What is a Header and IDC Connector?

IDC stands for Insulation Displacement Connector. Above is a photo of a 2×7 pin header.

This is called a 2×7 because there are 2 rows of 7 pins. Headers can come in many other combinations such as 1×3, 2×10 etc. The job of the pin header is to connect the LCD module to the customer’s PCB (Printed Circuit Board). This can be done in one of two ways.

1. Solder the header directly to the customer’s PCB
2. Connect the LCD module to the customer’s PCB with an IDC cable. Below is a photo of the IDC connector.

Spacing:

The standard spacing on a header is .1 inch or 2.54mm. This is called pitch. Pitch is the distance between each pin.