[badboyscad]

After a about a year loooong wait, i started my scorputer project on aug 1.

Components list:

Processor: intel dual core 1.8ghz
Motherboard: mercury (intel 945 chipset)
RAM: dynet 1gb ddr2
HDD: (not yet finalized), running a Seagate 10gb hdd right now.
Powersupply: M2 ATX 12V DC to DC smps
display: currently running on a NECVOX fd-7569 7inch LCD(non- touch)
cabinet: DELL optiplex gx 100 bed type cabinet (Altered)
inverter: Duracell 12V to 115 V 400watts inverter (intended to power up a normal viewsonic lcd display which will be fitted finally)
intex keyboard and laptop mouse ( will upgrade to wireless keyboard & mouse after the testing phase completes)

The scorputer will be mounted on the rear door of my scorpio, the 7" display on the dashboard and a bigger display will be fitted to the roof. the project is in testing phase now. the necvox 7" lcd has crappy resolution hence im planning to fit a viewsonic desktop LCD(15" or 17") to the roof.

here are some pics (phone pics so please excuse quality):
the dell optiplex bedtype cabinet altered


Struts welded to the cabinet


clamps welded to the back of the cabinet


everything assembled and testing with a 10gb quantum crappy hdd


borrowed a VGA to AV converter from a friend( it had no brand name on it), somebody please suggest a converter with brand name and price


display on the necvox 7", the letters were fully blurred

[senindra]

Originally Posted by badboyscad

The scorputer will be mounted on the rear door of my scorpio,

Badboy do you think the "door" is the best place to put the scorputer ? I dont know how reliable that would be.

[badboyscad]

continued:

i had to remove the OE board that came fitted on the rear door and fit a new one made of plywood because it had to hold the weight of the scorputer. the scorputer weighs 4 kilos.

plywood cut and holes marked


plywood covered with black rexine and styrofoam used for damping


board bolted to the door


test mounting the scorputer



testing the carputer using a CRT monitor


i ll continue to post more as the project progresses.

[dinar]

Wont the main system shack too much? as the end of this vehicle is the part that has the harshest vibrations on bad roads?
I think the system should be placed before the rear axle, may be under the bench.

[bhagathmp]

Hi badboy, great going with the project dude. All the best. keep the updates coming in. will be very useful if you could mention the part by part cost, the fitting cost and any other cost involved so far. Also the place where you are sourcing the items from.

BTW wont the 15"/17" monitor too big to fit inside of the car? did you try how this would fit inside? maybe you can look at some sort of retracting system that would fit the monitor flush on to the roof when not in use.

Originally Posted by dinar

Wont the main system shack too much? as the end of this vehicle is the part that has the harshest vibrations on bad roads?
.

The vibrations could lead to the system shutdown very often (RAM coming out of its slots, HDD cable coming off etc). Any guy who has worked with PCs and laptops would know this. I have this problem very often when users "accidently" trip over their desktops or drop their laptops.

More over the system would need good ventilation too. if you plan to keep the system on for long periods its a good idea to keep the system where it can "breath". You'll have to take into consideration the fan noise as well. some times the noise can be real irritating.

Bugs

[spadival]

Welcome to the Carputer club!! In this case, its SUVputer or Scorputer

Cant you place the PC under the front passenger seat? Otherwise, You will have to run the cables along the length of the vehicle and then pass all of them thru to the rear door. Also, some USB devices dont function properly if they are at the end of long USB cables.

You may want to check if enabling "Cleartype" under display settings on XP will reduce the blurring of letters on the screen.

[razor4077]

Nice project badboy! But I agree with some of the others about the CPU cabinet mounting. There would be a fair amount of bounciness and vibration at the rear of the Scorpio. Hardly ideal for RAM chips, hard drives and the other CPU components. Storage devices in particular are prone to failure in case they are tossed around.

Under a seat (maybe in the 2nd row) would be a good location. Concealing the wires would also be an easier chore in that case.

All the best dude!

[monty9991]

welcome to the carputer club...
i think you might get over heating problem in summers, as the computer wont get any cool air at the back and that might be be hottest place in the scorpio.

[surfatwork]

HI, nice project. my two cents:
You will need to drill some ventilation holes in the door ply board, or your PC is certain to overheat. Is there also any chance of moisture in that location? also try underclocking/undervolting the CPU - that may help in keeping heat down.
I would also recommend a LCD with a VGA input - I remember seeing some in ritchie street, chennai. that will solve the blurry text issue and you wont need a VGA-AV convertor.
and why dont you get a CF card adaptor instead of a normal HDD? that will be much more robust.

[badboyscad]

sorry for not posting so long about the progress. i have no net connection(currently posting from cafe). will update soon

[spadival]

Originally Posted by surfatwork

and why dont you get a CF card adaptor instead of a normal HDD? that will be much more robust.

CF card are bound to fail after some million read/write operations. Which is exactly what happens when you run an OS off the CF card.

PS: All this is second hand gyan from MP3Car.com - Your source for mobile computing solutions! - All Blog Entries

[valhallen.282]

for all the ppl sitting on this thread.
1) please do everyone a favour and get a graphics card. the new versions support full directx 10 which will make am ideal upgrade for using media center from a remote and help you run from a standard rca out. AND still give you dual screen AND take a load off the cpu.
2) you could instead run everything off a usb disk like the seagate 500 gb which comes in at about 3k. or get a 360 gb sata again for 3k if your mb supports it. satas come with much higher dynamic efficiency in the larger sizes and can be lugged around without too much damage.
3) you can buy a touchpad from the market which will serve as a very effective replacement for your mouse. the only problem being it will be fixed. if you have any other system related details look up the most recent carputer thread that came up i have a post there. i'm running this off a phone right now and can't put in much more than this.

[vivekji05]

I doubt that the rear door will be a problem. It will be taken through a number of opening and closing cycles during which it could sent your pc into shut down state as a result of some component coming off. Find some space under the seats and ensure it is not affected by moisture.

A touch pad will be a great idea for the interface...you can mount it at a suitable position near the arm rest or the centre console. But it's the touch screen that will make it look real cool.


As for the letters lacking readability, it is the AV that causes the problem. The resolution of the signal will be low. You can try finding a good monitor with VGA input to solve the problem

[rishin.kalra]

hi

any updates on the Scorputer ?

[rishin.kalra]

guys

can you please let me know about the best position to mount the CPU - Enclosure in Carputer setup, in a Scorpio ?

Can it come under the front seats.

I have the amplifier under the front co driver seat, so no space, about the driver seat, am not sure.

thanks