Making a device compatible with LCD Smartie

[utak3r]

Hello
I have built my own LCD driver for various usage. It's not only LCD, it has some LEDs, temperature sensor and few other things. I was writing my own software for driving it.
Recently few people got interested in my device so I wanted to make it display various other info, than I was using it for. And that's how I discovered LCD Smartie

So... my question is: how can I make it compatible with it? My controller is command driven over RS232. I can change the protocol, but it still has to be command driven (so I can control the LEDs and others). Should I write some driver for LCD Smartie? Or maybe there's a way to make my commands compatible somehow with your software?

In return, I can design few various nice things for you Like a cheap network-based device or something else.


update:
I have found something like Matrix Orbital commands. Is this the proper way? Does anyone have a full set of the commands? And I mean - a full one.

update 2:
And how can I write the driver for my device? Is there any template/SDK/whatever? It would be matrix-based, but with some extensions...

[mattcro]

LCD Smartie can natively control Matrix Orbital LCDs. You can fairly easily develop a driver (called a plugin in LCD Smartie lingo) to "translate" Smartie's internal API output calls into command strings for your display to be sent thru a serial port (or whatever interfaces your programming language supports). Have a look at the plugin development section of the forum for a list of display driver (and general purpose plugin) API functions and some demo driver frameworks in several languages. Delphi or Visual C are best I think.

There are basic alphanumeric text display functions (write text, jump to line, etc), and you can control General Purpose Outputs (should work for your LEDs) and fans (PWM outputs). I'm not sure about temperature sensor reading. The display driver functions in Smartie seems to have been developed with plain old HD44780-type and Matrix Orbital/Crystalfontz LCD modules in mind.

[utak3r]

Ok, I've already done the work with a basic smartie commands set. Special characters, GPIO outs are working - all at 19200
Now I have to make my inputs working, so I'm heading driver's devel board now. Thanks