Nowadays there is a big diversity of indicators which find their application in many fields and you may find the right one meeting your needs and expectations. In general, a digital indicator has been designed to display the symbol and digital information in the electronic devices and equipment. There are several ways to display the data of a digital meter, ranging from a simple neon lamp to the light emitting diodes (LEDs) and liquid crystal indicators (LCD).
The main type of indicator today is a light emitting diode (LEDs) and a liquid crystal display (LCD). Each digit of the indicator is divided into seven segments; this is the minimum number of segments needed to represent decimal numbers from zero to nine. 7-segment digital indicators are the devices consisting of 7 LEDs installed in the shape of a digit 8. With the help of lighting various segments the digits from 0 to 9 are displayed, as well as some letters of the Latin alphabet (from a to g, and if more letters should be displayed, it is possible to use additional segments).
Typically from four to eight decimal digits are displayed. The maximum number, displayed by a four-digit indicator is equal to 9999, whereas for eight-indicator, this number is 99999999.In some devices (not that expensive) 3.5-digit indicator is used, and from the left either 0 or 1 is displayed then, which means that the maximum number displayed on this indicator equals to 1999. LC indictors consume very little power (microwatts) and are sometimes used in portable instrumentation. To use LED indicators much more current is needed, and they consume a lot of power (milliwatts). Very often these indicators are widely used in digital voltmeters where power consumption is of not a primary importance.
On the other hand, the LED indicator readings can be seen in the dark, while the need for external LCD backlighting. Their ergonomics is one of the important advantages widening the possibilities of application. LED indicators provide a clear and bright display of monochrome or colourful picture at a very quick response time. They surpass the LC indicators in many characteristics: viewing angles, brightness, thickness, weight and overall dimensions, operating temperature range.LED indicators are easy to use as they can be controlled directly from the outputs of the microcontroller and there are also specials drives which allow controlling the digital indicator with a smaller number of outputs of the microcontroller.
Among the existing kinds of indicators a few can be shortly mentioned, such as: Luminescent indicators are electronic indication elements working on principle similar to the electronic lamps. Discharge indicators – ion devices for displaying the character data by using glow discharge. Compared with the neon lamps, discharge lamps have a broader functionality. These indicators can be connected directly to the voltage source or through ballast resistors.
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