carputer for the roadster?

[FoxyRoadster]

I was thinking of adding a carputer in the roadster since I just scored a free working notebook with a broken screen..

 

 

Only problem I'm thinking of is kinda ruining the old car image with such an add on but at the same time could make a really awesome addition if done right..

 

I'm looking for constructive opinions on it.

 

 

main reason I'm thinking of it is I'll be upgrading to fuel injection with megasquirt soon so I'd be able to have an extra set of gauges at all times and even do datalogging really easy!

 

 

basicly my idea was try to keep it looking vintage.. was gonna get an old C64 keyboard and make it a usb one and such. I can hear people screaming neeeeeerd from here. :lol:

[datsun65]

I was thinking of adding a carputer in the roadster since I just scored a free working notebook with a broken screen..

 

I like the thought of a carputer, but 'd actually go a slightly different route.

 

In Hong Kong, and other countries, there are now in-dash Combo GPS/DVD/Windows CE Devices that also support Wifi usage.

 

So, for example, if you use a headunit like:

 

 

You can run many windows applications on the head unit natively. For example, you could probably run the Nissan-Consult software on this unit, and have it directly plugged into the ECU.

 

If you pair this unit, with a service contract for 4G wifi from a vendor, like Clear (www.clear.com) , you can have mobile wifi connected to your head-unit.

 

How cool would it be to have direct access to Ratsun.net in your roadster while driving through the twisties!

 

Here is a link to the head Unit

 

A Car DVD Player complete with GPS, DVB-T, Hi-Def 800 x 480 screen resolution and every feature you'll ever need for an unparalleled automotive experience including WIFI when you need it. Introducing The King Cobra 2-DIN (100 mm tall) mobile media station - the evolution of in-car intelligence!

 

Windows CE + WIFI: Unlike other car DVD players, the CVEM-C41 gives you direct access to the WIN CE operating system. The benefit to you? You can view Microsoft Word, Excel, and Powerpoint files AND get on the Internet. Simply access a wireless connection, launch Internet Explorer, and then check email or locate show times

 

First Class Navigation: The King Cobra sports a built-in car navigation system that effortlessly handles today's most popular GPS software titles like TomTom, Route66, and iGO. Engineered for first class functionality, this car navigation system opens the door to such cutting edge GPS features as lane assist, voice guidance, 3-D views, intelligent route planning, and points of interest (POI). The King Cobra also comes with a 3 meter GPS magnet antenna to significantly boost your GPS signal reception.

 

Entertainment Fit for a King: Up till now, all 2-DIN (100mm tall) car DVD players came standard with screen resolution of 480 x 234 pixels. The King Cobra 7 Inch Touchscreen Car DVD Player (WIFI, GPS, DVB-T) features an amazing 800 x 480 pixel screen resolution! That means disks and videos played on this remarkable system come out crystal clear and visually brilliant! Watch MPEG-2 compressed DVB-T on its amazing screen. With Digital TV, movies, shows, and news are always free and available direct to your car. If that weren't enough, the King Cobra has a powerful region free DVD disk player that can play DVD's from any country. Or throw those movies, TV shows, dramas, and anime's you've downloaded from the Web on a SD card or USB thumb drive and attach it to this baby! It handles the Internet's most popular video and audio file formats like MPEG 1/2, AVI, DIVX, XVID and MP3 with ease! Better yet, attach your iPod or portable media player to the King Cobra and have plug and play access to your entire media collection - mile after mile, file after file, you'll enjoy the ride so much you just might sell your house and live in your car from now on!

[FoxyRoadster]

I like the thought of a carputer, but 'd actually go a slightly different route.

 

 

I've seen them, I just want a little more customization with it plus nothing beats the price of free! lol Plus tons of open source software for carputers

[Pumpkn210]

Get an old small TV and use the case for the screen. You could mod it into the dash to look period correct!

 

Great Idea!

[FoxyRoadster]

Get an old small TV and use the case for the screen. You could mod it into the dash to look period correct!

 

Great Idea!

 

 

Been looking at doing that, I'd like to but I'm thinking I may just use an lcd due to space and also quality. I'm digging around for an old fashion green screened monitor but they all seem to be way to long to fit in the dash plus power hungry!

[Pumpkn210]

NO remove the old screen ;) and put a LCD in it!

[FoxyRoadster]

http://cgi.ebay.com/1958-RCA-VICTOR-TV-DELUXE-MAROON-PORTABLE-NICE-L-K-NR-/370456028419?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5640e66503 if I could afford it and get it wired up this would be badass!

[FoxyRoadster]

NO remove the old screen ;) and put a LCD in it!

 

Yeah, that would be cool.

 

 

My plan is kinda to make keep the look they had going with the DOT dash but without the DOT foam padding and it be polished wood grain. Going to put a 10" lcd where the clock went on the dash so I can have gauges and media played there on the go and make the glove box pop open at the push of a button. So it would have the 14" pop out of the dash so it would be like be like wow a computer!

[FoxyRoadster]

Just a bit of an update.

 

I'll be hunting down a NOS C64 keyboard if I can locate one if not I'll go used but found this so it will literly be plug and play http://www.vesalia.de/e_keyrah.htm

 

 

Harddrive in the laptop is fubar'ed so thinking of getting a cheap solid state for the OS drive and have a removable external drive for any extra media. So I dont have to use a flash drive or wifi to transfer my music and shit onto the carputer.

[deadmonkey]

Oh this will be a fun post to follow.

I was going to put one in my Durango awhile back before I sold it but instead put a JBL deck that accepted USB so I could put in a USB stick with music or just put all my music on a few DVD's since it played DVD movies as well. Put in a 7" LCD panel as well. That thing was very nice for quick 'camping' trips cuz you just needed a blowup matress, flip the back hatch open and watch movies from the fire or listen to music all with a nice lil remote.

 

Sigh! I miss that truck :)

 

===

- anyways. You are going to want a few lil things to start out with. I have a crap ton of links at home and can't get to them now since I'm at work, b but there is a special way you want to hook up a powersupply so you don't fry the computer at startups and drain your battery overnight when not driving it. You want a fanless setup for easy of use, and no worry of mechanical breakdown. You will probably need a micro-ITX case and mobo. They are getting very powerful now adays and can come fanless. Linux makes a specific distro for vehicals and is TINY and can fit on a USB Flash drive to boot from.

 

I'm a little limited at work right now but I'll see about getting some good links for this (hope I still have them!)

Aha! found one of the sites. This is a good starting place:

http://www.mini-box.com/

 

Here is an excellent example of a power supply:

http://www.mini-box.com/DCDC-USB?sc=8&category=981

Its a bit spendy, but exactly what you want because it will shutdown the computer completely and draw less than 1mA and is ignition aware. This is the heart of an automotive PC setup.

[FoxyRoadster]

Oh this will be a fun post to follow.

I was going to put one in my Durango awhile back before I sold it but instead put a JBL deck that accepted USB so I could put in a USB stick with music or just put all my music on a few DVD's since it played DVD movies as well. Put in a 7" LCD panel as well. That thing was very nice for quick 'camping' trips cuz you just needed a blowup matress, flip the back hatch open and watch movies from the fire or listen to music all with a nice lil remote.

 

Sigh! I miss that truck :)

 

===

- anyways. You are going to want a few lil things to start out with. I have a crap ton of links at home and can't get to them now since I'm at work, b but there is a special way you want to hook up a powersupply so you don't fry the computer at startups and drain your battery overnight when not driving it. You want a fanless setup for easy of use, and no worry of mechanical breakdown. You will probably need a micro-ITX case and mobo. They are getting very powerful now adays and can come fanless. Linux makes a specific distro for vehicals and is TINY and can fit on a USB Flash drive to boot from.

 

I'm a little limited at work right now but I'll see about getting some good links for this (hope I still have them!)

Aha! found one of the sites. This is a good starting place:

http://www.mini-box.com/

 

Here is an excellent example of a power supply:

http://www.mini-box.com/DCDC-USB?sc=8&category=981

Its a bit spendy, but exactly what you want because it will shutdown the computer completely and draw less than 1mA and is ignition aware. This is the heart of an automotive PC setup.

 

 

Nah, all the stuff I'm using on it minus the c64 keyboard I'm nabbing for free. I got a trashed laptop that "fell" out of a car for free it works just the harddrive is trash. Plus with me having another model that uses the same battery I plan on keeping batteries around for a while for it so I can run the notebook off its power while parked.

[deadmonkey]

hmm... well just be careful with starting while its plugged in. It can kill a PSU right quick.

The problem with a CRT will be 1) power consumption (have to use an inverter if you use a TV) and 2) interfacing with the laptop. I'm guesing it has a VGA output so you will need something that will accept VGA. Or if you have an RCA output or even a VGA to RCA converter, but you will loose graphics fidelity.

 

You may just want a small hideable LCD with a VGA input...You are a in a bit of a pickle since the laptop screen is dead.

[FoxyRoadster]

the laptop screen is 80 bucks so might buy a new one but planned to just run a power inverter for the laptops power adapter but planning on keeping that one hidden and just using a small one in place of where the factory clock went in the dash

[deadmonkey]

Well I found the link since I'm home...

http://www.lcdtft.com is great for your touchscreen solution.