LCD screen as a cluster replacement non obd2 car

Hi all I'm hoping someone can help, if this is in the wrong section can it be moved to the relevant location :-)

Ok so I have just finished configuring up my car pc for my Nissan stagea (skyline estate)

I have just thought about bringing it up to controll my gauges with is being a 1996 car it's quite old looking on the dash and as the car is undergoing lots of work the though of swapping the boring cluster out for a LCD really appeals to me lol

I saw the centrafuse sdk demo of what can be achieved although I can't find anyone that has actually done it :(

Can anyone point me in the right direction

Currently the dash has the following

RPM
SPEEDO
RIGHT INDICATE
LEFT INDICATE
PARK
REVERSE
NEUTRAL
DRIVE
FIRST
SECOND
FUEL
WATER TEMP
ENGINE CHECK
SEAT BELT
DOOR OPEN
HIGH BEAM
OVERDRIVE OFF/ON
4WD
SNOW
ABS
REAR HEATER
ODOMETER
BRAKE WARN
EXHAUST OVER HEAT
OIL
CHARGE


Now all the lamps on the dash are just 12v on or off Don't you just love the old styles lol

On the rear of the unit the speedo
The rpm, speed. All ave the following markers
Sin +
Sin -
Cos +
Cos -

The fuel and water have the following
GND
COS +
COS -


It looks like I could get 2x 7" screens in there or I might go for 1 8" as it would be easier on single screen I guess

Anyone able to help

Cheers
Andrew

Being that it's 96 I doubt it has obd2 port, Most of the idiot light stuff is simple just tapping wire for voltage. Temp,presure,fuel, exhaust could be put on analog if you can get voltage readings like cold/hot full/empty and doing the calculation. Speedo you could get from GPS but not sure on accuracy, dead zones, tall buildings, overpasses ect. Just my 2 cents SNO

RPM OBD port
SPEEDO OBD or GPS
RIGHT INDICATE Phidget Digital In
LEFT INDICATE Phidget Digital In
PARK Phidget Digital In
REVERSE Phidget Digital In
NEUTRAL Phidget Digital In
DRIVE Phidget Digital In
FIRST Phidget Digital In
SECOND Phidget Digital In
FUEL Analog reading of sensor and doing voltage calculation
WATER TEMP Analog reading of sensor and doing voltage calculation
ENGINE CHECK OBD port
SEAT BELT Phidget Digital In
DOOR OPEN Phidget Digital In
HIGH BEAM Phidget Digital In
OVERDRIVE OFF/ON Phidget Digital In
4WD Phidget Digital In
SNOW Phidget Digital In
ABS Phidget Digital In
REAR HEATER Phidget Digital In
ODOMETER OBD or GPS
BRAKE WARN Phidget Digital In
EXHAUST OVER HEAT Analog reading of sensor and doing voltage calculation
OIL Analog reading of sensor and doing voltage calculation
CHARGE Analog reading of sensor and doing voltage calculation

I am partial to Phidgets brand stuff but it can be any board using analog-digital input/output

Many of those gauges are resistive and cannot be treated purely as an analogue input. I do this with my boards and a system called MiMod. It is the only true system that can achieve this on a reliable level.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by 2k1Toaster

Many of those gauges are resistive and cannot be treated purely as an analogue input. I do this with my boards and a system called MiMod. It is the only true system that can achieve this on a reliable level.

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hi can you tell me more about these boards

im quite good with wiring and locating connections on the plus side the rear of the factory cluster has everything labelled up to help with the work :)

Ok so I have looked a bit more into this and it looks like the fusion system is what I'm likely to go for

By my calculation (limited as this is theory Bassed at the mo) till further testing

I have as standard 26 inputs which equates to 2 brains
Most of those 26 are idiot lights and are going to be 12v on/off filament lamps as standard (old school lol)
21 lamps on current display for warning from looking at the cluster it looks like they are all direct 12v to power them on will double check this

The remaining inputs are variable so providing I can locate the correct voltage to raise and lower I should be ok....

do I need to use either of the following as well

4 Chanel input isolator
Or
Frequency to voltage converter


What's the best way to tackle the odometer unit I currently have a converter chip installed to change the speedo. From kph - mph

In theory I can power the spare dash up and get the readings for the variable units using potentiometers to drive a different current into it

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rabster

Ok so I have looked a bit more into this and it looks like the fusion system is what I'm likely to go for

By my calculation (limited as this is theory Bassed at the mo) till further testing

I have as standard 26 inputs which equates to 2 brains
Most of those 26 are idiot lights and are going to be 12v on/off filament lamps as standard (old school lol)
21 lamps on current display for warning from looking at the cluster it looks like they are all direct 12v to power them on will double check this

The remaining inputs are variable so providing I can locate the correct voltage to raise and lower I should be ok....

do I need to use either of the following as well

4 Chanel input isolator
Or
Frequency to voltage converter


What's the best way to tackle the odometer unit I currently have a converter chip installed to change the speedo. From kph - mph

In theory I can power the spare dash up and get the readings for the variable units using potentiometers to drive a different current into it

---

For the 21 dummy lights, a simple resistor divider will work. If you want to use a board, then the 4 channel isolators will work well. You would need 6 boards, for 24 possible inputs, 21 used. You might find out that you want others too like knowing when the IGN is on versus ACC mode versus just off. That sort of thing. These are the easiest.

For the resistive sensors, you will need to match a top or bottom resistor along with the sensor itself and get the curve. This is not easy to get a good reading and not blow up the brain.

For the voltage sensors, a simple voltage divider may be neccessary, but it is relatively straightforwards. Again an input on the isolator board can work too, but it is non-linear when it goes through the isolation, so it is no longer just a multiple of your reading, it is an exponential equation and requires math. Once the math is figured, it is pretty easy and no work needs to be done, but it can be difficult at first.

For the odometer, tachometer, and speedometer, these are not that simple. The frequency board may work, but may not. In the cars that I have helped do this too, usually there was a lot of modifications needed and a good understanding of the system in there.

Basically, the system we have in place to do this is called MiMod. There is a lot of custom hardware that I made for that system that could be sold individually if EVInstruments (the owners of MiMod) allow it. You would have to buy it from them because it is their intellectual property now. The MiMod system is really a great system and does exactly what you want easily. Also it is a dedicated embedded platform just for the gauges. Remember on a CarPC that flash drives and updates can render a system unstable since there is a possibility for contamination. There is also a possibility of general flaky-ness depending on your build. You do not want to be driving down the road when your gauges go blank.

In the past I would just say a simple, "no you cannot use the Fusion Brain for replacing your gauges". However after working with Troy at EVInstruments to develop the MiMod sensor hardware, I am convinced that is the way to go for safety and features. There is nothing on the market even close to it. We were at SEMA this year, and nothing even close.

Check out this car, see if this is close to what you were thinking: http://www.chevyhardcore.com/news/gr...d-of-tomorrow/

http://cdn.chevyhardcore.com/files/2...ro-Touring.jpg

I would contact Troy at EVInstruments first about getting some of the hardware: http://www.evinstruments.com/Inquiries.aspx

Mention the "odometer board", "tachometer board", and the "MiMod HP Motherboard with Daughterboards", he will know what you are talking about.

If you do not want the full system from him, at least you might be able to buy the hardware.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7zvGmL0y2c

That is an EV with it. The new term for what you want is the "Ahead Driver System".