iBug Logitech Microphone Install (pics)

**Bugbyte** · 04-27-2005, 11:53 PM

I've been working on trying to use voice control in my car for quite some time. Because of the location of my touchscreen, it's not completely natural to use it and I find it a distraction when driving.

I also think that controlling the computer by voice is super cool. When it works properly, it's like magic and you can drive and operate the computer easily.

So I

around these boards and have been collecting info on NaviVoice and microphones and voice training and such to try and figure out how to integrate this into the car. 0l33l gave me the idea of putting it in the header and I tried the logitech out in a variety of places before deciding that he was right, the header is a good spot for it. It's close to your mouth and if it has trouble hearing you, you simply tilt your head upward a bit and you can usually compensate for whatever noise is going on.

First, I purchased a noise cancelling microphone. I was told that this worked best and I haven't been disappointed by the Logitech desktop microphone

. It was about $30. I got the analog version rather than the USB version partly because there is supposedly a small PC board in the base of the mike that I didn't want to have to deal with and partly because I didn't want to use up the bandwidth on the USB line. Besides, the microphone input on my Epia M10000 was open and I figured I wouldn't have to worry about whether it was drawing power when the car was off or not.

First step was to open up the case. It was incredibly simple with just the microphone element and the mute switch.

Next, carefully remove the pieces which were held in by hot glue. The only thing to be careful of here is not to cut the wires by accident (I was using an Xacto knife) and to be sure all pieces are free and clear so you don't accidentally break a wire.

Next, where to mount it? In the Beetle, there is a handy sunglasses holder that looked like a likely location. I drilled a hole pattern in the end closest to my face and cut away the foam padding on the inside to provide a place to mount the microphone element.

I hot glued all the pieces into the holder and made the mute switch accessible, which turns out to be handy. I use FrodoSatX and you get feedback from it if you have a microphone plugged in. You can actually hear yourself saying the commands over the car speakers and the road rumble, too. It also introduces crackling noises into the sound. Turn the mute switch on and you're good to go.

That was all there was to it! I ran the wire inside the ceiling trim to the back of the car where the computer is located (it comes with about a 10 foot cord) and plugged it into the carputer. To my surprise, it worked on the first try.

**acura cl** · 04-28-2005, 12:43 PM

what program are you using to control your pc via voice?

thanks.

nice install btw.

**xBrady** · 04-28-2005, 12:48 PM

Wow, nice! I wish I could find somewhere to put a mic in my car as nice as that one.

**RoyN** · 04-28-2005, 04:48 PM

Wow, what an unlikely place for a sunglass holder???

Good job anyways!

**Bugbyte** · 04-28-2005, 10:45 PM

Originally Posted by RoyN

Wow, what an unlikely place for a sunglass holder???

Yep. The Beetle is "odd". That's why I like it. Even though my wife informs me that it's a girl car. She's right but fails to remember that my original car request was for a 300ZX.

Ahem, well I ended up with the iBug.

@acura cl: I tried using NaviVoice but I'm just too stupid to figure out how to configure it. So I've been experimenting with Bruno Speech Recognition Bruno Speech Recognition BETA v1.2 by FunkDaMonkMan

It was very easy to configure but doesn't survive hibernation. He's working on a new version to fix that and a couple of other suggestions. Try it and see what you think.

**0l33l** · 04-28-2005, 10:52 PM

Originally Posted by Bugbyte

So I

around these boards and have been collecting info on NaviVoice and microphones and voice training and such to try and figure out how to integrate this into the car. 0l33l gave me the idea of putting it in the header and I tried the logitech out in a variety of places before deciding that he was right, the header is a good spot for it. It's close to your mouth and if it has trouble hearing you, you simply tilt your head upward a bit and you can usually compensate for whatever noise is going on.

The install looks great! I'm guessing that the recognition is also good

Too bad that you gave up on NaviVoice. The next version will be a lot more like Bruno Speech Recognition

**Bugbyte** · 04-28-2005, 11:10 PM

Originally Posted by 0l33l

The install looks great! I'm guessing that the recognition is also good

Too bad that you gave up on NaviVoice. The next version will be a lot more like Bruno Speech Recognition

The recognition is pretty good! I ran voice recorder and spoke into the mic so I could "hear" what the car is trying to cut through when doing recognition. I could easily hear myself speaking when I played it back but of course there's also this "rumble" from the road noise and it picks up as you go faster. I'm amazed the computer ever interprets anything properly!

As for NaviVoice, bring it on! I think the more options the better. Frankly, I was just a little embarassed to post that I couldn't figure out how to edit the files as everyone else seemed to be figuring it out.

Looking forward to the new version whenever the "secret system" is ready for release!

**0l33l** · 04-28-2005, 11:21 PM

Originally Posted by Bugbyte

The recognition is pretty good! I ran voice recorder and spoke into the mic so I could "hear" what the car is trying to cut through when doing recognition. I could easily hear myself speaking when I played it back but of course there's also this "rumble" from the road noise and it picks up as you go faster. I'm amazed the computer ever interprets anything properly!

As for NaviVoice, bring it on! I think the more options the better. Frankly, I was just a little embarassed to post that I couldn't figure out how to edit the files as everyone else seemed to be figuring it out.

Looking forward to the new version whenever the "secret system" is ready for release!

Great to hear that the MIC recommendation has served you well

You can always ask questions... my forum isn't visited that often anyways

BTW: Do you have a activation command with the Bruno Speech Recognition?

**Peoples** · 04-29-2005, 12:07 AM

i found a small sun microsystems mic at work attatched to an old monitor we were getting rid of so i snagged thatbefore it went out the door. I've been thinking about putting it in my sunvisor but unsure how i'd go about installing it. A solid plastic housing would be easier like you've got. I might decide to make it not very stealth and just have it clip to my sunvisor. Its diamond shape (square wire at one fo the angles), and about an inch and a half on each side. Its also got a watch battery in it, and i've tested it, its very clear. I'll attempt a shot at NaviVoice, but I'll give a bunch of things a try.

**Bugbyte** · 04-29-2005, 11:52 AM

Originally Posted by 0l33l

BTW: Do you have a activation command with the Bruno Speech Recognition?

Not sure what you mean by that. You can "soft" enable and disable the recognition by saying "enable voice" or "disable voice". You can also activate or deactivate up to 5 command sets by saying, for example, "enable 1" or "disable 2".

I've encoded an activation "word" into one of the command sets. I use "iBug". Then the various commands for which application to open, or command to issue comes underneath that. The program then pairs the commands together so you get "iBug" + "open music" and the command you speak is "iBug, open music".

@Peoples - Maybe notch out the visor and embed it in there? I agree it's a good location for it. Take a look at what 0l33l did in his project file, he put it put along the top of the door, just above the window. It looked pretty good.