you need to make it happen for you.

After uploading the code, solder the pins of TMP36 and GPS module to the Arduino board. Then mount the TFT shield on top of the Arduino board. After all the connections are done as per Fig. 2, connect it to 3.3V DC source. GPS module requires a few minutes to trace the satellites.

Most GPS receivers have an inbuilt patch antenna that can locate the low Earth orbit (LEO) GPS satellites very easily, even if your room’s windows are closed. As soon as two such satellites are located, the time starts appearing on the analogue dial. At the same time, the date, time and temperature are shown digitally on right side of the TFT display.

Note: The following picture is the connection diagram of the 2.8-inch TFT screen and Arduino uno, but this product is connected in exactly the same way.

If the Arduino board has an ICSP interface, set the SPI Config switch on the display module to the ICSP direction (default) (the company"s Arduino UNO motherboard has an ICSP interface, just plug it in directly).

Unzip the compressed package, and then open the folder, then open the Arduino folder, you can see three project folders LCD_Show, LCD_ShowBMP, LCD_Touch.

LCD_Show is used to display some patterns of different color shapes and time, LCD_ShowBMP is used to display pictures in BMP format, LCD_Touch is used to use touch function.

The display controller used in this product is ILI9486, we need to initialize the controller through the SPI communication protocol, and the initialization functions are written in LCD_Driver.cpp

The function functions related to the screen display are written in LCD_GUI.cpp. The function of each function and the parameters passed are explained in the source code. You can call it directly when you need to use it.

Before using LCD_ShowBMP to display pictures, first copy the pictures in the PIC folder in the data to the root directory of the SD card (you should understand that in the root directory, that is to save the pictures directly to the SD card, do not put them in any subfolders folder).

These functions are all written in LCD_Bmp.cpp. In fact, the image data in BMP format with a specific file name is read from the SD card, and then the display function written by us is called to re-express the data as an image.

In fact, you can also use Image2Lcd image modulo software to convert images of different sizes and formats into array data, and then use the functions we wrote to display them.

Note: The following picture is the connection diagram of the 2.8-inch TFT screen and XNUCLEO-F103RB, but this product is connected in exactly the same way.

The demos are developed based on the HAL library. Download the program, find the STM32 program file directory, open STM32\XNUCLEO-F103RB\lcd3in5-demo\MDK-ARM\ lcd3in5-demo.uvprojx

After this demo runs, it first displays some characters and patterns, then displays four pictures, and finally displays the touch drawing board function. In fact, it is the integration of the three projects of the Arduino platform code into the main function. The functions are placed in order and TP_DrawBoard(); is placed in an infinite loop to achieve the above functions.

Before using LCD_ShowBMP to display pictures, first copy the pictures in the PIC folder in the data to the root directory of the SD card, and then insert the SD card into the SD card slot on the back of the screen to start the download program verification.

In fact, you can also use Image2Lcd image modulo software to convert images of different sizes and formats into array data, and then use the functions we wrote to display them.

Nothing can be compared when you can put your hard work to display on a 4” TFT display- From one end to the other end it"s 480*360 pixel to play with. 4” TFT Analog-GPS clock on Arduino

Every electronic hobbyist dreams to display his work on display – be it LCD, GLCD (64*128), OLED or TFT . LCDs are the oldest type of displays. If putting your work on LCD or GLCD is great then putting it on OLED is certainly greater but nothing can be compared when you can put your hard work to display on a 4” TFT display. From one end to the other end it"s 480*360 pixel to put up with and it"s very very impressive.

The latest Chinese TFT displays are very cheap and works perfectly with Arduino & Raspberry Pi. The TFT ILI9488 display costs about $8 on aliexpress.com. There are two varieties available one with 26 pins 13*2 DIL and the other is with pins aligned exactly to sit on an UNO board.

Arduino style – Directly sits exactly on an Arduino UNO board. The major disadvantage is that once it sits on an UNO board one can hardly use any other GPIO pins for other usages. Both these styles I"ve used for creating art works on Arduino & Raspberry Pi. The Arduino type has an extra SDCard attached and gets connected to the SPI (D-10,11,12,13) pins when inserted.

While the pin connections of the Arduino type is pretty clear and straight forward the same on Raspberry Pi type is not clear at all. However, here"s my hard work for you to make your life easy ! [See the connection diagram for both the types]

While the Arduino type shield is fairly easy to connect but difficult to attach other devices , the Raspberry Pi type shield is little difficult to find out the pin details but it has extremely easy & compact interface while fitted up . Here"s the 26 pin DIL pin details which will go to the same pins of Arduino.

These shields are basically for 3.3 volt operations. But upto 5 volt it works , However, prolong operation on 5 volt is not recommended as it gets heated up profusely. In case you want to free some other Arduino pins then you look into the mcufriend_shield.h file and re-write the connections as I shifted some connections to alternate pins.

Construction:The possibilities are limitless when you can tie up the display so easily. Here"s a GPS ana-digital clock with temperature indicator built with the following Bill Of Materials.

The connections are easy as shown in the schematic diagrams. Since all the top portion of the UNO is covered by the TFT shield, the connections for the LM-35, GPS receiver is taken from the bottom side of the UNO shield.

Software: This is real fun ! With small strokes of code the TFT behaves differently and opens up many different ways of displaying the output. Creating a thick line, making the hands move smoothly was real challenge as the Adafruit_GFX is not so much developed but a look back to the high school trigonometry is all that you need to make it all happen for you.

Operation:The present GPS receivers which have a built in patch antenna on top ,can locate the LEO GPS satellite very easily if you have your windows are open or glass covered. The moment it locates 2 such satellites ,the time starts ticking on the analog dial. At the same time the time is shown digitally on the right side with the temperature display at the bottom. For temperature sensor I"ve used a TMP36 sensor which works on 3.3 volt. However, an LM35 can also be used but you have to have 5volt supply for that.

※ Price Increase NotificationThe TFT glass cell makers such as Tianma,Hanstar,BOE,Innolux has reduced or stopped the production of small and medium-sized tft glass cell from August-2020 due to the low profit and focus on the size of LCD TV,Tablet PC and Smart Phone .It results the glass cell price in the market is extremely high,and the same situation happens in IC industry.We deeply regret that rapidly rising costs for glass cell and controller IC necessitate our raising the price of tft display.We have made every attempt to avoid the increase, we could accept no profit from the beginning,but the price is going up frequently ,we"re now losing a lot of money. We have no choice if we want to survive. There is no certain answer for when the price would go back to the normal.We guess it will take at least 6 months until these glass cell and semiconductor manufacturing companies recover the production schedule. (Mar-03-2021)

ER-TFT043-3 is 480x272 dots 4.3" color tft lcd module display with driver IC ILI6480BQ and optional 4-wire resistive touch panel screen,superior display quality,wide view angle and easily controlled by MCU such as 8051, PIC, AVR, ARDUINO,ARM and Raspberry PI .

It can be used in any embedded systems,car,mp4,gps,industrial device,security and hand-held equipment which requires display in high quality and colorful image.It supports rgb interface. FPC with zif connector is easily to assemble or remove.Of course, we wouldn"t just leave you with a datasheet and a "good luck!".Here is the link for 4.3"TFT Touch Shield with Libraries, Examples.Schematic Diagram for Arduino Due,Mega 2560,Uno and 8051 Microcontroller Development Board&Kit.

Arduino is an open-source electronics prototyping platform based on flexible & easy-to-use HW and SW. It"s intended for creating interactive objects or environments (it can read sensors, perform actions based on inputs from buttons, control motors, etc...).

All Arduino boards have one thing in common: they are programmed through the Arduino IDE. This is the software that allows you to write and upload code.

Please be aware that there are some critical bugs in Arduino IDE 1.6.6. Make sure that you install 1.6.7 or higher, otherwise this tutorial will not work! If you have not done follow the steps in this tutorial to setup the Arduino IDE to program Arduino UNO! The Visuino: https://www.visuino.eu also needs to be installed. Start Visuino as shown in the first picture Click on the "Tools" button on the Arduino component (Picture 1) in Visuino When the dialog appears, select "Arduino UNO" as shown on Picture 2

Put the Arduino and the GPS module to some plastic box, power it with a battery, mount it on the bicycle, make sure that the GPS antena is visible and turned to the sky.