In my last post I mentioned working on getting composite video out of my Launchpad (MSP430G2231).  My problem was a low horizontal resolution due to a CPU speed limitation.  Since then, I’ve been able to get the MSP430′s Universal Serial Interface (USI) to spit out the video data.  I’ve got the USI acting like a shift register, so the CPU only needs to load it with the video data periodically.  I got the idea from batsocks.co.uk.

Right now, the program seems to have vertical sync and horizontal sync timings correct.  These are handled in software and by Timer A respectively.  The pixels are stored in an array and copied to the USI.  I would say the most tedious stuff is out of the way.

I was hoping to make something like the Batsocks TellyMate Shield.

I’m in my second semester of college for my CE bachelors and I work part time, so right now I’m just too busy to give this project the attention it needs.  I figure I might as well let the source out in case someone could use it, as I probably won’t be working on it for awhile.  This requires the modified setDCO library.

Source Code

Schematic and test pattern (0×88).

MSP430 TV Out