Digital Decoder from 16-Bit Binary Code to 7-Segment Quad LED Display

All digital systems handle information by means of bits grouped into words, and most of these words have the meaning of numbers. The users of digital systems may follow easily four bits at a time with the naked eye by means of four LEDs, but it becomes much harder with a larger number of bits. This is where 4-bit-to-7-segment display converters become useful, as each group of four bits (“tetrad”) would be converted to a much easier to read hexadecimal digit. In case of longer words, each tetrad would need one such device. This article is about a digital decoder for 16-bit binary words to four hexadecimal digits, made with an EEPROM, a quadmultiplexed 7-segment LED display, and two general-purpose digital integrated circuits.