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Have the same color combo! I love the color and have to agree with you, I do see it a lot..lol..
I was shocked to read more than once in different forums that it is rare. Even my co-worker thought he had seen me around town because he spotted someone driving the same color SC430 somewhere. I have yet to see another 430 around here, though.
I have been looking around at what is out there for aftermarket integration and honestly, I am quite disappointed. These things are generally just composite video to RGBs converters with a switch in them. Those are less than $15 because people have been using them to display video on their computer monitors for ages. I have one that I bought back in 1999 for only $89! They are millions of times better and smaller and around 15 bucks now.
The main difference between VGA and RGBs is that VGA has separate horizontal and vertical sync signals and RGBs has a composite sync (that just means the two sync signals are combined). A transistor and a couple of resistors are all that is needed to mix the separate sync signals and most converter chips handle it without any extra parts anyway. You just inject the sync on the HYSNC line and ground the VSYNC line. The only other difference is just the refresh frequency. VGA typically expects 15Khz, while RGBs is 50Hz. Again most chips handle this just fine and especially one designed for video conversion. RGBs is the standard used in much of the world in the form of SCART. That's all your Lexus system is: a navigation ECU that outputs SCART video which shouldn't be a surprise coming from Japan. There is nothing really proprietary or magical about it. Tons of solutions have been out there for years to convert between that standard and the numerous others so consumers could use whatever video equipment they wanted.
The audio solutions out there are a bit more than that. Some are simple enough that they just short the mute line going to the radio to ground and inject their own audio going to the amp. But most of the stuff out there is a bit more intelligent than that.
To interface with our radios, especially with the built in CD changer, it requires interfacing with the IEBus to switch the radio to CD1, a hidden external CD changer mode. This then allows the radio to control the amp for things like volume. The even more intelligent units out there listen on the IEBus for button presses from the radio to control your phone or MP3 player in this external changer mode. I am not sure I have found one yet that claims to be able to display text on our radios, though. Our radios may not be capable of it or perhaps noone has figured out how to do it yet.
It just seems that this stuff is so overpriced for what it is and none seem to offer a fully integrated system requiring you to buy multiple overpriced systems. One would think there should be a device that switches between various video sources, matches up the audio source, interfaces with the touchscreen, and also handles steering wheel and radio controls. Perhaps even displaying it's own video menus on our displays to control everything.
And the claims about being HD quality should be ignored. Your screen is 840x480, interlaced. That is 480i which is standard definition and has been around since the 50s. It is not physically capable of HD quality. Any HD video needs to be scaled down to display on the stock screen and of course it would be letterboxed on our already small screens unless they stretched it. SD is 720x480. There are numerous blackbox ICs out there that do this because that also has been a long-time demand in the consumer market during the transition to HD TVs where people didn't want to upgrade some parts of their systems.
One could pick up less than $60 in parts and accomplish what most of these devices out there are already doing. If all I was looking for was backup camera capability, I would go on ebay and order a composite to VGA switch ($15). Then I would add a single diode in there to act as a switch for the reverse signal coming from the shifter. That's it. That is all there is to it. For another video source, a simple video switch box for less than $10 would handle that.
To do mirroring, one would just need an HDMI to VGA converter (<$10) and a miracast receiver (about $16 to $30).
But these units are selling for $200 to $500. Again the RGBs format used in our displays is nothing magical or proprietary. My point is that all of this stuff has existed in the consumer market for years and is dirt cheap. I just can't convince myself to part with what they are asking for this. If someone had a fully integrated system, I would be much more willing to spend the money versus doing the work to build it myself. I guess this is one of those drawbacks of being an electrical engineer.
Rant done.
I am hoping some of the major components of my system will arrive today so I can get started on this again. I am chomping at the bit. I finally just put the car back together because I was getting sick of it looking like it had just been broken into. lol. Amazing how long it takes to get stuff shipped even when you order in the US. And of course, the more critical a part is, the longer it always takes.
Much of what these companies are selling is not the technology, but rather the interface.
For example, as discussed in this thread, the Beatsonic NAV override (input NAV while moving) is basically a $2 SPST switch. The $178 they charge is for the comfort of "plug and play" without any need to cut wires.
Much of what these companies are selling is not the technology, but rather the interface.
For example, as discussed in this thread, the Beatsonic NAV override (input NAV while moving) is basically a $2 SPST switch. The $178 they charge is for the comfort of "plug and play" without any need to cut wires.
Yeah and it is completely understandable not wanting to cut or splice wires. If only we could unriddle those connectors and find the Tyco equivalents. I've been watching eBay for salvage harnesses, personally.
I totally understand for some, they would rather just pay the money. But, at least to me, it isn't just the money, but the fact that there really isn't something that is exactly what you want. There is always something missing and then you need other units to fill that missing piece. And in the end, you still won't get everything.
Even being able to build this stuff myself, I would still spend good money on something already made if it existed. My time is money just like everybody else.
Well, the parts didn't arrive again so this weekend isn't going to be very productive.
The first step I had planned to cover was installing 4G internet in the car. For this, I needed an unlocked (common everywhere but the US apparently) 4G LTE modem that takes my t-mobile SIM. It needed to support the frequencies that T-mobile supports of course. I chose a Huawei E3372s-153 USB stick. This is because Huawei appears to be the most supported by wireless routers.
So that takes care of the 4G modem part, but we still need a router. Being in a car, I need a way for it to turn on and off with the car and automatically do its business with minimal interaction from me. Knowing that means I will probably need to customize it. This means looking for a router that has a USB port, supports 4G modems, and is capable of running OpenWRT. OpenWRT is an opensource router firmware based on linux that is highly customizable. The TP-LINK TL-MR3020 appears to fit the bill.
My plan is hardwire this all together, install it in a weatherproof enclosure and mount it under the center console box with an antenna mounted inside the seat heater control.
The Vensmile computer on its way has just about every feature I will need included. It is a dual core 1.6Ghz Intel Baytrial based system with 32GB of flash storage. That will house the OS and apps while my media will be stored on a 128GB USB drive. It also has bluetooth 4.0 for music streaming and phone integration. Video output is HDMI to match the LCD on the way. It is fanless and comes in an aluminum case designed to reduce heat. Finally, it supports wifi mirroring and Airplay compatibility.
Oh, and it contains a battery which will keep it powered during cranking and allowing safe shutdown. It should also be able to hold the computer in suspend mode for several days for fast boot up and remote wakeup for when I want to access it from inside the house.
I don't expect the LCD for a while since it is coming from China, but I was hoping to start setting up the PC today. It claimed it was arriving today, but then it sat there moving around one state for 4 days! So I was at least hoping to get the internet installed in there this weekend, but I didn't get the 4G modem yet, either. Possibly Monday.
There probably won't be much updating until next weekend, unfortunately.
My first attempt at vinyl wrapping some interior trim. Certainly not acceptable enough to put in there, but I was surprised it came out as well as it did on my first try. Also dealing with a migraine this morning, so I was a bit impatient. That homelink icon is probably going to be the hardest part to get right.
If I can get the hang of this, I am planning to do the shifter cover, door controls, and the map light. I am also considering doing the stereo faceplate.
What do you guys think?
This is 3M 1080 film. I think it looks a little too flat and almost "painted." But it does look a little better up close than it does on camera.
Some things I learned:
1. Keep some rubbing alcohol around and dip your fingers in it ocassionally. Even the slightest bit of oil will ruin the adhesive if you touch it
2. Use a scalpel with a brand new fresh blade or you will tear the film rather than cut it cleanly
3. Use toothpicks, dental tools, tongue depressors, etc.. to shape it. I used a dental pick to push through those microphone holes which came out pretty nicely, IMO
4. Be careful not to use too much heat to soften the vinyl, it will burn a hole through the vinyl quickly. A hair dryer would probably be perfect.
5. For sharp corners, cut a slit and for big rounded corners make several cuts trying not to cut far enough that the seam will show. Stretch and fold the fins one at a time.
6. When you cut out larger holes, give yourself plenty of film leftover. Probably making an X in the film and then trimming off the extra would work the best.
7. Use a very sharp and tiny pin to puncture any air bubbles. Then hit that spot with the heat and push out the air
8. Oh, and clean the surface very thoroughly. If you think it is clean, clean it one more time! The more you rub plastic, the more dust will come flying out the air and cling to it.
Once I finally do get enough of the parts in to really get moving on these mods, I think I will be starting separate, appropriately named threads for each mod so others can find them easier. We are on 5 pages already with this thread and I have barely even gotten started.
I arrived home today to find a stack of packages waiting for me. I don't have everything yet, but enough to get started. The key component being the computer which did arrive. First thing out of the box is to upgrade it to Windows 10 so I will have the Microsoft Cortana personal assistant. This will give me a pretty powerful voice control interface which will help reduce the number of interactions I need to make with the screen.
I like the Windows metro interface for a CarPC and am going to attempt to use that instead of a dedicated front-end. The main reason that I like Metro is because I can set it up to give me several pieces of information in one glance from various apps. Chances are that I will be programming some of my own metro apps and metro interfaces to other apps. I have never programmed for metro before, so it should be an interesting experience.
Of course, being the work week now, I am only going to have limited time to work on anything until the weekend.
Posts in this thread should start dwindling unless I have something generic to share. Watch for individual threads for the upcoming mods. Except for the main PC mod, I won't be starting them until I have completed a mod so that I can give instructions for others to follow along in one post instead of spread all over.
As always, I appreciate feedback and suggestions. I can't think of everything.
The cup holders suck in my SC430. Elaborate and expensive. I replaced mine because one of them were broken when I bought the car. I did get a good deal at $50 for the whole console piece. So, I installed it and attempted to carry my energy drink in on my commute to work. As soon as I took off, the can went flying. Useless!
So, I have been mulling ideas over in my head about what to do about it. I need just one cupholder really and I really need a good spot to set my cell phone. So, I mocked something up of what I have been thinking about. I still have a bunch of measurements to take before I could actually build it, but here's what I was thinking:
Simple. Provides one recess for holding a standard 16oz soda and a platform for a cell phone. With that platform, I could install a Qi wireless charger which I use at home. Just set the phone on it and it charges while I am driving. The cell phone is in a decent spot to quickly glance at it if needed.
My main problem is that the shape of the opening in the cupholder just barely fits a can of soda, so I will likely have to get rid of the ring around the holder. I have two cell phones, and Iphone 5 and a Blu Studio. The iphone is pretty slim, but the Blu Studio is a bit wide. So I will need to open up the holder a little. I may just use those sticky pads and have no sides to it.
With the original cupholder, not only does it not hold cans well, it feels like it is in the way of the shifter when it is open.
This is a project that will wait a while, I think. But bringing it up now to get some opinions or suggestions.
If you want an inexpensive $5 alternative for a phone holder, I highly recommend this one.
It provides a more heads up display if you happen to be using the phone GPS or adjusting the music selection...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/271949993578?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
I was just looking at that exact one the other day. I picked up one of the magnetic ball mount holders, but there just wasn't any good place to put it since the dash is so compact. The vent on the drivers side of the nav unit was just about perfect, though.
Does it hold the phone well when you are poking at it?
Of course, still doesn't solve the issue of crappy cupholders.
I really like what you are designing with your 3D printer. The cup holder is a design flaw in our cars, as everyone knows!
I place the magnet in the vent, left of the nav screen. I place the metal plate toward the bottom of the phone which provides better stability when I press the home button (iPhone 5s). It fits well but not perfect. I have a good view of the screen while driving...it also keeps the power cable out of the way, the cord drops to the floor on the left side of the console.
I have them in all of my cars now...and it works with most phones
BTW, that is the eBay vendor I used, no issues.
With that platform, I could install a Qi wireless charger which I use at home. Just set the phone on it and it charges while I am driving.
I have a inductive wireless charger and keep my phone in the car whenever I am not at work (unusual, I know). I rigged a timer circuit (ELK-960 Delay Timer Module), so that it continues to charge the phone for three hours after I turn off the car.
If you come up with a cup holder, you will achieve legendary status. Most longtime owners of the SC reflexively reach for the cup whenever starting/stopping/turning quickly.
09-24-15, 12:27 PM
