BMW 540 Touchscreen Complete!

sajid753 · 03-04-2005, 10:30 AM

Well, after spending over a year working on this project for my '99 540i 6 speed, its essentially complete.

SPECS:

Via M10000 Motherboard
Xenarc 7" touchscreen in custom mold
ITPS Startup/Shutdown controller
80Watt Morex DC-DC converter
Two 20 gig hard drives
Delorme Earthmate GPS w/ Destinator Navigation
WinTV TV tuner
SNES Emulator with gamepad
Wireless Keyboard
Mini handheld control mouse
RoadRunner Frontend
Divx Movies
BMW IBUS Interface (can control computer via steering wheel buttons and vice versa)

I kept the stock radio headunit behind the touchscreen and use the IBUS Interface to contol the radio buttons through the computer. (IBUS is BMWs serial bus interface for the entertainment controls and a few other instruments within the dash). One of the reasons I did this was to keep the heads-up display in the instrument cluster to show the different stations and to get the names/titles from each station. So I just created a small VB program to simulate the steering wheel button presses so that the passenger can also control the radio functions right from the touchscreen. The VB program sends hexadecimal signals to the ibus via the serial port and tells the car that a button is being "pressed". I can change stations, fast forward rewind, etc. all through the computer. I can even control the turn signals!! (pointless, but cool

). And conversely, I can also use the steering wheel buttons to simulate actions on the computer, i.e.scroll through playlists, volume control, etc. (very convenient for when you're driving). The steering wheel controls are mapped thru the IBUS to simulate keystrokes on the screen so that I can "enter" "escape" scroll "up" and "down", etc. Once I learn a bit more about VB, I want to pull that info from the heads up display and have it show up on the touchscreen. Also, the touchscreen itself is on hinges so that it can fold down if I ever need to access the radio controls behind it. The computer itself is mounted under the glove compartment on the upper passenger footwell.

Here are some pics:

More Pics here: SLIDESHOW

Quattro · 03-04-2005, 09:26 PM

Excellent install man, looks really good.

Bugbyte · 03-04-2005, 09:30 PM

This is outstanding! I really love the flip down screen! Very nice install!

turbocad6 · 03-04-2005, 11:48 PM

very nice, I'd love to see a shot of the screen down, great intergration...

BoyNextDoor · 03-05-2005, 12:39 AM

Nice *** work man... How long did it take you to figure out the flip down monitor setup, including fabwork, and fiting, to finish?

Peoples · 03-05-2005, 12:51 AM

i'm very impressed with the quality of those animated GIFs!!

whats program did you use?

oh yeah, the install is nice too

sajid753 · 03-05-2005, 07:50 AM

Thanks guys.

Theres a few pics of the screen down in the slideshow link. As far as making it, I had the mold created by one of the members on here at mp3car. I tried making my own but it just didnt come out as nice as i wanted it and by that time I was just so sick of bondo-ing and sanding that i just gave it up to better hands. As far as making it flip down, i just used some basic parts that I got from home depot. I used a magnetic push-type hinge (usually used on stereo cabinet doors) at the top that pops the screen out when i push it in a bit. And the frame itself rides on two long hinges that are usually used with jewelery box lids and the like. I just bolted everything up to the pre-existing holes and it worked well.

About the animated GIFs, im using a program called Video Master. You can get it off of download.com

crazymadbastard · 03-05-2005, 08:30 AM

I too was thinking of mounting the computer where you mounted yours,
Do you find it that the passengers hit it or kick it?
I am mounting my screen on a giant fence hinge so I can swing it towards the passenger to access the radio. Just need a bit of time to mount it all.

srcstc · 03-05-2005, 11:06 AM

Nice work on the flip-down. How do you like the trim?

Rich

sajid753 · 03-06-2005, 03:00 PM

the trim looks stock, you did a great job, thanks!!

PORTUGAL · 03-06-2005, 03:47 PM

Great instalation !!Well done !!

blackflux · 03-06-2005, 07:20 PM

Love the flip down screen. I've been thinking of doing something similar. So I am very interested in your design.

You said you got your parts home depot, what parts did you use exactly?

JoezDog4 · 03-06-2005, 07:46 PM

Great install!!!!

sajid753 · 03-06-2005, 07:56 PM

I used a magnetic catch latch similar to this one at the top center of the screen. So that i can push it in and out.

and for the hinges, i used something similar to this on either side of the mold

Also, about the placement of the CPU by the passengers legs, i secured it pretty tight and ran all the wiring thru plastic tubing and tucked it all away so that even if someone kicked it, it would really screw anything up.

Wiredwrx · 03-06-2005, 09:15 PM

Hi,
I know about hack the i bus, but could you please tell me which SW you are using with your computer, and which Interface you are using. Also, what does the VB program you created do?

Thanx
Michael

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