RGB LCD shield does not work

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brutus2
 
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RGB LCD shield does not work

Post by brutus2 »

We have been trying to build the "RGB LCD Shield" and failed to get it working. We did study the soldering tips you provide to see if we could fix it but we have not been able to get it to work.

What do we do?

The display lights up but we have not been able to get anything to
show on the display.

We have managed to get other displays to work before. Unfortunately, we did not try the display stand alone. We followed these instructions:
https://learn.adafruit.com/rgb-lcd-shield/assembly

I've attached photos of the assembled soldered shield.

Is it possible to dismount the LCD shield or how should we proceed? It
is hard to know where the error lies.

We bought the shield and display from Electrokit. The order-ID C357914.
https://www.electrokit.com/produkt/rgb- ... nverterad/


We tried different sample codes provided and it uploads correctly but does not appear to affect the display.
Attachments
other side
other side
IMG-0320_resized2.jpg (393.17 KiB) Viewed 164 times
one side
one side
IMG-0319.jpg (919.28 KiB) Viewed 164 times

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: RGB LCD shield does not work

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Most of your soldering looks serviceable. But there are a few joints that do look suspicious from this angle (see below).

A top-down view is not ideal for showing how well the solder has flowed. Viewing from about a 45 degree angle may reveal other issues. The ideal joint should have a profile as shown in the diagram: https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-gui ... n-problems
Image
Attachments
RGB LCD.jpg
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brutus2
 
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Re: RGB LCD shield does not work

Post by brutus2 »

We have tried to resolder the suggested joints. There is no difference. The display light sup but nothing happens.

I tried to check connectivity with a multimeter but I am unsure. There is like 100 solderings. Which are key?

I've attached more pictures.
Attachments
3.jpg
3.jpg (252.38 KiB) Viewed 149 times
2.jpg
2.jpg (211.67 KiB) Viewed 149 times
1.jpg
1.jpg (235.82 KiB) Viewed 149 times

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brutus2
 
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Re: RGB LCD shield does not work

Post by brutus2 »

For some reason all pictures were not included. I guess there is a cap on three pictures per message? Anyway, here are more pictures.
Attachments
6.jpg
6.jpg (366.13 KiB) Viewed 149 times
5.jpg
5.jpg (311.87 KiB) Viewed 149 times
4.jpg
4.jpg (266.84 KiB) Viewed 149 times

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: RGB LCD shield does not work

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Still some problematic joints there. The solder needs to flow onto the solder pad to make a reliable electrical connection.

Make sure that your soldering iron tip is clean. And be sure to heat the gold solder pad - not just the pin.

Also, if you are using a low-powered iron (e.g < 50W) you may need to give it some time to re-heat between joints. Those 2 rough-shaped joints circled in the photo below are 'cold joints'. The rough shape indicates that the solder has not melted completely, so the joint will be unreliable at best.
Attachments
rgblcd2.jpg
rgblcd2.jpg (346.39 KiB) Viewed 148 times
rgblcd1.jpg
rgblcd1.jpg (408.19 KiB) Viewed 148 times

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millercommamatt
 
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Re: RGB LCD shield does not work

Post by millercommamatt »

do yourself a favor and buy some flux

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brutus2
 
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Re: RGB LCD shield does not work

Post by brutus2 »

I'm using a 65W TS101 soldering iron.

I've resoldered the below and tried to look through everything. Is there a manual for the actual display so I can verify that it works? I guess I could connect it to a breadboard using the free row of pins?

I can see the background color changes if I put a wire from one of the last metals on the LCD and ground.

Why is the LED having 18 pins and not 16 as in the instruction?

How can I find an instruction on how to check the LED?

Are there any key connections I should check connectivity between with a multimeter?
Attachments
03.jpg
03.jpg (286.21 KiB) Viewed 143 times
02.jpg
02.jpg (238.2 KiB) Viewed 143 times
01.jpg
01.jpg (415.75 KiB) Viewed 143 times

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: RGB LCD shield does not work

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

The soldering does look better now.
I can see the background color changes if I put a wire from one of the last metals on the LCD and ground.
Why is the LED having 18 pins and not 16 as in the instruction?
The extra 2 pins are to control the backlight color. All other pins are identical to the monochrome versions.
Is there a manual for the actual display so I can verify that it works?
This guide covers character LCDs. The ones shown in the guide are identical to the RGB version except for the extra 2 pins for the backlight color.
https://learn.adafruit.com/character-lcds/overview

When running the example code from the library (link below) Does the background color change if you press any of the buttons?
https://github.com/adafruit/Adafruit-RG ... oWorld.ino

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