Hacking the front panel buttons

**zapwizard** · 04-01-2006, 12:38 AM

It seems like a waste to have all those buttons on the LCD, just to adjust the LCD screen.

This modification rewires the existing keys on the LCD to work as USB keyboard functions.

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There are six buttons required to control FrontRow.
ESC, Enter, Up, Down, Left, Right.

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So I hacked up a USB keyboard and rewired the needed keys.

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I opened the keyboard and traced around the contacts I need.

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I then used a multimeter to trace the keys back to the keyboard connector.

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I mapped out the needed wires and preped the keyboard controller.

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I opened up my Lilliput and removed the keypad PCB.
I then carefully cut the traced on each side of the switch.
This was actualy pretty extensive, as some traces had to be re-routed for the other parts of the circuit to work.

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I then soldered wires on to each button.
Some buttons shared a signal.

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I then ran the wires out one of the button vents of the LCD.

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The keyboard control panel was then screwed to the back of the LCD.
I wanted to do it all internal but there isn't enough room.

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The completed modificaiton.
Now I have some quick buttons that I can hit without taking my eyes off the road.
I can still do any needed adjustments on the LCD via the remote control.

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I have my touchscreen, wired to my Mac Mini.
Photos on that here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/zapwiza...7594054134962/

**wi77iam** · 04-01-2006, 05:39 PM

Wow, nice job by you. Lotta work, tho.

**fooshizn1x** · 04-01-2006, 09:55 PM

where did you route the buttons to so that you can hit them without taking your eyes off the road?

**zapwizard** · 04-04-2006, 01:17 AM

Fooshizn1x, read the thread.

The LCD is installed into my Dash, I hacked the existing buttons on the LCD to a USB keyboard controller.

Since they are physical buttons, not software touch-buttons, you can press them the same as your A/C or old radio buttons without taking your eyes off the road.

**dmcdlrn** · 04-04-2006, 01:35 PM

not bad. I was thinking of doing something similar so that it would control volume or something... but decided it wasn't worth bothing so I just fiberglassed them over when doing the install.

good work though.