Carputer


Nov 19, 2008, my carputer finally arrived! Here are some pics:

	This is the CPU which is about the same size as a regular car stereo amplifier. It has dual gigabit ethernet LAN connections, two serial ports (for OBD2), built-in wireless LAN, 4 USB ports, DVI and VGA output and of course the audio output.
	This is touch screen monitor I chose for the unit. It is only 7 inches wide and can be mounted on the dashboard or headrest of any car.
	The first thing I did was open the casing to see what's underneath the hood. The motherboard is a Jetway J9F2 Mini ITX motherboard with core2 duo processors, 2 GB RAM and a 120 GB Toshiba lapop hardrive.
	The critical component is the add-on board you see above the harddrive. It is called an M2ATX power supply. Basically, it converts 12v input (from the car's battery) into a standard 24 pin power connector for the motherboard. It has a lot of other important features such as delayed shutdown and bootup interaction with the cars ignition. It also monitors your car battery voltage levels, preventing deep discharge situations by automatically shutting down (using a built-in shutdown controller) until battery levels reach safe levels again.
	Got a few extra peripherals: an external DVD for Linux installation, a bluetooth enabled OBD2 connector (for the car's ECU), and a GPS receiver. Hopefully, installing my Globe Visibility card will allow me to track where my car is in real time. The OBD2 will give me feedback on how my driver treats the car. Peak RPM, speed and sudden braking can be logged into the carputer to make sure the car is being driven properly. Damn, talk about Big Brother.
	During the installation process, I managed to connect the carputer to my desktop's ATX power supply. It would be extremely inconvnient to install Linux with the carputer hooked up to my car. Just need to decide which Linux Distro to use.
	Hoping to have the carputer installed in my daily driver within the next two weeks.