The RGB dash project

[Ivan141]

Decided it would be better to post electronics related crap in a separate thread so here goes.
Ran my first test with RGB led's installed, decided it will need to be done a different way if this is ever going to fly.. Aaaaanyway:

Red


Yellow


Green


Aqua


Blue


Purple(-ish)


White


Everything is fully MCU controllable, but I'm going to start work on an SMD version with tailor made PCB's that can be mounted inside the cluster.
Hopefully I can get the needles to light up a separate color without wrecking half the innards.[/img]

[ae86_ladd]

that is cool. will you be selling a kit when you have finnished

[Ivan141]

I'll certainly consider it since there is enough cost involved with making PCB's that would be nice to recuperate a bit.

Only thing is that I haven't figured out what else I want to integrate into the microcontroller while I'm at it.
I have code for accelerometer reading, real time clock and GPS, which I would love to use in some remotely usefull way, but not everything would be in it's correct place inside the cluster unit.

Probably best thing to do is to bet on a low end MCU for the cluster control containing everything needed to control lighting, and then make an interface so it can communicate with another data logging board should I ever get bored again.

Just to spit out some ideas I had for this:

-Block or remove needle lightguides and place ring of rgb led's for controllable needle light color. (needle showing redline / shiftpoints).

-Glue in new dividing walls around oil pressure and fuel gauges, place smd rgb led's in there for separately controllable lighting of gauges (warning color on low pressure/low fuel?).

-Replace dash clock with RGB LCD screen, need to figure out if these can be made to fit somehow. This is useless without a data logging board to spit some data to it.

-Make slave unit's for other dash lighting (heater controls).

-USB programmability (maybe dabble with an Android app), since most control buttons look out of place in an 80's interior.

If I manage to finish just a few of these I'll be happy.

[banpei]

Very cool mod!
Would this also be usable inside an (almost) similar Carina cluster?

[Ivan141]

It depends, I rather doubt any PCB's for an ae86 dash (if I can teach myself the skillset necessary to pull them off) would fit another dash easily since there is bugger all space inside these clusters.
Having seen some other project where 2 pcb's could easily be installed inside a cluster I thought it shouldn't be to difficult, but yesterday's mockup session showed I would have to make at least 3 small oddly shaped boards, with specific length standoffs in strategic positions to keep them roughly at the same height.

Separate lighting for the needle's is almost out of the question given the space constraints imposed by the housing. There is maybe 2mm of space between the dial faces and the top of the tacho and speedo drives that is usually occupied by acrylic lightguides which bring light from the bulbs to the needles. I might be able to cram in some especially small smd led's around the needle shafts if I ditch the lightguides, but this will probably 'bleed' a lot of light out to the dial faces. I am going to try to get it done, since the original lightguides get in the way of the pcb's I'm planning for the main backlighting.

[banpei]

Well the AA63 cluster is almost similar in size and shape as the AE86 one. We could compare them if anyone got a spare cluser.
There is one big difference though: the AA63 cluster is RHD.

[Ivan141]

I've been busy creating a first draft layout for the first of the 3 (!) main PCB's that will be going into the dash for this project.

It's my first time making a PCB layout and working in Eagle CAD, but I do at least know what I am doing since I have an electronics background.



This should give a good impression of the complexity of taking what started as a simple thing to the extreme. I still have my doubts it would fit in anything other than an ae86 dash without a redesign. This board has almost 40 via's (connection jumps from top to bottom layer) to make connecting all the led's possible. When it's done I will be able to control every single led on this board separately. Think of the possibilities!

There are 2 more big boards to tackle (mid section and speedo section).
The bigger of these 2 will be outfitted with a small microcontroller to run the software on.
After that I need to come up with something for the needle lighting (there is not much room to cram led's under the needles so the led's will have to be tiny, I've ordered some 2 by 3mm ones for trial fitment.

[banpei]

I see you point.
So that leaves me no option than to use an AE86 dash if I want this.

[robokill]

hey Ivan you can ask Ron for help. He builds boards I believe. Looking good.

[Aram]

Awesome Ivan!
If you want some help with this let me know!