I checked with my colleagues on the Intel BLDK team and here is what I find:
1. How do you switch the video output from LVDS to VGA to display the splash screen?
2. How do you add a custom splash image?
The answer to #1 & #2 lies in the Graphics/Media driver rather than BLDK itself. You want to use the EMGD Configuration Editor to change settings in the Graphics Output Protocol (GOP) driver from EMGD (intel.com/go/emgd). At this link you will find the User’s Guide for EMGD for the details.
3. Is it possible to redirect shell output from the COM port to the display?
Yes, you can do this with Putty or Hyper-terminal. My BLDK friends suggest that you will probably know what this means. If not, let us know and we'll give you sone additional guidance.
I am able to use the EMGD (for XP / Linux) to build a iegd.efi and iegd.dxe files. I now see what they mean by splash screen. The real challenge is linking the driver into the build of the firmware. In the Crownbay package, there is the GopBinay folder with an iegd.efi already there. Replacing the file doesn't work. What need to be created and modified to get the driver built into the firmware?
I assume an INF is needed, but what goes into it for [Binaries.IA32] and [PcdEx]?
What other files need to be modified to include the driver.?
For question 3, yes, I am connecting to the system with hyperterminal to access the UEFI Shell. Is switching the output to the VGA screen as simple as the configuration setting in the BLDK Application?
I can't comment on the BLDKII integration process, but I can give you some tips for proper LVDS configuration.
Most LVDS panels do NOT contain an EDID, so generally you need to configure the GOP with a DTD for the panel. There may be built in DTD's that you can use, *or* you may need to get the timing information for your panel and create a new custom DTD for your panel. After that, you need to tell the configuration to "Use user-defined DTD" in the "If Not EDID device" section of the LVDS configuration page. While you are there, I would strongly recommend checking the "Fixed Timing" option in the page you access through the "Flat Panel Settings" button. That will cause the driver to keep the panel timing at the fixed timing of a typical LVDS panel but still allow different resolutions to be used on it (through centering, or up scaling). BTW the Flat Panel Settings are also where you select the hardware interface type of 18 bit or 24 bit, single or dual channel (if the chipset supports it), and the backlight control method.
Now we just need to hear from the BLDK folks on the proper way to integrate your GOP.
Thanks for the response. I am familar with the EMGD/IEGD tool as I wrote a white paper on it. The unit I have has the E6xx process with a VGA conenctor on it. I suspect the sDVO converted to VGA on the board. There is a seperate connector for LVDS on the board.
Integrating the driver into the BLDK is the trick. It is not clear on what files need to be created and edited.
Thanks for the reply. I think I added the splash screen file correctly to the EMDG driver I built. The issue is how to integrate the driver into the BLDK II. How do you integrate the custom EMDG driver into the BLDK II so it gets built in?
Questions?
