FPD link

Flat Panel Display Link(FPD-Link) was developed by National Semiconductor in 1996 as the first open standard of a high-speed digitalvideo interface. The FPD-Link is often used as an internal interface in laptops, flat panel displays or LCD televisions, where it connects the output of the graphics processors to the display. FPD-Link is an open standard and can be used license-free. One of several interfaces interoperable with the FPD-Link is FlatLink from Texas Instruments.

FPD-Link was the first large-scale interface using LVDS protocol, where electromagnetic compatibility is improved by differential transmission. In LVDS, the three color signals are transmitted serially as three differential signals over three twisted pairs of conductors. A fourth pair of conductors transmits the clock signal. For higher color resolutions, the FPD link can also be implemented over four wire pairs.

Further development of the FPD-Link led to FPD-Link II in 2006, which was specially developed for infotainment inautomotive technology and for digital cameras. In this version, the clock signal is embedded in the color signals. This means that the RGB signal and the clock signal are transmitted via a single twisted pair of conductors. The interface becomes more compact and simpler.

In 2010, the third version FPD-Link III was introduced. This differs from FPD-Link II in that bidirectional communication is handled via the same transmission channel. Control signals are transmitted via this link.