1. Hardware. A shift register is a device typically used to expand the number of pins of a microcontroller. The most common design by far is based on the 74HC595 architecture. Using (as few as) three pins of the MCU (coloured) you are able to control 8 (or more) data lines (QA..QH). In addition to the three pins that control shifting, two other pins (Output Enable and Master Reset) provide additional (Active Low) control over the state of the 8-stage internal register set and output latches.
The IC accepts bits serially and presents them on output pins in parallel.
Two sets of naming conventions for pins tend to confuse those new to the IC. The image below tries to address this issue.
2. Waveform Timing Details. The digital orchestration of serial input bit stream is summarized in a waveform or timing diagram. A more detailed explanation of the mechanics of Serial to Parallel Shifting-Out with the 74HC595 can be found by following the link to the Arduino tutorial. Let's attempt to decipher the timing diagram, extracted from the 74HC595 datasheet,
As you are well aware, the immediate benefit of the Arduino shiftOut function is to hide the details of the digital dance allowing the higher-level programmer to concentrate on more macro concepts. However, hiding details always comes at a cost; if not performance then, at the least, in understanding. Our goal is to solidify our lower-level coding skills through direct handling of the signals on the three control pins, thereby bringing you closer to the AVR and IC hardware. This brings all sorts of future dividends.
3. Prototyping Platform. Insert your Morland Bargraph into the DDP in the most feature-suitable position (supply and PWM) as shown to the right.
4. Register-Level shiftout. With the signals and waveforms of the 74HC595's timing diagram understood, we can now tackle the low-level responsibilities of the waveform ourselves through direct register manipulation. Remember, our goal is to enlighten, not suggest this is the preferred alternative in all cases.
- The function syntax we're going to simplify that conventional
shiftOut header function. We'll use a purely lowercase shiftout to avoid compiler confusion,
// LSBFIRST:0 MSBFIRST:1
void shiftout(uint8_t order, uint8_t value)
Complete the body of the function, hard-coding the port manipulation for this platform.
- Add code to your
loop() function that exercises your shiftout() function to display an interesting pattern on the bargraph.
- Questions worth considering: Where is the power coming from to drive the LEDs? Does it come directly from the MCU or does it come from the 595's output pins? What are the maximum voltage and current capabilities in either case?
Not surprisingly it's an important point that was answered pretty well on this forum...