Free OBD2 Software anyone? (No Longer Free)

mjo151 · 01-22-2009, 08:52 PM

About six months ago I bought an OBD2 scanner from OBDPro's. I looked at some of the free (and paid) software out there but never found anything that I really cared for, so I decided to write my own. I've been developing, testing, using off and on for a couple of months now and am pretty satisfied with it.

Here are some features:
- MPG calculation including total MPG, instant MPG, and three trip meters (requires mass air flow sensor)
- Fuel usage estimation (total and instantaneous)
- Distance traveled estimation
- Load calculation
- Coolant temp calculation
- Logging of speeds and fuel usage
- Reading and clearing trouble codes (displays code + description)
- Monitoring of all supported PIDs
- PID monitoring priority (e.g. Update speed every cycle, engine coolant temp every 20 cycles)

I am interfacing to the car with an OBDPro usb scantool (www.obdpros.com). I have a Pontiac grand am and have only been able to test on this so I don't know how well other protocols will work. If anyone is interested then PM me and I can send (or post) an install.

Attached are some pics.

pcpete · 01-22-2009, 10:16 PM

Wow, pretty impresive, wouldn't mind trying it with mty elmscan 5 usb, will copy this in PM...

PCBum · 01-23-2009, 09:11 AM

WOW, nice! Post link?

mjo151 · 01-23-2009, 12:06 PM

Ok I attached the setup. One thing to note is that this uses the .NET 2.0 framework so you will need to have that installed.

Please let me know if it works/doesn't work, etc. I've been using it for a while and it's been pretty stable, but then again I wrote it so I know how not to break it

.

mjo151 · 01-23-2009, 12:16 PM

By default the software scans a few PIDs (speed, mass air flow rate, load, engine coolant, fuel system status, RPM). To add others, double-click the row in the Supported PIDs tab on the Diag page. You can also change polling priorities on the PID Monitor Setup page by double-clicking the polling rate column for each row.

pcpete · 01-23-2009, 01:24 PM

Installed it at work to play around with interface and such, looks really pro, from install to use... seems to be touch screen friendly, too.

Will install in carputer later today and post results...

pcpete · 01-23-2009, 07:56 PM

Ok, tested in car on the way home from work, would not connect, said timeout error on bottom.

It's an Elmscan 5 USB, works fine with scantool and palmer dashcommand software.

mjo151 · 01-23-2009, 10:23 PM

I don't have an ELMScan 5 to test with, so I tried adding some debug and another command to see what's going on. I'm guessing it's getting hung up trying to issue an identify command to the device. Try this and send me the output of the Device Traffic tab on the Diag page.

pcpete · 01-23-2009, 11:25 PM

OK, heading out to get some groceries, will give it a shot and let you know...

pcpete · 01-24-2009, 01:42 AM

Ok, tried it with the update, wanted to take screenshots, but my **** dinovo mini kb doesn't have printscreen button.

The log didn't save anything, but it did show something on the screen.

I was able to capture a video of my desktop, I'll try to upload it on youtube..

Here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLHqP1c9kXk

malcom2073 · 01-24-2009, 09:37 AM

Hey, just a suggestion. If you use portmon: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/s.../bb896644.aspx you can see the serial port traffic. Maybe this will give you a clue what the elmscan software is doing that mjo151's software is not.

mjo151 · 01-24-2009, 11:04 AM

Not sure if I'll time today, but I think Scantool is open source so I'll take a look and see what they're sending to the device on connect. It's possible that what I'm sending is only compatible with the obdpro scantool.

Vitaliy · 01-25-2009, 02:35 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by mjo151

Not sure if I'll time today, but I think Scantool is open source so I'll take a look and see what they're sending to the device on connect. It's possible that what I'm sending is only compatible with the obdpro scantool.

It is indeed open source. ScanTool.net doesn't do anything special. On startup, it resets the chip (ATZ), turns off echo and linefeeds, sets the protocol to automatic, and waits for the ECU to time out. Somewhere in between, it asks for the chip version and manufacturer.

One thing I noticed is that your software did not issue the ATZ command to reset the chip. IMHO, it's a good idea to do that, it gives you reasonable assurance that you are starting with a more or less standard setup.

Best regards,

Vitaliy