Abstract: An electronic device comprising a liquid crystal display and a control board, the electrical tracks of the board and of the display being connected by a connector, the control board including a microcontroller able to apply an electrical voltage to at least one connection terminal in order to display given information on the display, characterised by the fact that the control board includes a diagnostic device which is designed to generate a voltage pulse at connection terminals and to measure the resulting electrical voltage in order to determine the state of the connection between the display and the board as a function of the value of the measured electrical voltage.

Abstract: A method and system for outputting and reproducing information representing a digital image alleviates system bus bottlenecks by downloading image information from the RAM to an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), download controlled by the ASIC, and allowing the ASIC to directly interface with and directly control the operation of an output device. The ASIC and the output device are directly connected thereto via a dedicated bus. While the ASIC downloading image information from the RAM, the system processor performs calculations needed for certain portions of the image prior to output and reproduction. In the preferred embodiment, the system is a franking machine, and the output device is an ink jet printer wherein the print heads directly interface with the ASIC.