Custom Car Door Keypad

June 30, 2009 by Zach Banks 25 Comments

carkeypad

[Michael] has a keypad in his previous car’s door and he missed it enough to hack one into his Dodge Caliber. He bought a Ford keypad and mounted it inside his door with some custom electronics. He started with an Arduino nano to receive and authenticate button presses. This then splices into wires in the door that control the door lock. The program has a 5-digit code to unlock the door, but simply pressing 1 twice will lock the doors. He also implemented a lockout feature to prevent people from brute-forcing the combination. Although it isn’t wireless, it’s significantly simpler.

[thanks Michael]

OBD-II Automotive Data Logging

May 12, 2009 by Caleb Kraft 26 Comments

obd2

[Avi Aisenberg] sent us his final project for ece 4760. His team built and OBD-II data interface. Even though OBD-II is an industry standard, each manufacturer has implemented it differently. This is where this project shines. They have built it to be capable of talking to any of them. Not only that, but it has a nice backlit LCD screen for diagnosing issues without having to go back to your computer and downloading the data. If you really don’t need all the bells and whistles, you can make one for roughly $15. They even have an OBD-II app for the iPhone.

Parallel Parking System

January 4, 2009 by Eliot 40 Comments

parking

Autoblog dug up this classic mechanical engineering project from 2006. A team of five University of Toledo students constructed a system to help parallel park a car. First, you drive nose first into the space. Hydraulic rams then lower the drive wheel out of the trunk, raising the rear of the car. The single wheel is also hydraulically driven and moves the car into the space. They have a blog documenting the six week build. Have a look at the demonstration video below.

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Modifying R/C Frequency

December 19, 2008 by Caleb Kraft No comments

rc_mod

Cheap radio controlled toys can provide countless hours of amusement, especially when friends have one too. You can’t always plan ahead enough for everyone to have a different frequency and sometimes, it just isn’t an option anyway. There is a solution, and it isn’t very difficult. [frickelkram] takes us through the process of changing the frequency that the toy runs on. He starts with the simplest way, which involves replacing one piece in the controller and simply adjusting the receiver. He notes that this often fails as the receiver just isn’t built to be adjusted easily. He continues to show how to get it done even if the first method fails.

MINI’s Augmented Reality Ad

December 13, 2008 by Eliot 12 Comments

miniaugmented

We were surprised last month when we saw augmented reality being done completely in flash. It hasn’t taken too long to go mainstream though. MINI has incorporated it into a recent German language magazine ad campaign. The fiduciary marks actually work quite well with MINI’s established ad format. Visit the ad’s URL and hold the magazine up to the webcam and a 3D model of the MINI Cabrio will appear. They have a PDF of the ad that you can print and use if you don’t have the original. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to have cross-platform support.

[via Autoblog]

Genetic Programming

December 8, 2008 by Eliot 46 Comments

monalisa

[Ron Alsing] wanted to try out some genetic programming, so he created a simple test problem: Could you render the Mona Lisa using just 50 semitransparent polygons? The program starts with a random DNA sequence. It then mutates and compares itself to the original image. If the mutation is closer, it becomes the new sequence. The final image he shows looks pretty good after 904,314 iterations.

[prunesquallor] pointed out a genetic algorithm project of his own. It’s a flash program to evolve a car. The car tries to get as far as possible on a set terrain without the passenger circles hitting the ground. The wheel size and positions can change along with the spring length, constant, and damping. A graph tracks the best performance along with the mean. He’s planning on building a version that lets you change the parameters.

[via Waxy]

Teenager Invents Vehicular Antitheft System

July 30, 2008 by Kimberly Lau 31 Comments

We are very inspired by the story of [Morris Mbetsa], an 18-year-old Kenyan who’s invented the “Block & Track”, an antitheft and tracking system for vehicles that’s phone-based. [Mbetsa] has no formal training, but he’s been a lifelong inventor and tinkerer. [Mbetsa] combined voice, DTMF, and SMS text messaging technologies with cellphone based services to allow the owner to control the vehicle’s electrical system remotely. The owner, using his cellphone, can take control of the ignition, and disable it at any time. Other features include the ability to lock the car remotely, and the capability of dialing into the car and listening in on any conversations taking place within the vehicle. [Mbetsa] is currently looking for funding to take his invention to the next level; we’re eager to see what he’ll come up with next.

[via Digg]