Car computer for data logging

[Fourthbean]

Alright, tested the ups theory and read around a bit more. My ups will not allow me to turn it on without ac power applied, so I would have to get another that would allow such a thing and then I would have to be hitting an extra button each time I turn the computer on. What's funny too is that the 250VA UPS couldn't handle the computer, it would shut down when going to battery power. If I took the video card out and unplugged the hard drive it would work ok. lol

I think I will just go buy an inverter. If I don't use it in the end it will be a nice tool to have around for road trips or something.

cfg83, explain to me what you mean by being able to turn on and off gizmo's. Can I actually control the ECU/PCM through the OBDII port?

I am doing all of this but realizing that I am diving headfirst into stuff I know almost nothing about :0.

[cfg83]

Fourthbean -

Originally Posted by Fourthbean

Alright, tested the ups theory and read around a bit more. My ups will not allow me to turn it on without ac power applied, so I would have to get another that would allow such a thing and then I would have to be hitting an extra button each time I turn the computer on. What's funny too is that the 250VA UPS couldn't handle the computer, it would shut down when going to battery power. If I took the video card out and unplugged the hard drive it would work ok. lol

I think I will just go buy an inverter. If I don't use it in the end it will be a nice tool to have around for road trips or something.

cfg83, explain to me what you mean by being able to turn on and off gizmo's. Can I actually control the ECU/PCM through the OBDII port?

This would be a far down the line thing, but let's assume you have the program running and your PC comes with 2 serial ports. The first serial port is taking that data from the OBDII port. Over time you discover that under data input condition A, B, and C, it would be cool to turn on Gizmo X that you have designed and/or bought. Now you can use the second serial port to turn on the gizmo. To turn on the gizmo, you could just turn a pin on the serial port to "on". A relay could be attached to the pin, which is used to turn on the gizmo. Alternatively, you could have a complex serial port protocol that does fancier things in relation to a fancier Gizmo Y. Also, you don't need a second serial port. A parallel port, USB port, or some kind of peripheral connector could do the trick with the right software (that you write or modify for your own porpoise ).

Attachment 980

I am doing all of this but realizing that I am diving headfirst into stuff I know almost nothing about :0.

Don't worry, the main win will be getting the OBDII connection working so that you can soak up all that data (like gravy to bread!!). I just ordered the same elmscan as you, so I will be doing similar stuff. I won't be as ambitious though. My goal is to have temporary data logging setups with a laptop where I can log ALL the data that the elmscan is able to see. Then I can have fancy graphs saying "here is what happens" instead of what the ScanGauge is willing to tell me in real time.

PS - Thanks Red for pointing out the elmscan!

CarloSW2

[Fourthbean]

Ahh, now I see what you are saying. Yes, that would certainly be neat. This coming from the person who complained about cars being all "computer controlled". I think understanding what those computers are doing makes me more appreciative of their existence.

Now to get that port to give me data! I had it working at some point on my brothers linux laptop. So I know it is possible.

Thanks for the support, this will be more fun with you helping out.

[cfg83]

Fourthbean -

Originally Posted by Fourthbean

Keep the ideas coming, the only thing I see against solid state would be space. I would like to have some space to put audio and video(for showing off). Maybe I will do a small CF card for the Operating System and use a hard drive for any data I want. ...

I just found these :

CF Hard Drive Adapter
http://www.addonics.com/products/fla...ad44midecf.asp

This family of unique CF-IDE Hard Drive Adapters is designed to enable one or two Compact Flash (CFI/II) media to be used as direct replacement for the 2.5" IDE hard drive. As a result, any equipment, such as Notebook computer, that uses a 2.5" IDE hard drive can be easily converted to use the low power and shock resistant CF media. Once installed, the CF appears as an ordinary hard drive to any OS and can be configured as a boot device. The Dual CF-IDE Hard Drive Adapter contains a second CF slot for the slave position of the IDE channel, allowing increased storage capacity with the same low power consumption and solid state benefits of the CF card.

Addonics IDE CompactFlash Card Reader/Writer
http://www.thenerds.net/ADDONICS.Add...0798-2&affid=3

Startech CompactFlash Card Reader to IDE Adapter
http://www.thenerds.net/STARTECHCOM....0911-2&affid=3

The first one is my favorite. For 22 bucks I can use flash memory to setup a master and/or slave hard drive setup. I actually have a circa 1995 486 notebook PC that is still working, so I could have DOS installed on (CF flash based) hard drive(s). Therefore, NO issue with hard drive failure.

CarloSW2

[Fourthbean]

I actually bought one of those and installed it in a laptop I previously had (was stolen). Worked nicely and quiet , which was my main purpose. Linux didn't have any trouble installing on it, and I didn't notice any speed difference. The card was a "slow" 50x version so going with something faster would boost that. Of course for our application speed isn't a big deal for storage.

Looks like the guy I bought it from is not selling them anymore. I managed one for 10 dollars shipped from Hong Kong off of ebay from user mobilesupply. That was the one cf version though, not for two different disks.