Ok...

I've found a cheap USB data logger that allows custom programming with VB - which I'm pretty darn handy with. I bought one, and have already aquired data from the engine sensors with it....

My plan at the moment will be to:
1. Allow a "dash" display mode, to show tach, speed, and other crucial info.
2. Techy mode, EGT (you supply it) and other non-standard sensors while not only displaying the information it will be dumping it to the hard drive for later review.
3. "Trigger" based logging - IE you press the clutch petal down at a drag strip, hit a button on the laptop, and it will record the instant the clutch pedal comes up (using the factory switch thats already there)
4. Customization - if you have an EGT, different MAF, injectors, whatever, all you have to do is change a variable to get the information to display correctly
5. Full Screen mode - for crazy customizer types, replace the instrument panel with an LCD screen showing any and everything you want.
6. Custom "triggers" - if your EGT gets to hot, or something else hits a custom value you can have the screen flash red/make a sound whatever to warn you.

For now this will only be for SE-Rs, by leaving every sensor open to calibration via a file, I'm sure someone can easily adopt this to a GA16, 300z, whatever...

I'm not looking to get rich here, you can buy the logger for about $120 and I'm thinking for my software/seat time to develop all this maybe selling right at $200 - at that price how many might be interested? I don't wanna waist my time if no one is interested...

Thanks - and please any ideas/feedback would be greatly appreciated!!!!!

To answer a few questions I think people will ask:
1. You will have to interface at the sensors or the ECU wiring harness, it will not plug into the consult plug. I will be making color coded wiring harnesses though.
2. Sorry Greg - PC only :-P, anything that will support usb (98, 2k, winxp). It will not record data on its own, so the laptop/pc will HAVE to be in-car during logging.
3. When will it be ready? - I'm guessing basic features will be done in a week-two weeks - depends how crazy work is for a while. More advanced stuff will be a month-two months off, but I'd provide free updates
4. Wild custom stuff - email me and I'll let u know what I could do to help.

Thanks guys

Chris

Chris--

Despite your geek-ishly snide "PC only" comment, I'm still interested in this. I could score a 'beater' PC laptop cheaply, I'm sure.

We'll talk more about this via AIM. Me likey.

Sounds pretty cool, but what does it replace? There are S-AFC, Greddy e-manage units out there that do similar stuff and then manipulate the signal going to the ECU. Will this just let us see where a wideband O2 or a EGT gauge is reading and record it so we can adjust the ecu with something else? Just wonderin man. SOUnds like a pretty cool idea.

Brent

It can display in real time ANY sensor (factory or something you add on) + record it to a data file (text, spreadsheet, database whatever).

I'd see it usefull for drag people pushing the limit - you can view all your engine sensors after a run, determine how hot the car was running, wether you need to adjust anything etc....

Just throwing out ideas....

Chris

free bump

Would this be like something the DSM guys use? I knoe they have dataloggers that run through palm OS.

Imight be interested but i would have to adopt it to run in my turbo Z. Just to get things straight this isn't a complete stand alone, correct? It is more of a fuel controller?

This does not allow you to modify any of the stock programming. It is for datalogging only. I think there will be a driver out soon that will allow you to use a PDA.

http://www.pocketlogger.com/

wow cool link...

Guess no one will be interested then.... Orginally this started out as a project for my uncle's hot rod - LCD to display engine data instaed of traditional gauge cluster... anyways... thanks for the link!

Chris

Originally posted by MauiBlueGride
Guess no one will be interested then.

Chris, you're not seeing where your proposed logger would fill a nice gap, IMHO. The Pocketlogger is only for OBD-2 cars. Those old guys around here with B13s (OBD-1) would *really* go for something like this. OBD-1 was unique to the car manufacturer (from my understanding), so there's no 'universal' OBD-1 logger. Yours bypasses this by tapping into the ECU wiring, if I understand correctly.

Build it, test it (you can use either of my B13s if you'd like), and maybe they will come after it. ;)