MalibuJack's UTEC DigitalDash
Apr 27, 2004, 07:46 PM
#80
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Well Jack,
You are now persuading me towards a UTEC. I have had a CARPC in my Evo for over 6 months now and I have been waiting for a nice piece of software to integrate into the car for some time. I have written my own OBDII software in C using lcc, but the sample rates were SOOO slow with the scantool.net cable. I am currently working on writing support for a faster cable, Jeff's Cable, that has less hardware assist, but requires a lot more software. Its coming along. How will your software run at 640x480? What language are you writing it in?
What kind of sample rates have you been getting with UTEC?
I am torn between Xede and UTEC. How's the support for the UTEC as far as maps for different setups? I will probably be the type that will be changing my intake out for track events versus autox and changing maps to go with it. However, I probably will not be spending a lot of time on a dyno. What do you feel are the advantages and disadvantages of UTEC to Xede?
Anyway, here's a link to my carpc page:
http://home.nc.rr.com/smanders/evo/carpc.html
You are now persuading me towards a UTEC. I have had a CARPC in my Evo for over 6 months now and I have been waiting for a nice piece of software to integrate into the car for some time. I have written my own OBDII software in C using lcc, but the sample rates were SOOO slow with the scantool.net cable. I am currently working on writing support for a faster cable, Jeff's Cable, that has less hardware assist, but requires a lot more software. Its coming along. How will your software run at 640x480? What language are you writing it in?
What kind of sample rates have you been getting with UTEC?
I am torn between Xede and UTEC. How's the support for the UTEC as far as maps for different setups? I will probably be the type that will be changing my intake out for track events versus autox and changing maps to go with it. However, I probably will not be spending a lot of time on a dyno. What do you feel are the advantages and disadvantages of UTEC to Xede?
Anyway, here's a link to my carpc page:
http://home.nc.rr.com/smanders/evo/carpc.html
Apr 27, 2004, 10:46 PM
#81
Its currently able to sample at the datarate that the utec sends at, which is 5 samples per second. I honestly can't say too much about the Xede since i just don't know enough about it to form an opinion. The UTEC is definitely an easier install however.
I have to admit, I used your site as a referral to Digital Worldwide where I got the same screen that you used on your car however I got the Kit version and wasn't too happy with the 'pop-out' display so I made my own housing.. The funny part is I may end up having to use the housing they sent me in the same location as you did..
There really are no maps (Aside from the map currently supplied with it from TurboXS) currently.. Its a new enough product that most of us who are contributing information now, are probably going to be the ones contributing the maps in the future. However, I definitely don't recommend just plugging in someone elses map.. I find that to be a little tricky, and reminds me a bit of the "through the mail Flashes" where you really can't take into account the variations in the cars and the modifications.
I definitely surprise people when I take out a case that looks like a CD storage caddy (its great because its less likely to draw attention if I left it out) and stuff it in my glovebox or under my seat.
There's still a bit of work left to do with the Digital Dashboard, it gets a bit cranky on buffer overruns and framing errors when it first connects to the UTEC.. so thats what I've been attempting to fix (once the car is back together again and the UTEC is back in the car)
I have to admit, between the UTEC, my software, the Analysis software that others are working on, and the TurboXS Tuner, you have literally everything you need to do a true road tune.. add a PCS wireless internet card to your in-car PC or laptop, and you can let a professional tuner monitor and tune the car in real time while you do 3rd or 4th gear pulls..
there's enough comparison threads going on at this point between the XEDE and UTEC that its probably pointless to go offtopic on that particular item, but they both offer similar features, functions, and whatnot.. I personally think the UTEC just has it together a little better.. Feature for Feature, both of them are reprogrammable, so updated firmware will add or update features, pretty much every feature that is being promoted on the XEDE is already available, or will be available on the UTEC shortly.. and I'm sure vice versa..
I have to admit, I used your site as a referral to Digital Worldwide where I got the same screen that you used on your car however I got the Kit version and wasn't too happy with the 'pop-out' display so I made my own housing.. The funny part is I may end up having to use the housing they sent me in the same location as you did..
There really are no maps (Aside from the map currently supplied with it from TurboXS) currently.. Its a new enough product that most of us who are contributing information now, are probably going to be the ones contributing the maps in the future. However, I definitely don't recommend just plugging in someone elses map.. I find that to be a little tricky, and reminds me a bit of the "through the mail Flashes" where you really can't take into account the variations in the cars and the modifications.
I definitely surprise people when I take out a case that looks like a CD storage caddy (its great because its less likely to draw attention if I left it out) and stuff it in my glovebox or under my seat.
There's still a bit of work left to do with the Digital Dashboard, it gets a bit cranky on buffer overruns and framing errors when it first connects to the UTEC.. so thats what I've been attempting to fix (once the car is back together again and the UTEC is back in the car)
I have to admit, between the UTEC, my software, the Analysis software that others are working on, and the TurboXS Tuner, you have literally everything you need to do a true road tune.. add a PCS wireless internet card to your in-car PC or laptop, and you can let a professional tuner monitor and tune the car in real time while you do 3rd or 4th gear pulls..
there's enough comparison threads going on at this point between the XEDE and UTEC that its probably pointless to go offtopic on that particular item, but they both offer similar features, functions, and whatnot.. I personally think the UTEC just has it together a little better.. Feature for Feature, both of them are reprogrammable, so updated firmware will add or update features, pretty much every feature that is being promoted on the XEDE is already available, or will be available on the UTEC shortly.. and I'm sure vice versa..
Apr 27, 2004, 10:57 PM
#82
BTW, its written in VB, with minimal external dependencies (in other words, the executable alone should run on most current installations of windows 98, XP, 2000.. as long as it has a current version of IE and a current service pack)
It can handle sample rates as high as 12 samples per second, but thats about the limit of the 19.2Kbps data rate (the maximum rate the UTEC runs at this time), when I raised it to 115Kbps it was handling 80 samples per second. FYI, the UTEC itself only sends 5 samples per second regardless.
I had the same problem with the scantool.net cable and an app I wrote for windows CE.. with all of the pid's scanned, I was lucky to get a 1 sample per second.. if I only logged one or two pids, then 2 or 3 samples per second was possible, but would slow down as the car worked harder and its ECU was "distracted"
Oh, and the layout was specifically designed to fit on a 640x480 screen with a little room left for my MP3 player interface that I was playing around with, I still have some automation issues to fix with it (since the listener needs to run as a service) and everything needs to be setup to connect automatically.
It can handle sample rates as high as 12 samples per second, but thats about the limit of the 19.2Kbps data rate (the maximum rate the UTEC runs at this time), when I raised it to 115Kbps it was handling 80 samples per second. FYI, the UTEC itself only sends 5 samples per second regardless.
I had the same problem with the scantool.net cable and an app I wrote for windows CE.. with all of the pid's scanned, I was lucky to get a 1 sample per second.. if I only logged one or two pids, then 2 or 3 samples per second was possible, but would slow down as the car worked harder and its ECU was "distracted"
Oh, and the layout was specifically designed to fit on a 640x480 screen with a little room left for my MP3 player interface that I was playing around with, I still have some automation issues to fix with it (since the listener needs to run as a service) and everything needs to be setup to connect automatically.
Apr 28, 2004, 12:11 AM
#83
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Yeah, I didn't mean to get off topic 
. I have now found plenty of other threads regarding Xede vs UTEC.
I have a few more questions in an email I just sent to TurboXS. If they give me some good answers, I'll be ordering one within the next week.
It would seem that a 10x increase in the sample rate would not be asking for much. I think that a dedicated piece of hardware should be able to handle at least that. I know the Pocketlogger guys and others using the opti-coupler OBDII cables can get 20 samples/sec from the stock ECU.
I need to start thinking of projects for the UTEC. I may just convert my OBDII dash function over to UTEC at first...hmm. So many possibilities...
Oh well...keep up the good work
.
smanders
. I have now found plenty of other threads regarding Xede vs UTEC.I have a few more questions in an email I just sent to TurboXS. If they give me some good answers, I'll be ordering one within the next week.
It would seem that a 10x increase in the sample rate would not be asking for much. I think that a dedicated piece of hardware should be able to handle at least that. I know the Pocketlogger guys and others using the opti-coupler OBDII cables can get 20 samples/sec from the stock ECU.
I need to start thinking of projects for the UTEC. I may just convert my OBDII dash function over to UTEC at first...hmm. So many possibilities...
Oh well...keep up the good work
.smanders
Apr 29, 2004, 08:25 AM
#84
Think of it this way.. The sample rate on OBD-II interfaces is per pid.. so if you are sampling 10 sources of data its REALLY Slow, even on the fastest interface.. On the UTEC, your getting 5 samples per second, of the ENTIRE group of available data.. each line contains 5-10 different items.. technically that would make it quite a bit faster than anything you can get from OBD-II (plus more useful information IMHO)
Its actually not very hard to get the UTEC to display data on a PC.. its really all about HOW you want to display the data, and what you want to do with it.
Is it just me, or is the new forum layout feel "Odd"..
Its actually not very hard to get the UTEC to display data on a PC.. its really all about HOW you want to display the data, and what you want to do with it.
Is it just me, or is the new forum layout feel "Odd"..
Apr 29, 2004, 08:41 AM
#85
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Originally Posted by MalibuJack
The sample rate on OBD-II interfaces is per pid.
Its actually not very hard to get the UTEC to display data on a PC.. its really all about HOW you want to display the data, and what you want to do with it.
Is it just me, or is the new forum layout feel "Odd"..
Its actually not very hard to get the UTEC to display data on a PC.. its really all about HOW you want to display the data, and what you want to do with it.
Is it just me, or is the new forum layout feel "Odd"..
My OBDII software has a pretty cool interface (since I wrote it haha). I'll attach it so you can see my UI. You can setup how ever many digital gauges you want and it will automatically adjust to fit the window. Its quite flexible. The buttons that toggle enable items. In the setting, you can specify the layout of the gauges: number of colums and rows.
Yeah, they have not worked out all the kinks yet. I have to have my browser so wide to view it properly and I'm at 1280x1024 on a 19", not good. I do like the hybrid way of vieing threads though.
Apr 30, 2004, 08:10 AM
#86
Ok guys, Got my car back and reinstalled the UTEC and tuner, so I'll be resuming my development this weekend. I did put my B&M Shifter and bushings in.. Nice upgrade..
Anyway, I flashed my UTEC with the 1.3 version of the Flash.. Don't forget to save your maps and make a note of your configuration settings, turns out it loses some of them when you upgrade the flash. I lost my MAP calibration settings, but its actually not as off as it was originally.
Oh.. I also revised the stock UTEC Stg1 map.. It keeps most of the settings with a few tweaks in the boost map so it doesn't feel as weak at part throttle, and tweaked the timing map so the transition stumble is completely eliminated.. If anyone is interested PM me.. I'll probably post it later when I go through a few runs and adjust the timing a bit. (I'll post this one in a new thread..)
Anyway, I flashed my UTEC with the 1.3 version of the Flash.. Don't forget to save your maps and make a note of your configuration settings, turns out it loses some of them when you upgrade the flash. I lost my MAP calibration settings, but its actually not as off as it was originally.
Oh.. I also revised the stock UTEC Stg1 map.. It keeps most of the settings with a few tweaks in the boost map so it doesn't feel as weak at part throttle, and tweaked the timing map so the transition stumble is completely eliminated.. If anyone is interested PM me.. I'll probably post it later when I go through a few runs and adjust the timing a bit. (I'll post this one in a new thread..)
May 12, 2004, 09:31 AM
#87
Alpha Version Of Dashboard
ok guys.. the alpha version of the dashboard is attached here..
I'm not certain what the requirements are.. I have **NOT** tested this on anything but windows XP and windows 2000 with a current Internet explorer..
Extract the files to a directory and run the batch file.. Everything is command line based, please look at the BAT file for instructions since I don't have alot of time to support this (I'll try my best to answer questions)
the program is fairly reliable, but has little if any error checking, so expect it to do weird things on occasion.. Logging IS NOT IN THIS VERSION (obviously I want to keep something for the commercial stuff..
)
Just a note.. run the app from the batch file.. You can run each app seperately, but it will use defaults if you do. If your UTEC uses a com port other than 1, make sure the com port setting is changed in the batch file before you run it..
I appreciate any input/comments or suggestions you have... please make your suggestions detailed and thought-out so I can put it into a "Feature checklist List" that I can implement.
Again.. This is still an ALPHA VERSION (200 builds worth) so don't expect miracles.. but I released it so you guys with in-car PC's and laptops can use it.. the batch file kicks off a telnet session to the listener so you can see what its doing..
The app automatically takes over the screen.. If you want to get the taskbar without exiting, hit CONTROL-ESCAPE and you can do other things.. I chose to do it this way since its part of an IN-CAR entertainment application I'm working on for my car..
Please do not distribute the application, if anyone wants it.. give them the link here to get it..
I'm not certain what the requirements are.. I have **NOT** tested this on anything but windows XP and windows 2000 with a current Internet explorer..
Extract the files to a directory and run the batch file.. Everything is command line based, please look at the BAT file for instructions since I don't have alot of time to support this (I'll try my best to answer questions)
the program is fairly reliable, but has little if any error checking, so expect it to do weird things on occasion.. Logging IS NOT IN THIS VERSION (obviously I want to keep something for the commercial stuff..
)Just a note.. run the app from the batch file.. You can run each app seperately, but it will use defaults if you do. If your UTEC uses a com port other than 1, make sure the com port setting is changed in the batch file before you run it..
I appreciate any input/comments or suggestions you have... please make your suggestions detailed and thought-out so I can put it into a "Feature checklist List" that I can implement.
Again.. This is still an ALPHA VERSION (200 builds worth) so don't expect miracles.. but I released it so you guys with in-car PC's and laptops can use it.. the batch file kicks off a telnet session to the listener so you can see what its doing..
The app automatically takes over the screen.. If you want to get the taskbar without exiting, hit CONTROL-ESCAPE and you can do other things.. I chose to do it this way since its part of an IN-CAR entertainment application I'm working on for my car..
Please do not distribute the application, if anyone wants it.. give them the link here to get it..
Last edited by MalibuJack; May 12, 2004 at 05:39 PM.
May 12, 2004, 09:53 AM
#89
Oops.. found a glitch.. depending on how fast your laptop/pc is.. the listener may take some time to initialize and the dashboard may not connect and generate an error.. If that happens to you, modify the batch file to put another pause in it.. Most machines are quick enough to not have this happen..
The next release will have a revised batch file and the listener will be revised so it will automatically start the dashboard on its own. You'll probably see that in the next day or so with some additional groovy features.
The next release will have a revised batch file and the listener will be revised so it will automatically start the dashboard on its own. You'll probably see that in the next day or so with some additional groovy features.
May 12, 2004, 05:52 PM
#90
oops.. Missing files..
Whoops.. 2 files are missing that you'll need.. I'm going to post a full build later when I have access to my server at home. If your resourceful, you can download them from Microsoft (mswinsck.ocx and mscomm32.ocx) and put them into the same place as the program (or in your system path) I tried to avoid any dependencies on external resources and completely overlooked these..