2011 Kia Picanto PC build

Hello Everyone,

I have been a member for a while now , mostly just reading and gathering info.

I started developing a carputer for my Kia Picanto.

Desired setup:

Asrock E350M1
M3-atx 125w
siliconpower T10 32GB ssd
2GB ram
navilock usb GPS receiver sirfIII
sitecom BT dongle
Custom 7 inch full HD touchscreen
For radio module I have taken apart a pioneer carradio and took out the radioreceiver module.
A friend of me (zanbee) is currently trying to make the module communicate with an arduino and the arduino with a custom RR plugin.
Win7 lite
Riderunner
Igo8
Bluesoleil
reborn skin


For the screen I decided to look in china , because where I live (The Netherlands) touchscreens are very expensive.

So after a lot of googling around I found a manufacturer in china that could provide me with an open frame 7 inch touchscreen for 60 dollars.:clap2:

www.njytouch.com

dont need a frame around it anyways because that would have been the first thing I would have taken off.



This is where it is all supposed to go:
Attachment 67975

I ordered a dashpart for a 2din radio:
Attachment 67976


So I decided to setup the components on my desk so I could setup the components and software correctly from the comfort of my chair:
Attachment 67973

then I received my touchscreen from china:
Attachment 67974

the screen is smaller than the hole in the dash so I needed to make a plastic frame to make it fit, I had an old laptop and the back of the screen had a nice size plastic cover I could chop up.

after a lot of measuring, cutting and sanding I ended up with this:
Attachment 67977
Attachment 67978



For the software side of things , I have practically all components I need except my ssd , so I decided to start installing and testing using a spare HDD I have.

So far I installed win7 and RR , got the phone working with bluesoleil and the .net mobilephone plugin.
Installed Igo8 and integrated it with RR.
Reborn skin installed and made custom kia logo for it :)
Attachment 67980

did some tweaking to the system but with the old semi-busted drive its hard to see any improvements, guess I will have to wait till the SSD arrives.


after a lot of sanding and several coats of spray paint I got my frame finished.

I installed the screen into the dash, looks pretty nice :)
Attachment 67987


This is it for the moment , as I make more steps towards completion I will post them here

zanbee will be opening a thread about the radio module and plugins etc, in addition to this thread.

As soon as he has his thread made I will link to it from here

Just received word that my order from china has been shipped by airmail.
I ordered a custom power source for the radio module which requires 8.5 volts
when I get that power adapter testing the radio module can finally start!
a touchscreen controller, the screen I ordered didn't come with one.
and a powered usb hub for the energy draining peripherals.

upside is that china is cheap , downside is that it takes a while to arrive, so the wait begins

here are some pics of the ordered goodies:

http://img.dxcdn.com/productimages/sku_18538_2.jpg

http://img.dxcdn.com/productimages/sku_142531_2.jpg

http://www.ledsee.com/components/com...0d26c580f8.jpg

Here are some pics of the car and the current audio setup , I know it looks a bit shabby , its a temporary solution for the bad factory sound until I have my carpc installed.

I haven't done any major mods on the car just yet, just replaced most light bulbs for the led variety and painted the grill and logo on the hatch matte black, I think it looks better with white than standard chrome

Attachment 67989

I have a sub in the trunk and the amp nicely hidden in the storage compartment under the floor , right now I am contemplating whether I place my PC in there as well or mount it under the dash behind the glove box, (loads of room there)


I know vacuuming isn't a luxury right now :P

Attachment 67990

Attachment 67991

I also have some news on the radio module progress, we have had contact with Guino from RR and he provided us with the software and tools needed to make an official plugin for RR.

After we are done with the radio plugin we might start to make a universal plugin for arduino , we are brainstorming daily about the fun thing you can do with an arduino and a carpc.


Updates on that as soon as we have them :) (pics as well)

Very nice start to your car PC, great job on the dash bezel/screen mount. I look forward to see what you guys comes up with for plugins!

thanks! :)

yay! my ssd arrived today , must say it looks nice with the alu casing.

Attachment 68001

I will be busy installing for a while :)

Time for another update, this time no pics sorry , will post some next time


I have been busy tweaking windows and my motherboard, and doing some test with my m3 atx power supply.


right now I am at 17 sec boot from hibernation , from the moment I press the switch until RR runs and plays music. I deffinately see room for improvement.

next step will be shutting down unneeded windows services using this guys website


I have been able to make my own serial cable for my psu, and am able to change a lot of variables now , not sure how or what I will change , it depends if I can get hybrid sleep working.


Right now I am brainstorming to leave the 5v rail on as long as possible and maximize the use of hybrid sleep, the rail will shut off by itself if the battery voltage drops below 11,7 volts.

only issue I seem to see it that the delay for hardoff is maxed out at 17hrs 59mins and 59sec.
guess I will have to fiddle my way around that max time or the whole hybrid idea gets a bit pointless.


of course any tips on making boot from hibernation faster are welcome :)


I already turned usb legacy support off , which saves a few secs boot

I have been thinking for a while about what I am going to use as a case for my mb and ssd , well today I was busy cleaning up the storage and my eye caught it , an old 15 inch tft screen :)


so I took out its guts and found out the housing is perfect for my needs , it will fit my mb, ssd, m3 atx, and the future radio module including the power adapter and have room left for any future upgrades



this is what it looks like with the basic components installed:
Attachment 68024


then I went on to fabricating a top for it , so I cut the bottom out of an already broken plastic container and glued it in place

this is a pic of it , definitely needs some more love and some spray paint but its okay for a first attempt :)
Attachment 68025


this is a family shot :p
Attachment 68026