Digital Visual Interface Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
For other meanings of DVI, please see DVI (disambiguation).The digital visual interface or digital video interface (DVI) is a form of video connector made to maximize the display quality of flat panel LCD computer monitors and high-end video cards. It was developed by an industry consortium, the Digital Display Working Group (DDWG).
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2 Specifications 3 See also 4 External links |
Overview
Existing standards, such as VGA, are analog, as are the monitors they are plugged in to. However, LCD monitors and plasma screens internally use a digital signal. Using VGA cabling results in the computer signal being converted from the internal digital format to analog on the VGA cable, then back to digital in the monitor for display. Obviously a better solution, provided by DVI, is to simply supply the original digital signal to the monitor directly.
DVI also includes the ability to drive analog signals using the VGA standard as well. This feature was included in order to make DVI universal, in that it supports both types of monitors with a single connector. However the designers then confused matters considerably by defining three different DVI's with or without digital and analog portions.
There are three types of DVI connections:
- DVI-D (digital)
- DVI-A (analog)
- DVI-I (integrated digital/analog)
The data format used by DVI is based on the PanelLink™ serial format devised by the semiconductor manufacturer Silicon Image Inc This uses Transition Minimized Differential Signaling. A basic DVI-D link consists of four twisted pairs of wire (red, green, blue and clock) to transmit 24 bits per pixel, although for higher display resolutions a dual link (with three extra pairs, using reserved pins in the standard connector) can be used.
Like modern analog VGA connectors, the DVI connector includes pins for the display data channel, version 2 (DDC2) that allows the graphics adaptor to read the monitor's extended display identification data (EDID).
DVI is the only widespread standard that includes analogue and digital transmission options in the same connector. Competing standards are exclusively digital: these include a system using low-voltage differential signalling (LVDS), known by its proprietary names FPD (for Flat-Panel Display) Link and FLATLINK; and its successors, the LVDS Display Interface (LDI) and OpenLDI.
Some new DVD players , TV sets (including HDTV sets) and video projectors have DVI/HDCP connectors; these are physically the same as DVI connectors but transmit an encrypted signal using the HDCP protocol for copyright protection. Computers with DVI video connectors can theoretically use HDTV sets as display.
Specifications
DVI-D (digital)
DVI-A (analogue)
Note: GTF = Generalized Timing Formula (a VESA standard)
Source: DVI Specification 1.0 from DDWG
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