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How To Wire Up 7-Segment Displays
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...How To Wire Up 7-Segment Displays
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Summary
This tutorial will show you how to wire up 7-segment
displays to a SIM-board USB Output Module, and then show you how to
test the displays in the SIM-board Universal Controller, and how to
assign an action to the displays in the software to show the autopilot
altitude value in Flight Simulator 2004.
You will need...
This "Show Me How..." tutorial is provided in addition
to the SIM-board USB Help Documentation.
It is recommended you refer to both this tutorial and the Help Documentation
for your modules.
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Step 1: Set Up Your Resistors
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Take one of the ribbon cable assemblies supplied with your SIM-board
USB Output Module and insert 8 of the supplied resistors into one
end of the cable assembly, as shown (right).
Ensure each resistor is securely in place and that the legs of each
resistor are clear of each other.
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Step 2: Connect resistor assembly to Output Module
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Connect the other end of the ribbon cable assembly to the bank of
pins marked "A Supp", located above the USB connector socket
at the top of the left edge of the SIM-board USB Output Module.
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Step 3: Connect the jumpers
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Connect 8 of the supplied jumpers to the 8 pin pairs that make up
the "C Supp" bank, located at the top of the right edge
of the SIM-board USB Output Module.
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Step 4: Check your connections are correct
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Take this moment to verify that the resistors and jumpers
are connected correctly. A picture showing the resistor and jumper connections
that you have just made is shown below.
The 8 resistors and 8 jumpers provide the configuration to allow
8 digits to be used. (To use digits 9 to 16, you can use the second
supplied ribbon cable assembly and the remaining resistors to connect
to the "B Supp" bank, and 8 of the remaining jumpers to
connect to the "D Supp" bank.)
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Step 5: Connect the A to DP segment connections
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Connect the A to G and DP segment pins to the pins marked "1"
to "8" respectively of the bank marked "AxC1".
In the example shown, our 7-segment display holder is being used
to mount the 7-segment displays, and the bottom row of the header
pins on the rear of this holder unit are the pinouts for the A segment
(left-most bottom row of header) to DP (right-most).
The image shows the A and B segments have been connected so far.
Repeat this step for the remaining 6 segment pin connections.
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Step 6: Connect the individual display connections
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Now connect the common-cathode pin of each digit to any bottom
row pin of the banks "AxC1" through to "AxC8",
one wire per bank.
The image shows 6 black wires connecting to the first 6 banks on
the bottom row pins. Each black wire is the common-cathode (common
negative) connection for each of the 6 possible digits, taken from
the top row of the pinout header on the rear of the 7-segment holder
unit.
In the example shown, there are 6 digit connections to the Output
Module, but only 5 physical digits in the holder. Thus, another
digit can be fitted at a later date if required.
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Step 7: Connect the power source wires to the Output Module
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The 7-segment displays require power to operate, and you must supply
a DC power source to the Output Module to enable the digits to light
up. To do this, connect a pair of wires to the pin pair marked "BANK
PWR INCOMING" pin pair "1", located just below the
USB socket on the right edge of the SIM-board USB Output Module. The
wire connected to the top pin represents the positive terminal of
the supply, and the wire connected to the bottom pin represents the
negative terminal.
The picture shows a pair of wires, red for positive and black for
negative.
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Step 8: Connect the power sharing jumpers
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Next, fit 3 of the supplied jumpers over the 3 pin pairs of the "PWR
SHARE" bank, located immediately below the "BANK PWR INCOMING"
bank. This serves the function of sharing the single power source
across all 4 operating banks, allowing all 16 digits (maximum) to
be powered from the same source.
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Step 9: Connect the power source wires to the Master Module
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Connect the other end of the power wires that you connected to the
Output Module in step 7 to the pins marked "PWR NODE OUT A"
on the SIM-board USB Master Module.
Ensure the positive wire (represented by the red wire in the picture)
is connected to the top pin of the pin pair, and the negative (black)
is connected to the bottom pin of the pair.
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Step 10: Connect the power source directly to the Master
Module
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Connect a 12V DC power supply fitted with a standard 2.1mm DC jack
to the socket marked "PWR NODE A" in the "POWER NODE
CONNECTIONS" area at the top of the SIM-board USB Master Module.
Ensure the DC supply jack has a "center-positive" arrangement
(this means the inner hole of the jack is the positive, and the outer
barrel is the negative).
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Step 11: Connect the Master Module and Output Module together
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Now that we have made our digit connections and connected our power
source to drive them, we can connect our SIM-boards together.
Using a USB cable (A-male to B-male), connect the A-male end of the
cable (flat end) to the USB socket marked "TO FIRST SIM-BOARD"
on the SIM-board USB Master Module.
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Step 12: Connect the Master Module and Output Module together
(part 2)
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Connect the other end (the B-male or box end)
to the USB socket marked "FROM PREV" on the SIM-board USB
Output Module.
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Step 13: Connect the Master Module to your PC
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Using a second USB cable, connect the B-male (box) end of the cable
to the USB socket marked "TO PC USB PORT" on the SIM-board
USB Master Module.
Finally, connect the other end of the cable to a free USB socket
on your PC.
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Step 14: Install the SIM-board USB drivers
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(If you have already installed the Windows driver file for SIM-boards
USB, skip this step and go straight to Step 15).
If this is the first time that your SIM-boards have been connected
to this USB port on your computer, Windows will attempt to identify
the hardware item. A few seconds after you connect the Master Module
to your PC, Windows will pop up a "Found New Hardware" dialog
box.
You should follow the instructions detailed in the "How
To Install the SIM-board USB Windows Driver file" tutorial,
which you can access here (it will pop up in a new browser window).
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Step 15: Load the SIM-board Universal Controller software
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Now load the SIM-board Universal Controller application in the normal
way.
A few seconds after loading, a new "USB Connection" will
be listed in the left hand side of the window, and the Output Module
will be listed as "Module 01 Digit Module".
Click on the "Module 01" Digit Module entry in the list
to display this module's nodes for configuration.
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Step 16: Set module function
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The first action to take is to verify that the Output Module has
the correct configuration set for use. Given that steps 1 to 3 of
this tutorial have set up the Output Module for Common Cathode arrangement,
we must also ensure that the software tells the Output Module that
we want it to operate in Common Cathode mode, and in digit (not
LED) output mode.
To do this, click on the current Module Function that is assigned
to reveal a drop-down list of options. The list of options shown
will depend on the module you have purchased. Select the function
from the list that refers to 16 digits, common cathode mode.
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Step 17: Test the digits
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To test the digits, first expand the "Node 1 : Digit"
node and increase the "Number of digits" parameter to
5.
Now click on the green circular disc to the left of the text "Node
1 : Digit" to show the digit test window. Type in some test
numbers (the example shows 12345) and the entered numbers should
appear on your digits.
If this test performs correctly, you have successfully wired up
your digits. You can use the image of the segment display to click
on individual segments to light them up, in case you need to debug
your wiring to ensure you have the correct segments on the correct
pins.
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Step 18: Assign a Flight Simulator function to a test
node
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Having verified that the digits are operating correctly in test
mode, you can now assign a function to automatically show a value
depending on a given aircraft condition within flight simulator.
For this example, we will use the default FS autopilot altitude
window value.
Click on Node 01 to expand the node and reveal its configuration
settings. Then click on "Value event" and from the list
that pops up, select "FS AP Alt Value" from the "FS
: Autopilot" subsection. Click "Select" to assign
this action to this node.
Now click the "Leading Zeros?" parameter and change it
to read "No". This will prevent leading zeros from appearing
for altitude values of less than 5 digits (ie. 500 will be shown
instead of 00500 when 500 feet is set in the window).
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Step 19: Load Flight Simulator
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Load Flight Simulator on your PC, or if you are using WideFS over
a network, ensure you have Flight Simulator and the appropriate applications
of WideFS running and connected properly.
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Step 20: Run your test project
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From the left hand side of the SIM-board Universal Controller window,
select the "Run Project" option. Your simple project will
begin to run, meaning that it is now active and commanding the block
of 5 digits you defined earlier. If there is a problem with the project,
or an error occurs, the details will be shown in the message area
at the bottom of the window.
To test your project, minimize the SIM-board Universal Controller
window and use your mouse to increase and decrease the autopilot window
value. When you perform these actions, your digit block will reflect
the new values.
Congratulations! You have now made your first project using 7-segment
displays with a SIM-board USB Output Module.
To stop your project, click on "Stop Project".
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Step 21: Use the Floating Help Icon
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You will notice that as you move your mouse over the nodes, a "floating
help" icon appears which when clicked, offers you in-program
help with connecting your devices. Help is provided for each node
type for each module available in the SIM-board USB series, and will
offer you further Step-by-Step instructions on how to wire the given
node that you have clicked on.
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Go back to: SIM-boards "Show Me How" Series 
How To Wire Up 7-Segment Displays