4D Insights

Over the last decade, the surge in consumer electronics has been propelled by advancements in 3D printing and online design communities, simplifying prototype creation for both professionals and novices. While bringing a product to market was once a daunting task, crowdfunding platforms now provide a new avenue for financing and market validation. Single Board Computers (SBCs) like Raspberry Pi have catalyzed this innovation, offering a cost-effective, flexible solution for product development. This technological democratisation has led to a boom in product innovation, exemplified by varied applications ranging from basic IoT devices to complex industrial automation systems.

The rapid adoption of Full Colour Graphics Displays with Touch in embedded designs across consumer and industrial sectors has been significantly propelled by the smartphone and tablet surge over the past decade. This trend challenges designers to choose between intricate discrete designs or utilizing ready-to-run modules like 4D Systems' gen4-HMI Display Modules. While discrete designs offer detailed control, they require extensive development, contrasting modular solutions which significantly hasten development with pre-built drivers and graphical interfaces, offering a swift, adaptable, and cost-effective route to meeting the escalating demand for intuitive, attractive touch displays.

4D Systems unveils the uLCD-90DT/DCT series, featuring a 9.0” Diablo16 Integrated Display Module to meet the rising demand for large displays. The module, part of the microLCD range, emphasizes intuitive integration and user-friendliness. With a resolution of 800 x 480 and RGB 65K colors, it offers a visually pleasing experience for a variety of projects. The display, available with either Resistive or Capacitive Touch, is powered by the Diablo16 Graphics Processor, supporting touch detection, microSD storage, GPIO, and communications. Ensuring compatibility with the Workshop4 IDE, this new series facilitates faster prototyping, heralding a blend of aesthetic and functional advancement in display solutions.

Técnico Solar Boat are a competitive team of 33 university students from a range of engineering disciplines based at Instituto Superior Técnico from Lisbon, Portugal. With a mission to promote the use of renewable energy and electric mobility, they develop vessels from scratch, compete internationally at competitions held in Netherlands & Monaco each year and contribute to the broader industry’s knowledge by sharing their work as an open-source project. With two prototypes & 2 years of competing under their belt, the team wanted to build a new boat – the São Rafael 02. The objective was to be lighter, faster & more efficient than its predecessor, the São Rafael 01. Being a manned vessel, they knew they needed a custom display in the cockpit for the pilot to use to drive the boat in a safe manner.