I want to know how to hack a <$30 medium to large picture frame to stream images to it from a USB computer.
Further, most picture frames in this price range only have an SDCard port. Probably only SPI bus support at that. And if they do have a USB port, it is usually a very limited USB host which only understands how to control USB mass storage devices. Nothing a computer could plug into.
What I am looking to do is display real time information. For instance caller ID. Get the idea? If it doesn't show up in a second or two, the hack is worthless. I might as well be using a video card and monitor.
So, I'm open to suggestions. Even if this turns out to be a HOWTO instead of a HACK I would be interested in hearing from you.
-thanks
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$2 Answers
There are several such implementations out there that are cheap and doable but the resolution is kinda low. Use a usb-serial adapter or a second AVR running the VUSB software and you are USB interfaced.
Enjoy,
Ray
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$
@rangerx52
Let me explain exactly what I want. Well, for one case at least. I want a small kiosk like display for my mythtv box. I could use a text based LCD or VFD but though I'd push it a bit more and use a small color display. But if it means rolling out an entire video card to VGA monitor effort I'd rather stick to a text based LCD or VFD.
Think of a Chumby, or Sony Dash (which is a Chumby). Except this would be tied into my network, not theirs.
-thanks
I think by "rca" you are also saying composite video?
I am not aware of any USB *to* Composite video adaptors. Only the ones that work the other way around for converting, say, VCR Tapes to mpegs.
The best I can find are USB to VGA adapters. These are plentiful but usually cost about $50+. Which puts me over budget w/o a monitor. FYI, I think Samsung has such a compound device - a USB monitor. I think it cost about $200 and is probably very handy when a 2nd monitor is needed in a pinch. But I assume it is slow (i.e. ok for presentations, but probably no good at videos).
I questioned whether or not you needed the USB at all basically, not to convert.
Any video card worth a crap can handle Composite out, or svideo out- at which point you could use an lcd from ANYTHING as a secondary monitor, at which point you would likely have a response time well beyond anything you'd get from a remote usb device. Crack open your lcd picture frame and you can likely splice in a port with minimal modification. OR you could use one of those LCD's made for console systems.
http://www.amazon.com/LCD-Screen-playstation/dp/B00005QI2S
But then again thats just basically using a second monitor.
Why not crack a screen open, yank its guts out, and hardwire a parallax propeller into it? hardest part would be the programming- but even then, they have premade VGA tokens and programs that are basically prewritten
http://www.amazon.com/PYLE-PLMN7SD-7-Inch-Monitor-Reader/dp/tech-data/B002C5ZM9K/ref=de_a_smtd
Another option.
Enjoy,
Ray
must read my own posts...usb otg with same hardware and only minimally more software...
Ray
"I doubt they are running linux...if it was...then ...they would have to release the fact that they were doing so..."
I think you are being way to innocent.
I am lead to believe certain overseas companies could really care less about the philosophy behind GNU. And their chips (and software!) show up in more places than you might think. Including some high profile bands. As an example, google and take a look at all the SwissCenter compatible clients. It is very likely they all use SigmaDesign chips and Syabas software based on Linux. But, I have never found an open source project that made use of either. Too bad, SigmaDesign hardware would have been the "end all' center piece of many an open source media client project. As it stands, the Syabas software is so bad I am surprised these SigmaDesign boxes keep showing up.
You really think it could be On The Go? Remember, we are dealing with an embedded system. OTG supports both host and client modes of USB. That would require a good amount of programming and a bit more hardware then say a USB host only port that only works with mass storage devices and that only can "see" one device at a time. This is a low priced consumer product and my bet is that you will only find OTG on high priced mobile devices with real operating systems. Well, as least for now.
The problem with these chips is not the ARM core. It is the custom hardware (to decode the media and present it) that is in chip around the ARM core. How that works is not being disclosed. Despite them using Linux and probably mplayer to play back the media.
I so like your alternative! I had not thought of chucking the whole lot of crappy "digital picture frames" out in favour of a light weight software-mostly video presenter. Great idea.
Now the tinyvga project is black and white, was there not a hack-a-day post where someone had a similar project but was able to squeeze color out of it as well? Anyone remember that? Or was I dreaming?
-thanks
I've done USB OTG with the same exact hardware and only minimally more hardware using a PIC chip with built in USB hardware.
You could very well be correct about the linux and I do tend to be a bit innocent on that but I doubt those things are linux based though I did see one that could get linux installed on it, I think on hackaday actually.
Do some searching. I've seen several microcontroller based projects that can do color. Even working on one myself that does 640x400 4-bit color using serial sram chips and literally just clocking them out to the VGA input lines then doing updates during the vertical blanking interval.
Good hunting,
Ray