I love that it has a standard RJ45 ethernet connector.
Running Tesla Model 3's computer on my desk using parts from crashed cars
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Re: Running Tesla Model 3's computer on my desk using parts from crashed cars
#12Earlier quoted context omitted.
> But then I needed to find a brake controller that can work with the higher voltage (14.4v vs the normal 12v) Not understanding this sentence. Most running ICE vehicles product closer to that 14.4 than 12v. I think a standard controller would have worked fine?
you're correct. a '12v ICE' alternator generates up to 14.8-15.2v. Most automotive stuff can operate between 9ish-16ish-v , of course totally depending on the product. of course this is just a modern interpretation. older stuff runs at 6v and some weirdo offbeat cars have a 24v/48v rail sitting around somewhere. Cop cars often had alternators that put out weird voltage ranges for certain equipment, or dual 12v for hi…
Whilst cranking, an ICE car will drop to around 6 volts (then maximum power is extracted according to thevenim's theorem).
That means all computers etc will work at 6v.
Re: Running Tesla Model 3's computer on my desk using parts from crashed cars
#13> Turns out that actual cars don’t have individual cables. Instead they have these big “looms”, which bundle many cables from a nearby area into a single harness. This is the reason why I could not find the individual cable earlier. They simply don’t manufacture it.
I was really surprised to read this at the end of the article -- how could someone be this deep into a project of this depth and not realize this?! Not only because all cars (...er... all vehicles) are wired this way, but also because the documentation they were referencing has plenty of detail to show this... there's even a whole picture of it (and to Tesla's credit they have amazing free docs): https://service.tesla.com/docs/Model3/ServiceManual/2024/en-...
Re: Running Tesla Model 3's computer on my desk using parts from crashed cars
#14I love that it has a standard RJ45 ethernet connector.
I thought I saw an HDMI connector, but maybe I was wrong.
Re: Running Tesla Model 3's computer on my desk using parts from crashed cars
#15It's funny to hear LVDS be described as an "automotive" cable when all of my run-ins with it are for connecting laptop displays to their main-boards! (though that has a very different connector on it, and its a very general term for the signalling protocol from what I remember)
SpaceWire is also just LVDS with an uber-minimal routing protocol. It runs on a lot of satellites.
Re: Running Tesla Model 3's computer on my desk using parts from crashed cars
#16I love that it has a standard RJ45 ethernet connector.
I thought I saw an HDMI connector, but maybe I was wrong.
Ha! Reading this comment made me curious, so I went back and looked at the article and there does seem to be a full sized HDMI connector. I wonder if it is enabled, or just for Tesla internal testing?
Re: Running Tesla Model 3's computer on my desk using parts from crashed cars
#17Fun linguistic quirk: Americans tend to call it a "wiring harness", whereas Brits prefer "loom"
So what do you call the tubing around the wire bundle? That’s what we call “loom”.
Re: Running Tesla Model 3's computer on my desk using parts from crashed cars
#18It's funny to hear LVDS be described as an "automotive" cable when all of my run-ins with it are for connecting laptop displays to their main-boards! (though that has a very different connector on it, and its a very general term for the signalling protocol from what I remember)
Not saying there's anything wrong with your perspective (lots of terms get in muddied waters, it's common and not a problem if everyone is on the same page), but this is what I just found on Wikipedia:
"Early on, the notebook computer and LCD vendors commonly used the term LVDS instead of FPD-Link when referring to their protocol, and the term LVDS has mistakenly become synonymous with Flat Panel Display Link in the video-display engineering vocabulary."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low-voltage_differential_signa...
Re: Running Tesla Model 3's computer on my desk using parts from crashed cars
#19Re: Running Tesla Model 3's computer on my desk using parts from crashed cars
#20Very cool. Over a year and a half ago I installed a towing brake controller in my Tesla Model Y. Found the location of the plug, how to access and the pinout online (confirmed via a voltmeter..) so the car's side felt straight forward. But then I needed to find a brake controller that can work with the higher voltage (14.4v vs the normal 12v). Then built a cable from the brake controller to the connector that plugs i…
>then I needed to find a brake controller that can work with the higher voltage (14.4v vs the normal 12v) Put a voltmeter on the battery terminals of a regular car at 2000rpm and note the voltage. You'd be surpised (the alternator can produce as high as 15V on some cars).
Automotive transients can be wild. I did a bringup with a board that had specified 100+v range specified for transients and finicky quality requirements on the output. The power supplies took up most of the (very large) board.