If anyone on the list wants one, I will sell them a Pulsar 40 for cost. It is basically PIC 18F8680 microcontroller with large 16x2 LCD for displaying the data. The connections on the rear of the unit two DB25 and has inputs for 8 thermocouple inputs for exhaust gas temperature measurement and/or cylinder head temperature (mainly for air cooled engines). Additionally it has multiple analog inputs, digital inputs, as well as digital outputs. The inductive tachometer pickup I sent in the last email was designed such that you can connect it to the pulsar 40. I also have an adapter circuit for connecting a gasoline engine from negative side of coil.
If anyone wants more detail please contact me off the list and I can provide schematics, source code, etc. Trampas -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Rich Thomas Sent: Friday, November 10, 2006 8:02 PM To: Mercedes Discussion List Subject: Re: [MBZ] Project to pickle your brains with.. OK, I have not done any of this yet, but I am ordering the stuff to do it, so take it for what it is worth. My buddy is programming chips to measure stuff, do stuff, and display stuff, it really is not hard, and uses some fairly simple programming (he uses C, not too hard to learn) and relatively inexpensive stuff to do it with ($50 programmer, chips for a few $$, some cheapo electronic parts). He is a lab researcher, and built a robot thingie to feed his flies, and is building a new one to sort them and cool them and do all kinds of other things to them. It is really cool and really was not much more than some tinkering and some fairly simple programming. You do need to teach yourself, exercise the old gulliver a bit, learn something new for the modern age! He is going to help me, has already shown me some things, I can do it too! You have to buy the programmer for the chips, all the software is free. Here are some links This is the one I am going to buy: http://cgi.ebay.com/USB-Microchip-MPLAB-PIC-ICD2-Debugger-Programmer-ICD-2_W 0QQitemZ270050436515QQihZ017QQcategoryZ50915QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZVie wItem It is a cheaper HK clone of this one, and all the info is here http://www.microchip.com/stellent/idcplg?IdcService=SS_GET_PAGE&nodeId=1406&; dDocName=en010046&part=DV164005 The kits listed on this page are good learning tools. They have some cheaper ones too that you can use to teach yourself what you need to know http://www.microchip.com/stellent/idcplg?IdcService=SS_GET_PAGE&nodeId=2519&; param=en025315&page=wwwPICmicroDemo This place has a lot of good tutorials and manuals and such, available online, and free software too http://www.mikroe.com/en/books They are in Romania or somewhere, so shipping takes a bit longer, but works. Make magazine had a series of articles on some simple PIC programming, they have the Microchip (see above) device described here http://www.makezine.com/blog/archive/2006/08/programming_pic_microcontrolle. html This item (they have some simpler ones as above) would be more than enough to do a prototype, teach yourself all you need to know, then you can build the in-car device with just the sensor and display. A PIC chip (they only cost a few dollars, simple ones like $3 or 4) can be programmed to take signals, do something with that signal, and output something based on that signal. So you get a sensor of some sort that sends a pulse to a pin on the chip, time differences between pulses get computed based on a simple little program, that difference gets turned into an RPM, again based on some simple programming, and that number is sent to a display device of some sort. You have to put the stuff on a little circuit board, not too hard to figure out. There are lots of schematics on how to do things like this, do some googling. This place http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/categories.php sells lots of little gizmos and such, and if you do some web searches there are tons of how-tos out there. This site has a lot too, as well as some programmer kits and chips and such. Have at it! Next we build a controller for the HVAC system!!! Maybe a cruise control? --R R A Bennell wrote: > Very interesting but you will need to tell me more about how to do this. I took some electronics in high school but > that was long long ago and I have not done much of that sort of thing since. What all would I need to have a tach > setup on a 76 115 300D? Based upon what has been suggested in the posts over the past couple of days, one should be > able to come up with a means of triggering some sort of signal from either a crank sensor (magnetic??) or via a > photosensor of some sort. How to then use the signal to produce a reading on a tach is beyond me. I read part of > Roger Brown's article on the photosensor setup on the Rabbit diesel and I understand to some extent what he is > doing. I assume the signal from the crank sensor would be essentially the same? IE - you get an electric pulse of > some sort on every revolution (or more than once depending on the setup) and you use that to feed circuitry of some > sort that permits the tach to read it and tell how many pulses it sees. What would I want for a tach? Roger Brown > is using a small digital tach. I guess the 300D might look more period correct with an analog instrument of some > sort but this is not going to be something that I use for running up to redline between shifts like one might do > with a hotrod Mustang so it really is not critical what it looks like so long as it can be made to work well. > > Randy > > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Trampas > Sent: Friday, November 10, 2006 4:10 PM > To: 'Mercedes Discussion List' > Subject: Re: [MBZ] Project to tickle your brains with.. > > > The inductive pick up schematic is here: > > www.patentranch.com/tempfiles/inductive_schematic.pdf > > If you want me to send you one I can, note that the LM1815 has a maximum > voltage of 12V, thus it should be powered from a regulator. For those of you > wondering it was designed to be an interface board for the small engine > monitor I made, which incidentally I will be releasing as open source as > soon as I get my website redesigned. Also the OBDII device will be open > source as well. > > Overall as mentioned before it is far easier to get the correct parts than > to hack something together. > > Trampas > > > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > On Behalf Of Trampas > Sent: Friday, November 10, 2006 4:57 PM > To: 'Mercedes Discussion List' > Subject: Re: [MBZ] Project to tickle your brains with.. > > I have a small circuit board that will convert a crank sensor (inductive > pickup) to a TTL signal. I also have a device that has an LCD for displaying > the data. > > The problem with the crank sensor is that as I recall it only triggers once > per revolution, I am not sure what the tachometer is looking for but I can > find out as I have a 300SD. > > By the way here are some of the products I have built, www.sterntech.com > > Trampas > > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > On Behalf Of R A Bennell > Sent: Friday, November 10, 2006 3:47 PM > To: Mercedes Discussion List > Subject: Re: [MBZ] Project to tickle your brains with.. > > Yes, I saw the post yesterday with the link to Roger Brown's site. I knew > about him from my travels on the net > relating to old Toyota 4X4s. > The idea of using a crank sensor appeals. I just wondered what else I > needed. > > Randy > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Rich Thomas > Sent: Friday, November 10, 2006 11:37 AM > To: Mercedes Discussion List > Subject: Re: [MBZ] Project to tickle your brains with.. > > > You could do an LED and a light sensor with a white mark on the crank, > of course that would be affected by whatever goop gets splashed up > there, but something to wipe it off as it goes around... > > --R > > R A Bennell wrote: > >> What triggers the crank sensor on most new cars? Is there a magnet >> > inbedded in the crank dampener/balancer/pulley > >> (whatever you wish to call it)? >> IE - If I were to try this route to put a tach in my 76 300D, I assume I >> > would have to attach something to the > >> balancer to trigger the sensor as there would not be anything from the >> > factory. > >> Randy >> >> -----Original Message----- >> >> Given the relatively ready supply of junkyard parts, I can't see any >> reason not to just use them, it's nearly trivial. (As I believe the >> front crank sensor is already there, at least on a lot of cars. Goes >> to the diagnostic socket.) Even if you have to install a factory >> sensor, it has to be easier than flanging up something yourself. >> And running it all over, and designing circuitry. >> >> -- Jim >> >> >> > > > _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ > For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > > _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ > For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > > _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ > For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > > _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ > For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > > _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
