Wireless USB TPMS Review

**Xargon321** · 07-21-2009, 12:16 PM

thanks for taking the time to answer me. i was just playing with the idea seeing as my car already has the sensors. i think there would be a large market for a universal receiver for those of us that have tpms in our cars but want more info then the dash info provides. me especially, i have a 07 mustang and it will just tell me if i have a tire low it wont say which one or what the pressure is.

as i understand it there is only three frequency bands that tpms uses 315(usa only) 433 and 868. How hard would it be to make a receiver to pick up those bands? also i know I would have to figure out the encoding logic as well but i would assume that ford or chevy would use the same logic on all their vehicles to facilitate repairing and maintenance of the system.

**meddler** · 07-22-2009, 04:28 AM

Originally Posted by Lok

Just to give you guys an idea for future development. We already have plans to improve the hardware but there are many features we have already built in that just can't be used due to software limitations. The reciever board can actually handle up to 10 sensors however we still don't have the appropriate software in place so there would be no way to learn sensors to those locations or even display any data. We are currently working on some new software that will be able to harness the fully capability of the hardware, I can't tell you too much just yet but I will state that the new software will work without use of a front end, will handle between 8-10 sensors, and should work much better than the existing plug-ins. Be sure to check out the Portal Media Gadgets and Accessories subforum for updates. We may have a beta test program for the new software so that we can see what it is capable of before we release it to the public.

Originally Posted by deanb2

That is good news. I was going to ask if the 5 sensor limitation was in the hardware or the software.
Support for 8 sensors would be ideal for me, as I use different wheel/tire sets in summer and winter. Looking forward to new developments with TPMS.

Dean

I am with Dean on this. I have a set of road wheels and a set of track wheels. I was going to put them on the road wheels, but if it is possible to just buy more sensors and add them in, that would be awesome.

meddler

**alawatsakima** · 07-22-2009, 10:31 AM

Originally Posted by Lok

Just to give you guys an idea for future development. We already have plans to improve the hardware but there are many features we have already built in that just can't be used due to software limitations. The reciever board can actually handle up to 10 sensors however we still don't have the appropriate software in place so there would be no way to learn sensors to those locations or even display any data. We are currently working on some new software that will be able to harness the fully capability of the hardware, I can't tell you too much just yet but I will state that the new software will work without use of a front end, will handle between 8-10 sensors, and should work much better than the existing plug-ins. Be sure to check out the Portal Media Gadgets and Accessories subforum for updates. We may have a beta test program for the new software so that we can see what it is capable of before we release it to the public.

Is there any hope that this new software might be able to be ported to Linux? I have not built my system yet, but when I do, TPMS would be very handy. I'm not yet DEVOTED to the idea of Linux, but seeing as I havn't run a windows machine in over 3 years, I am a bit reluctant... So, looking into the future, is this a possibility that a linux user may have access to at some point down the road?

**Lok** · 07-23-2009, 09:31 AM

We have not had any plans for Linux as I have not seen much demand for it (very few car pc users run linux due to lack of a mature front end) but we are willing to work with developers if they would like to build a Linux version.

**Robby BMW** · 07-23-2009, 10:01 AM

Originally Posted by optikalefx

RRTMS (from MP3Car.com forums) comes with the plug-in for RideRunner and a tool to configure the sensors and messages that are displayed and spoken (there is a typo in the dialog that speaks when the tire pressure is too high, it says "hight" instead of "high", so check that while you are installing the software).

Sorry for the typo

I promise that it will be fixed in the next release of the plugin.

Currently I am working on the new software mentioned by Lok, so when it will be ready, I would also to update the RR plugin in order to support the new features (handle up to 10 sensors).

**alawatsakima** · 07-23-2009, 12:32 PM

Originally Posted by Lok

We have not had any plans for Linux as I have not seen much demand for it (very few car pc users run linux due to lack of a mature front end) but we are willing to work with developers if they would like to build a Linux version.

That is both undertsandable, yet slightly disappointing. I am by no means a developer, and am therefore not in a position to offer any services. However, if any linux developers are reading this forum, I am more than willing to help with any testing, and am even willing to learn anything required to make this a reality.

However, like I had said before, I don't even have a system built yet. Therefore this all should be treated as a wishlist item than anything. Thank you for the response though

**malcom2073** · 07-23-2009, 04:43 PM

There are plenty enough users using Linux, the problem is there are few users using Linux, who want a TPMS solution, who are also developers, and have the money to buy one. That's a lot of criteria to meet. If I ever get the money to buy one of these I plan on releasing linux drivers/software like I did for the Fusion Brain and Visteon HD radio, but at the moment it's simply not economical.

Very nice and well put together review fixerofallthin, kudos for that.

**Lok** · 07-24-2009, 08:53 AM

Originally Posted by malcom2073

There are plenty enough users using Linux, the problem is there are few users using Linux, who want a TPMS solution, who are also developers, and have the money to buy one. That's a lot of criteria to meet. If I ever get the money to buy one of these I plan on releasing linux drivers/software like I did for the Fusion Brain and Visteon HD radio, but at the moment it's simply not economical.

Very nice and well put together review fixerofallthin, kudos for that.

What would it take for you to develop linux drivers/software?

**alawatsakima** · 08-04-2009, 05:17 PM

Please correct me if I'm worng: Orange seems to build a good product, but it doesn't seem to offer the ability to integrate with a computer, and is thus fairly useless to me, and I would think to this forum in general. But it is good to see that there are other products out there available in case people don't require a full computer...

**malcom2073** · 08-04-2009, 07:27 PM

Originally Posted by Lok

What would it take for you to develop linux drivers/software?

Sorry, I just noticed that post. To be blunt, it would have to be free. At the moment I can't afford to pay for one plain and simple. All my spare money (and most of my time) is caught up getting my Camaro up and running which was actually the reason I'm interested in something like this. Nothing like having a recorded tire pressure, and more importantly temperature when bracket drag racing. There just isn't any money in the budget for something like that until the car is finished.