Build Instructions

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• 1

  PCB ASSEMBLY PROCESS

  • We begin the PCB assembly process by first adding solder paste to each component’s pads one by one using a solder paste dispensing needle. Here, we are using 63/37 SnPb solder paste.
  • We then pick and place each SMD component in its correct location.
  • The PCB is then placed on a reflow hotplate, which heats the PCB from below up to the solder paste melting temperature. As soon as the PCB reaches that temperature, the solder paste melts, and all components are secured in their positions.
  • For the through-hole assembly process, we added the D-Sub 15 connector in its position, followed by the barrel DC jack and two CON20 female header pins in place of the Pico. By turning the board over and using a soldering iron, we solder all the through-hole component leads, securing everything in position.
  • At last, we place the Pico W in its position over the female header pins. This completes the assembly process of the driver board.
• 2

  GETTING VGA PICO BOARD READY

  Before getting started with the code, we connect our Pico VGA Board to a 24-inch monitor using a VGA cable. We plug the VGA cable from the monitor into the VGA port of our circuit, and then connect the power adapter via the DC barrel jack connector.

• 3

  DEMO 1- Hello World

  We begin the demo of our setup by flashing PICO W with a Hello World code first.

  This was a simple print statement like skeytch that prints hello world in three different colours, R, G, and B.

  Here's a little code breakdown.

  #include "vga_graphics.h"
  #include <string.h>
  /* ── Screen ───────────────── */
  #define SW 640
  #define SH 480
  /* ── Text scale ──────────── */
  #define SCALE 4
  /* ── Centered print ───────── */
  void printCentered(const char* text, int y, char color) {
  int len = strlen(text);
  int textWidth = len * 6 * SCALE;
  int x = (SW - textWidth) / 2;
  for (int i = 0; i < len; i++) {
  drawChar(x + i * 6 * SCALE, y, text[i], color, BLACK, SCALE);
  }
  }
  /* ── CRT Scanlines ───────── */
  void drawScanlines() {
  for (int y = 0; y < SH; y += 2) {
  drawHLine(0, y, SW, BLACK);  // dark line every other row
  }
  }
  /* ── Setup ─────────────── */
  void setup() {
  initVGA();
  clearScreen();
  int lineHeight = 8 * SCALE;
  int totalHeight = lineHeight * 3 + 20; // spacing included
  int startY = (SH - totalHeight) / 2;
  // Line 1 (RED)
  printCentered("HELLO WORLD 1", startY, RED);
  // Line 2 (GREEN)
  printCentered("HELLO WORLD 2", startY + lineHeight + 10, GREEN);
  // Line 3 (BLUE)
  printCentered("HELLO WORLD 3", startY + (lineHeight + 10) * 2, BLUE);
  // CRT overlay
  drawScanlines();
  }
  /* ── Loop ─────────────── */
  void loop() {
  }

  We begin by defining VGA resolution.

  #define SW 640#define SH 480

  We defined the size of text scaling that enlarges the font size. Default fonts are 6x8 pixels, with a scale of 4; each character becomes 24x32 pixels.

  #define SCALE 4

  This is a center text function that does three major things.

  void printCentered(const char* text, int y, char color)

  It first calculates the width of the text, then centers it horizontally, and then draws each character.

  int textWidth = len * 6 * SCALE;int x = (SW - textWidth) / 2;drawChar(x + i * 6 * SCALE, y, text[i], color, BLACK, SCALE);

  Also, I added a CRT Scanline effect using the following function.

  void drawScanlines()

  How it works is super simple, it just draws a black horizontal line every 2 pixels, which creates a retro CRT Look.

  void drawScanlines()for (int y = 0; y < SH; y += 2)drawHLine(0, y, SW, BLACK);

  In Setup, we print 3 coloured lines.

  printCentered("HELLO WORLD 1", startY, RED);printCentered("HELLO WORLD 2", startY + lineHeight + 10, GREEN);printCentered("HELLO WORLD 3", startY + (lineHeight + 10) * 2, BLUE);

  We apply the CRT effect using below function.

  drawScanlines();

  The loop is kept empty because this is a static display.

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