carputers.org

While not necessarily "news" per se, we figured our readers would enjoy knowing that Tom's Hardware has a really good article covering the basics of carputing and how to create your own carputer/carpc. It's an overview style how-to that does a great job covering "the big picture" of creating your own carputer.

In addition, you can find another article by David Strom: How Cars Can Flatten Our World. The article has nothing to do with cars, but we can't blame him for using that title - considering his collaboration on the forthcoming new carputer book "Carpc Hacks" (Damien Stolarz; O'Reilly publishers).

Kontron AG equips their Car-PC CV-Server with the Intel® Pentium® M processor, part of the Intel® Mobile Centrino® technology. The "drivable" computer, which serves as a basis for commercial applications in road and rail vehicles, now comes with the Intel Pentium M 1.4 GHz, or the Pentium III in 400 MHz and 700 MHz versions. Because the CPUs are mounted on interchangeable modules, they will be easy to replace later on with new, higher-performance processors. The performance of the 1.4 GHz Pentium M processor matches that of its 2.4 GHz cousin in the Pentium 4 class - while consuming considerably less energy.

The CV server meets the highest quality standards for use in vehicles. It has e1 approval and, in system tests in accordance with the military Highway Truck Standard, has demonstrated that its electromagnetic compatibility, as well as its shock and vibration resistance, meets all requirements.

HB 3314, up for hearing in the Texas House State Affairs committee on Monday, April 18, 2005, would require the state to filter wireless internet access at highway rest stops. This bill (if passed) will mandate content filtering at every state-provided wireless network on public property in Texas.

IBM has begun to promote a technology suite that could one day let cars solve their own problems.

The Parametric Analysis Center essentially creates an environment where data from a car's electric systems feeds into a central processing unit, called a Telematics Control Unit. The TCU then alerts a driver or a dealer when a potential malfunction--high heat emanating from particular components, a leak in a gasket--has begun, thereby giving them a chance to nip the problem in the bud.

InformationWeek reports that IBM has announced a deal with United Arab Emirates in which it would provide speed tracking devices that will automatically warn violators of traffic laws: "The telematics device will use multiple microprocessors based on IBM's Power Architecture, and will have the capability to monitor the speed of the vehicle and send out a warning if the car surpasses the posted speed limit." GeekCoffee goes on to report that tickets will be issued automatically to violators who ignore the warnings: "If the voice warning is ignored, the system would use a GSM/GPRS link to beam the car's speed, identity and location to the police so that a ticket could be issued.

Last week we finished one of the nicest carputer installs we've done. This Hummer is outfitted with the Mobile Warrior II Intel P3 600Mhz, GPS, TV, Internet, Wireless keyboard and mouse, touch screen, DVD and motorized 23" Plasma TV that folds down.

It will put a tear in any carputer guys eye.

You can see more pictures here.

We have been working on a stable software interface for a carputer for over three years. We have been supplying Limosine companies and custom install shops our systems for the last year. We have had a lot of intrest in our software so we release a demo this week to see if anyone thought it was any good.

You can download a copy here.

I love our software but then again I'm bias. I am really want to see what other people think of it.

If you find a bug post it on the forum and(if possible) we will fix it.
www.12vsystems.com

Just thought I would post a few more pics of a few updates to the case that I built. I was having a problem with heat when I put the lid on (forgot about ventilation when I built the thing). So I picked up a 40mm fan, similar to the one that is on the Proc. and installed it directly adjacent to the Proc. Then I took out my trusty drill and poked a few holes in the other side to facilitate a little cross ventilation in the case. All is well.
Before my recent mod the Proc would hover around 87f without the lid and would shoot well up over a 100 within 3-4 mins. of adding the lid. Now I actually get around 85f without lid and 84f with the lid on.

• Vent
• Inside Vent
• Fan
• Inset Fan
• Fan from Inside

I’m not sure how many horsepower glowing Batman logos add to a car, but I’m sure these Tire Tagz are exactly the sort of thing that will soon be provided with pastel orange Mitsubishi Eclipses right from the factory. Tire Tagz are persistence of vision clips that plug right into your wheel, spinning amber LEDs to create a static image. The company claims they’ll be legal on the roads, since they are the regulation amber color mandated for all side-mounted lights, but I wouldn’t be surprised if you get a few tickets to go along with your stares.

Ron Gremban and Felix Kramer have modified a Toyota Prius so it can be plugged into a wall outlet.

This does not make Toyota happy. The company has spent millions of dollars persuading people that hybrid electric cars like the Prius never need to be plugged in and work just like normal cars. So has Honda, which even ran a commercial that showed a guy wandering around his Civic hybrid fruitlessly searching for a plug.

Videogame developer THQ created two modded Mazda RX8s, and an RX8-based simulator, to promote “Juiced,” its new car racing/customizing sim (download the trailer here). One was outwardly tricked with $10,000 worth of aftermarket cosmetics and the other fitted with an equal value of performance enhancements, mirroring some of the customization features included with the game, which is due out this May (Read its uplifting development saga here).

carPC, or carputer, car computer, is a computer you use inside your car, mainly used for DVD, MP3, GPS, and the internet. it can also be used for more fun things such as FM radio, TV, satellite radio, front end for radar detector, cell phone, OBD-II (showing car speed, engine RPM, temperature, error code etc.), among other stuff.

I’ll talk about the general information about building a carPC in this article.

a carPC can be in pretty much any form. some people use laptop, some people use desktop, while most build one more suitable for a carPC. the issues involve in the project, are display, input, power supply, optical drive, , and audio.

display:
you always need a monitor to see a movie, a GPS map, or a webpage etc. and an LCD screen mounted on dashboard is pretty much what qualifies your computer as a carputer. no one call a laptop a carputer really, but a laptop, with an external LCD on dashboard can be called carputer.

Well, I found CarPuters.org... This means I'll need to sort my carputer out after a couple of years of inactivity. The first incarnation (pun not intended) was LIMP - see here for further information.

Having found that the BMW 3 series that I've just bought has a fair amount of dash space, I'm now on a quest to actually install my touch screen... Watch this space :D

Nehemiah writes "Epiacenter.com just published a review on the brand new VIA Epia SP 13000 mini-itx mainboard.

It's the first VIA Epia board with the CN400 chipset and together with the new epiOS Linux distribution that is announced in the review, it seems to have a very good performance during MPEG2/MPEG4 playback."

New models of the Volkswagen Passat will come fitted with a handset integration system from Nokia that's compatible with GSM phones, the phone maker said Friday.

The system features Bluetooth technology, which will allow subscribers to access the SIM card of a mobile phone in one of three ways: via an external alphanumerical keyboard, steering wheel controls or voice dial. When users get out of the car, they can deactivate the system's receiving mode by pressing a button on the phone, causing the phone to log back on to the mobile network, Nokia said.

The system is compatible with several handsets, including models from other manufacturers, Nokia said. Customers also have the option of getting a phone holder for the car that doubles as a charger.

"For the first time, an automaker is offering a communication solution using the Bluetooth SIM Access Profile that is factory-fitted in the vehicle," Marcus Stahl, general manager at Nokia Automotive, said in a statement.