Feasibility of Scoreboard Project

Using Arduino Project Guidance
#1

Hey guys,

I'm new to Arduino's. This is my first project I have done with them. My friend and I are making a tabletop hockey game. We want to create a scoreboard that has several different aspects to it that are vital for the way our game is played. I can't seem to understand how or if it is possible for us to jam all of these things into a single Arduino Uno. I used a shift register for all the buttons that we have. I have most of the programming done and all our numbers are showing up correctly in the serial monitor.

I'm mostly worried about the 7 segments taking up too many pins on the Arduino and running out of room. I know I can use a shift register for the 7 segments, but can I daisy chain a ton of 7 segments with shift registers and have them display completely different unrelated outputs?

We have four 7 segment LEDs, two 2 digit 7 segments LEDs, a 2 digit 7 segment LED with a positive or negative sign, and then a single basic red LED.

There are a total of six different outputs that need to be displayed. Three of the regular 7 segments are going to be used for the same output.

Let me know what you think and let me know if I can clarify anything better.

-Thanks

#2

Yes, you can just daisy chain several shift registers together. If you don't require too high refresh rates, you probably won't run into any issues (apart from power issues if you try to drive all these LEDs from the Arduino's 5V pin).

But it might be a better idea to use a dedicated 7-segment display driver chip instead of regular shift registers.

Pieter

#3

You can use a MAX7219 8-digit LED display module

The MAX7219 is designed to be daisy-chained so you can have multiple 8-digit LED display module

Interfacing LED displays with the MAX7219 driver

#4

Your replies have been super helpful. I purchased a couple of the MAX7219 display driver chips. This seems perfect. Thanks a lot!

#5