Arduino Head-up Display combined with InCar PC running Raspberry PI

Projects General Guidance
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Ohoy there!

I've been having thoughts about this project since I first heard of Arduino so I decided to start a thread here to gather some information. The project is still in a very early phase and isn't expected to be finished anytime soon.

The car in question is a BMW 3-series E36 -97 Eurospec and therefore won't be using the OBD2 protocol. Instead I will investigate what data can be live feeded from the 20 pin connector under the bonnet. Otherwise I will get my speedometer readout from the cable going from instrument cluster to the OBC and the RPM signal will be taken between the sensor and instrument cluster.

So far I've successfully created a small prototype of my headup display using 3x 7-segment displays along with a multicolored LED Bar Graph. They currently run on a modified test code written for the MAX7219 led driver IC controlling the LED's.

I will also build an InCar PC using a Raspberry PI I've ordered that is expected to arrive during the summer or early fall. I have no clue how it will initially handle with the Arduino but I have faith in the community and would be surprised if they won't be compatible very soon after the Raspberry PI hit the public. The computer is supposed to work as a media center for mainly music as well as simple Internet browsing. I would also like it to be a platform for the Arduino and to be able to code a graphical interface showing simple onboard telemetry.

For examble I believe it's quite simple to build a G-force sensor. Maybe be able to get some kind of data from the steering to be displayed along with speed, RPM and throttle/brake pedal level. Since the Raspberry PI will be in charge of the music and get speedometer input from the Arduino I might be able to automatically adjust volume according to speed.

Another feature I'd like to add is using the Melexis MLX90614 IR Thermometer to measure tire temperature and presenting it on the PC.

Is there any obvious flaws in my plan?
Any hardware/software solutions I can use like for example the already existing library for MAX7219?
Any suggestions to cool features I can add to my project?

Ow yeah, I'm currently running a Arduino Uno but I will of course upgrade if needed.

Thanks for taking interest in my project XD

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One of my previous cars was notorious for having the instruments reflecting in the windscreen and I can tell you it was blinking annoying - I suspect you might find a proper 'heads up' display equally irritating once the novelty wore off.

I can't imagine any conceivable reason for wanting to have your pedal and steering inputs displayed on the windscreen. You already know what you're doing with the controls - or if you don't, I can't imagine how you could drive safely. Candidates that are more useful would be the type of information already displayed on the dashboard, especially anything you find yourself looking for regularly. (In my case that means the speedo on the road, and the rev counter on the track. And a big red 'CAUTION' light if there's any problem with the temps and pressures.) The rest of it? That's just a distraction.

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PeterH:
One of my previous cars was notorious for having the instruments reflecting in the windscreen and I can tell you it was blinking annoying - I suspect you might find a proper 'heads up' display equally irritating once the novelty wore off.

I can't imagine any conceivable reason for wanting to have your pedal and steering inputs displayed on the windscreen. You already know what you're doing with the controls - or if you don't, I can't imagine how you could drive safely. Candidates that are more useful would be the type of information already displayed on the dashboard, especially anything you find yourself looking for regularly. (In my case that means the speedo on the road, and the rev counter on the track. And a big red 'CAUTION' light if there's any problem with the temps and pressures.) The rest of it? That's just a distraction.

The head-up only shows speed with 7-segments and a RPM bar. The PC will use a normal screen mounted in the center console and pedal inputs would only be used for recording telemetry data. Sorry for not making that clear :slight_smile: