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Reference

The rest of the knowledge base teaches; this hub is for looking things up. It is the reference tier: the glossary, the units, the standard sizes and resolutions, the interface cheat sheet, the character LCD formats, and how a module physically connects. Come here to decode a spec line, settle what an acronym means, or find a standard value, then get back to work.

The concepts behind these lookups live in the other hubs: Display Fundamentals for how LCDs work, Display Technologies for choosing a display family, Design and Integration for building it into a product, and Specifying and Sourcing for turning a spec into a part. When one of those articles uses a term, a unit, a resolution name, or a connector, this hub is where it is defined.

The reference shelf: four learn clusters across the top, Display Fundamentals, Display Technologies, Design and Integration, and Specifying and Sourcing, each with an arrow pointing down into a wide Reference box labeled the lookup tier, which holds six lookup pages, the display glossary, units and measurements, sizes and resolutions, interface quick reference, character LCD configurations, and connector and pinout basics, with a note that when a learn article uses a term, a unit, a resolution, or a connector, this is where it is defined.
The reference shelf: the lookup tier that sits under the four learn clusters.
Find it fast

A quick way in

Reference pages are used by the question, not read front to back. Start from what you are trying to settle and go straight to the page that answers it.

A find-it-fast router mapping a question to a page: what does this term or acronym mean goes to the display glossary; what does this unit or number mean goes to units and measurements; what resolution or panel size is this goes to sizes and resolutions; which interface and how many wires goes to the interface quick reference; which character LCD format goes to character LCD configurations; and how does the module physically connect goes to connector and pinout basics.
Start from the question you are trying to settle, and go straight to the page that answers it.

What does this term or acronym mean?

The display glossary, grouped by the stack.

Display Glossary

What does this unit or number mean?

The units behind the datasheet numbers.

Display Units and Measurements

What resolution or panel size is this?

Standard sizes and resolution names.

Common Display Sizes and Resolutions

Which interface, and how many wires?

The interface cheat sheet, side by side.

Display Interface Quick Reference

Which character LCD format?

The standard character module layouts.

Standard Character LCD Configurations

How does the module physically connect?

Connectors, pin pitch, and orientation.

Display Connector and Pinout Basics

Articles in this hub

The six lookup pages, each answering one kind of question about a spec line.

Display Glossary

The display terms and acronyms, grouped by the stack: panel modes, optics, metrics, drive electronics, touch, bonding, and the commercial terms.

11 min read

Display Units and Measurements

Nits versus cd/m² and lux, contrast and ACR, viewing angle at CR≥10, color depth and gamut, response time, PPI, temperature, and drive voltage.

6 min read

Common Display Sizes and Resolutions

QVGA to FHD with exact pixel dimensions, aspect ratios, which resolution ships on which diagonal, and how to work out PPI and dot pitch.

6 min read

Display Interface Quick Reference

SPI, I²C, MCU parallel, RGB, LVDS, MIPI DSI, and eDP by wires, bandwidth, resolution ceiling, and use, plus the frame-buffer divide.

4 min read

Standard Character LCD Configurations

16x2, 20x4, and the rest, with HD44780 DDRAM addressing, the 16-pin pinout, 4-bit versus 8-bit and I²C wiring, and the readability build.

5 min read

Display Connector and Pinout Basics

FPC versus FFC, ZIF connectors, pin pitch, top versus bottom contact and pin-1 orientation, the assembly gotchas, and typical pin counts by module.

5 min read

Every value in this hub is a specification you can dictate, and on a custom build, tune. Orient Display builds LCD, TFT, OLED, and e-paper to a spec rather than around a fixed one. Once the reference has you speaking the same language as the datasheet, start a custom project or talk to an engineer to turn it into a part.

Related hubs: Specifying and Sourcing for reading a datasheet and planning an order, Design and Integration for interfaces, touch, and bonding, Display Fundamentals for how the parts named here actually work, Display Technologies for choosing a display family, and Embedded Displays for modules and driver ICs.

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