[ale] semi ot GOT ODB II Android working here's how - was anyone using obd ii automotive diagnostics
Ron Frazier (ALE)
atllinuxenthinfo at techstarship.com
Tue May 1 00:13:05 EDT 2012
Hi Neal, and others,
I finally got my Bluetooth OBD scanner, and have been having a ball
playing with it. I'm going to share my experience with everyone.
Regarding distractions, I agree with you, so let's get the warnings out
of the way.
Warning - Do not try this, as it can kill you! OK, some of you will try
it anyway. I'll show you how.
Actually, really, seriously, you NEED to heed the following.
Warning - The best way to use this application is to have someone else
drive and you tinker with the phone / tablet (henceforth referred to as
tablet).
Warning - Preset the gauges you want on the screen before you start driving.
Warning - If you have the tablet in your view, make sure it is securely
mounted.
Warning - Do not touch the tablet while the car is moving. If you do
touch the tablet, do it while the car is stopped and will remain stopped
long enough for you to finish what you're doing.
Warning - If you look over at the tablet, do so for only a second or so
when not near cars or people or animals or inanimate objects.
This thing has an almost magnetic pull on your hand to tap the screen to
do things. Fight it. I went out planning to follow these rules from
the start. I made a tiny, short, exception, looked at and touched the
screen for the briefest period of time, and ended up getting annoyingly
close to someone's rear bumper. Thankfully, his car and mine never touched.
Before you ask, I did capture the full instrument panel screen shots
while driving at very slow speed in my neighborhood with nobody around.
Other than that, I secured the thing on my dash to my GPS mounting
bracket, and let it be.
Regarding clearing check engine lights, etc. If you clear a fault like
that, it takes about 100 miles for the car's computer to complete it's
cycle and declare that it's happy. Prior to that time, you cannot pass
emissions, for example. If the fault stays gone, then you could pass
the emissions test. If the fault indication returns, you'll probably
just have to fix the problem to pass the emissions test.
OK, enough of that. I totally love this product. It is great fun, and
very informative. I'm going to share my experience here in case anyone
else want to try it. I now have two new virtual instrument clusters
that I can display on my tablet, one with 15 items, and one with 19 items.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/ODB12%20Rons%20new%20gauges.jpg
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/ODB13%20Rons%20new%20gauges%20pg2.jpg
Here's what you need to make this work:
1) Android phone / tablet with Android 1.5 (I think) or above,
Bluetooth, GPS, and wifi
2) The Torque Pro Android application to read the car's Engine Control
Computer. I think there's a free version with ads. I got the Pro
version for, get this, $ 5, in order to support the developer and
eliminate any possible ads. There may be other programs to do this too.
3) A Bluetooth OBD II adapter which plugs into your car's diagnostic
port. I think the application can use wifi or USB adapters, but haven't
tried this.
Here's the Bluetooth adapter that I purchased. I cannot speak to
longevity, but, so far, it's working fine. It was $ 24 with free
shipping. It's dimensions are about 3" x 2" x 1", and it plugs into the
port under the dash near your feet. In my case, the adapter continues
to draw power even after you remove the ignition key. You might not
want it to stay plugged in when you're away. Also, it could potentially
allow someone else to link to your car's computer if they're close by.
I have to study up on bluetooth security. I've confirmed that my tablet
can read the car when I'm 30' away from it. This adapter came with
software to run on the PC. I haven't tried that yet.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006MPZ9VC/ -
BAFX Products (TM) - Bluetooth OBD2 scan tool - For check engine light
and other diagnostics - Android compatible
Here's how to get all the pieces working. By the way, I'm sorry some of
the photographs I'm showing are fuzzy. My camera really didn't like to
focus on the tablet screen.
Buy Torque Pro from the Google Play Market (or try the free one),
download it, and install it on your Android device.
Get a Bluetooth OBD II adapter. Some work well. Some don't. Some work
with some cars and not others. Some units may work slightly
differently. All I know is that this adapter is working with my 2002
Toyota Camry and my wife's 2007 Hyundai Sonata. Plug the adapter into
the port under the car's dash near your feet. Make sure it's facing to
match the keyed connector. On my Toyota, it's label toward the driver.
On my wife's Hyundai, it's label away from the driver. Don't hit it
with your feet. I haven't tried reading / clearing any fault codes yet.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/OBD01%20-%20adapter%20under%20dash.JPG
Turn the car's ignition switch to the accessory position but don't start
the car. The power light on the adapter should come on if it's not
already on.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/OBD02%20-%20adapter%20with%20power%20on.JPG
Go to the bluetooth setup screen on your tablet under settings and tap
search for devices. This is Android 4, Ice Cream Sandwich. Other
versions may work differently.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/OBD03%20-%20Bluetooth%20setup.JPG
This particular device shows up as CBT. Tap it to pair with it. Based
on my reading, some Android devices may say paired but not connected
when done. This is OK.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/OBD04%20CBT%20bluetooth%20device.JPG
Enter the pairing code for the device. This one is 1234. Based on my
reading, other adapters may be different and some don't provide this
data in the documentation. Read the reviews on Amazon for the product
you're interested in to find out what other users did.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/OBD05%20enter%20pairing%20code.JPG
Next, start up the Torque Pro program. Here is it's home screen. Once
you're talking to your car, this acceleration gauge changes to engine RPM.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/OBD06%20Torque%20home%20screen.JPG
Be sure to experiment with the menu button from different screens as you
will get different results. Tap the menu button from the main screen to
get to the preferences page.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/OBD07%20Torque%20preferences.JPG
From here, tap ODB2 Adapter Settings.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/OBD08%20OBD2%20Adapter%20settings.JPG
From here, tap Choose bluetooth device.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/OBD09%20Choose%20Bluetooth%20device.JPG
On this page, tap the CBT (or whatever) device that you paired with before.
Now, you can back out of the menus. After the system starts
communicating with your car, the other lights on the adapter should
start flashing and the gauge on the home screen should change to engine RPM.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/ODB10%20Adapter%20communicating.JPG
This picture shows one of the multiple dashboard screens of Torque Pro.
Long tap an empty space to get a menu to add things. Long tap an object
to get a menu to move, delete, and change objects.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/ODB11%20Torque%20default%20gauges.JPG
Here are some other menu settings you'll probably want to set.
On the ODB adapter settings page:
Auto bluetooth on off - unchecked (I don't want it trying to find
the car if I'm in a building configuring it.)
Faster communication - checked - if your adapter works that way
By the way, I HATE the way that Android menu screens immediately save
settings and don't have a save and cancel button. If I accidentally
touch something, I have to scan the whole screen to see what was changed
and then touch it again and fix it. This also applies to some of the
menu screens in Linux.
This program was born in some metric speaking country, UK maybe. Tweak
the following on the Units screen to get it to speak in US terms:
Use miles - checked
Use celcius - unchecked (all other use a metric thing lines
unchecked)
Use feet - checked
Use psi - checked
Use gallons - checked
US gallons - checked (rather than imperial gallons)
Use cfm - checked
12 hour clock - checked (or not if you prefer)
If you have multiple cars, and you want to keep separate data for each,
go ahead and set up a separate vehicle profile for each. If you do it
later, you'll erase the gauges you've set up. This will force you to
have to set up a separate set of gauges on each car, but I think it's
worth it to have separate data. To do this, select menu from the main
screen, then vehicle profile, then add or edit as necessary.
When you set up the profile, go down to the bottom and check the
advanced option to allow each car to have a separate dashboard. Save
the profile. Then exit all the way out of the app using the back button
to make sure everything is saved. Do the same when you've finished
configuring the gauges for each car. When you switch cars, switch profiles.
After you get the gauges set for one car and like them, save a screen
shot. On a gauge screen, tap menu, more, save screenshot, then share by
your email client, for example. If you're on a wifi only device, you'll
have to be within range of the wifi to transmit the email message. Use
a printout of this screenshot to configure your other cars.
Here's how I set up my gauges and the tweaks I had to make to them.
Gauge page 1 -
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/ODB12%20Rons%20new%20gauges.jpg
Going left to right top to bottom:
01) Engine RPM - dial meter type gauge - change max range to 6
02) Distance to empty - dial meter - change max range to 500. You must
set the gas tank size and current level for this to work if your ECU
doesn't report fuel level, as mine does not. Update the fuel level when
you fill up. I chose to under report my fuel tank size by 2 gal to
allow for a reserve. This is an estimate only.
03) Coolant temperture - dial meter - change range 100 to 250
04) Fuel flow - dial meter - change max range to 5
05) GPS speed - digital gauge
06) GPS speed difference - digital - Shows variance between GPS and OBD
speed.
07) Fuel remaining estimate - bar graph - This is a calculated, not
measured, value.
08) GPS Sat - digital - Shows the number of GPS satellites in use.
09) GPS Acc - digital - Shows the accuracy of the GPS fix.
10) GPS Bearing - compass - Shows the direction I'm traveling in.
11) GPS Altitude - digital - Shows approximate altitude above sea
level. This is not as accurate as position.
12) Speed - dial meter - set max range to 100 - This is how fast the car
thinks it's going.
13) Volts Ad - dial meter - set range 8 - 16 - This shows voltage at the
OBD II adapter as far as I can tell. In my case, it reads about 1 V
lower than a meter I have plugged into the cigarette lighter.
14) MPG avg - dial meter - set max range 45. - Long term average MPG.
15) MPG - dial meter - set max range 45 - Instantaneous MPG.
Gauge page 2 -
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9879631/ODB13%20Rons%20new%20gauges%20pg2.jpg
Going left to right, top to bottom. Many of the gauges here show the
same data as page 1, but sometimes with different types of gauges. I'll
mention the main differences. Digital gauges don't generally need any
range adjustments.
01 - 05) Trip information gauges
06) Engine on indicator - This is a special type of gauge, but can be
assigned to any sensor. I assigned this to engine RPM, then changed the
title from revs on to engine on.
08) Trip reset BUTTON - Press this to reset the trip data. It ALSO
resets the long term MPG (not just trip MPG) data. I don't think it
should. But it does.
I found out that unplugging the bluetooth adapter or exiting the program
also clears the trip data. I don't think it should do that either, but
it does. So, as it's currently programed, if you want to clear your
trip data, but not your long term MPG, just exit and restart Torque.
Changing the fuel level in your profile will also clear the trip data.
To leave the trip data intact at a fuel stop, leave Torque running,
leave the adapter powered (which may work without your key in), and
don't update your fuel level data in the profile. At this point, your
distance to empty gauge will be wrong.
All the other gauges are variations of the ones on page 1.
Using this program is really a blast. It gives me lots of great
information about my car's operation that I couldn't get otherwise.
And, having the 10" tablet screen to show them is really cool. This
runs the dual 1 GHz cpu's on my tablet to about 50 %, so I don't know
how well it would work on a slower device. I may think about getting a
4" or 5" tablet to permanently display a smaller set of gauges. If
anyone else tries this, please share how it turns out. I'll be glad to
answer anybody's questions.
PS - I was hoping to be able to access the tire pressure sensors on my
wife's Hyundai, but couldn't. I guess I'll have to do that the old
fashioned way. Here's a retrofit tire pressure monitoring kit I'm
considering for my Toyota. It looks really cool.
http://www.amazon.com/Orange-Electronic-P409S-Retrofit-Monitoring/dp/B002DYH586/ref=au_pf_pfg_s?ie=UTF8&Model=Camry|1011&n=15684181&s=automotive&Make=Toyota|76&Year=2002|2002&vehicleType=automotive&newCar=1&carId=001
http://www.orangetpmsusa.com/aftermarket-products/passenger-car-tpms-2/
Stay safe.
Sincerely,
Ron
On 4/29/2012 12:03 AM, Neal Rhodes wrote:
> I have used the Torque product and ODB bluetooth on my Sprinter B3500
> truck on occasion.
>
> However, normally I have a ScanguageII sitting on the ODB port reading
> off turbo pressure, voltage, MPG, and coolant Temp.
>
> On those occasions where it has thrown a check engine light and
> corresponding code, the ODB reported code has been of marginal use.
> It's Mercedes best translation. In those instances it had to go to
> a Chrysler dealer who had the Mercedes computer to obtain the real
> Mercedes codes. Torque didn't do any better than the
> ScanguageII. Both Torque and Scanguage let you reset the Check
> engine to see if it comes back.
>
> Frankly, I think handling an Android device in a moving car is too
> much distraction for the driver.
>
> Neal Rhodes
>
> On Fri, 2012-04-27 at 22:27 -0400, Ron Frazier (ALE) wrote:
>> Hi guys,
>>
>> I have ordered an ELM 327 obd ii bluetooth adapter from amazon and am
>> looking forward to using it and the Torque program on my android
>> tablet to gather diagnostic data and provide virtual instruments on
>> my car. I was wondering if anyone else has experimented with this,
>> and what kind of things you're doing.
>>
>> Also, while I'm sure I'll enjoy using my 10" tablet for this purpose,
>> I'm also sure I don't want to mount that in my windshield
>> permanently. So, I'm wondering if there is a cheap 5" android tablet
>> or a cheap 4" - 5" smartphone I could get on ebay or elsewhere, for
>> example, that I can use to run android programs without a cell phone
>> account. I would want it to run Android 3 or 4, preferably 4. I might
>> consider permanently mounting something like that in the car.
>>
>> Any info you can share on the topic would be appreciated.
>>
>> Sincerely,
>>
>> Ron
--
(To whom it may concern. My email address has changed. Replying to former
messages prior to 03/31/12 with my personal address will go to the wrong
address. Please send all personal correspondence to the new address.)
(PS - If you email me and don't get a quick response, you might want to
call on the phone. I get about 300 emails per day from alternate energy
mailing lists and such. I don't always see new messages very quickly.)
Ron Frazier
770-205-9422 (O) Leave a message.
linuxdude AT techstarship.com
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