In the On-line Selection Guide (Display Drivers/PrdDisplay.html) Oki VFD Drivers are categorized into three types, "Low Duty VFD Controller Drivers", "VFD Controller Driver with Built-In ROM & RAM" and "VFD Basic Anode and Grid Drivers". What is the difference between them?
Descriptive Answer:
"Low Duty VFD Controller Drivers" is used for Graphic/Segment type of VFD panels with low voltage 8V-18V and ½ duty or 1/3 duty. "VFD Controller Driver with Built-In ROM & RAM" is used for multi-5x7 dots character type of VFD panels with up to high voltage 20-60V. Alphabets and numbers are pre-registered in the built-in CGROM. Those characters can be displayed by transmitting code data. CGRAM supplements the character code size after power-up the IC. 5x7 dots plus some graphic can be implemented depending on the specification of panel. "VFD Basic Anode and Grid Drivers" can be used for multi-purpose with up to high voltage 10V-65V. Two ICs are used for a multi-dots VFD panel. Timing between Grid signals and Anode signals to make a frame frequency is managed by control MCU.
