digital dash

[boogie]

coming soon...


edit: scroll down

[boogie]

so after almost 3 years this project is finally moving forward. when i made this post i was working with a company (id4 motion) to develop a digital dash. long story short, the company changed hands and my idea was left in the dust but in my mind. somewhat recently i started looking at circular displays and found one in the exact size as the e28 speedo and tach but never pulled the trigger as i didn’t know how i would control 2 small screens without it being complicated.

another discovery i made this month is that the raspberry PI 4 has dual HDMI ports so i had a solution to my problem.

i’ve ordered the 2 displays and have already received the PI.

having 2 displays leaves me with a lot of possibilities (blind spot camera, back up camera, GPS, or even carplay.

needless to say i’m very excited and will update this space as i move forward. thanks for staying tuned

[Tom4444]

Pretty sure I wouldn’t do the digital dash on my car, but really interested to see how this turns out.

Subscribed

[boogie]

so i got the screens in a little early and this is how they fit. still paying around with some ideas but making the center stack a screen isn’t out of the question. hard to take a picture with the glare but i think they look great. once i remove the screen protectors there should be less glare or i can always a layer to help reduce. tomorrow i’ll buy the hdmi cables i need to do some more testing. also i have a friend who’s going to 3d print some brackets to hold them in position.

[gadget73]

Looks pretty cool, would like to see that lit up.

My usual complaint with digital dash conversions is they tend to look very much not-correct. Its the usual "plate of metal with holes and generic gauges" sort of look that is very obviously not stock. I'm not at all opposed to mods but they have to look good.

[boogie]

Looks pretty cool, would like to see that lit up.

My usual complaint with digital dash conversions is they tend to look very much not-correct. Its the usual "plate of metal with holes and generic gauges" sort of look that is very obviously not stock. I'm not at all opposed to mods but they have to look good.

thank you! my original idea was going to be a big screen and make some retro looking gauges but with the screen lit up you’d see the square and it didn’t sit well with me so the idea sat. this would only work if we had OLED displays so it’s not backlit like LCD but that would be expensive. i think this is the only way to make the look stock. will be posting pictures later on of them lit up maybe even a video

[szacsi72]

This is awesome. Can't wait to see the results. Subbed

[tn535i]

This is heresy... just want to be contrary!

Not for me but pretty cool if you like it and can work it out and customize.

[uzayas]

I am very interested in what you are doing.

I did a small Lcd works with Standalone ECU. It was communicating with ECU (vipecV44 similar to Link) by CanBus.
What protocol yours will use? Is it going to work with specific ECU ?

[boogie]

I am very interested in what you are doing.

I did a small Lcd works with Standalone ECU. It was communicating with ECU (vipecV44 similar to Link) by CanBus.
What protocol yours will use? Is it going to work with specific ECU ?

thanks and this is interesting. i’m still working on getting the displays fitted and configuring them but what module are you using to get the can data? the car is currently running maxxecu so i’d like to make it work with that

[boogie]

This is awesome. Can't wait to see the results. Subbed

thank you and working on getting it sorted. since there is some interest in here and i like to see things through, looks like we’re gonna full send this one

[boogie]

here’s a video i took with one of the new screens. during this testing i found the achilles heel of these displays and that is the ribbon strip. too much movement basically takes the screens out so for now i’ll be putting the project on hold as i search for more reliable displays. i’ll upload some pictures soon

https://youtube.com/shorts/CNHQrLmqtlM?feature=share


btw, it’s my youtube channel so feel free to subscribe

[tig]

So cool.

I've been thinking about this idea forever and am eager to collaborate!

[boogie]

So cool.

I've been thinking about this idea forever and am eager to collaborate!

well let it be known that the idea is not dead. over the years, i’ve been spending money and talking to different people that could possibly make it happen. the hardware isn’t as big of an issue as the software is. at this stage of r&d i need someone who can make a program to suit my needs. to begin with i want something plug n play so it will also have to utilize our connectors which i’ve already found a few years back.

after spending more time with this idea here’s what i want from this dash:



1. full factory integration, all lights and warnings will work as they should
2. camera inputs with minimum 1 channel for back up camera with to up to 4 channels (front, back, + left and right cameras when turn signals activate respectively)
3. standalone gps application with full screen capability
4. apple carplay/android auto
5. canbus for standalone ecu integration (megasquirt, maxxecu, haltech…)
6. possibly OLED display since backlit displays have too much illumination and black tends to look dark grey
7. maintain aesthetic

an additional feature i woild like is to be able to replace the OBC and/or check control panel. i probably wouldn’t outright remove them from the car to maintain more of the classic look, but i would like to get their signals into the digital dash to centralize all warnings/information.


also i might need a person or 2 to test things out with me

[Shawn D.]

Thanks for the update!