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EricFitchett edited this page Dec 19, 2012 · 5 revisions

car-data-logger strives to be a complete data logging and analysis toolkit for use on the track.

The goal is to fulfill everything described here and more, with the following benefits:

  • very cheap (my total cost about US$110 - compare to US$1,000 or more)
  • cross-platform
  • Non-invasive / easy to install
  • modular and extensible - build it one piece at a time, and split the hardware cost over time (or leave off parts or reuse hardware you already have to save more money!)
  • open - make it work how you want

My setup is as follows:

  • US$29.95 ElmScan 5 Compact
    • Connects laptop to car to log many parameters
    • Parameters found on my car (US 2004 Mazda RX-8):
      • Speed (60 times per second)
      • RPM (60 times per second)
      • Steering wheel angle (100 times per second)
      • Accelerator pedal % (60 times per second)
      • Brake pedal (50 times per second)
      • Clutch pedal (60 times per second)
      • Hand brake (50 times per second)
      • Engine coolant temp (10 times per second)
      • Intake air temp (10 times per second)
      • Tire pressure (all four tires individually, 10 times per second)
      • Wheel speeds (all four wheels individually, 50 times per second)
  • US$45.55 3-axis accelerometer and Arduino Uno, shipped
    • Allows reading lateral and longitudinal Gs 50 times per second. Useful for knowing how well you're utilizing your tires' grip.
  • US$35.00 USB Serial GPS (I don't have this exact GPS)
    • Associate all the other data recorded with where you are on the track.
    • A high sample rate GPS would be best (4+ Hz), such as this one for $37.94
  • Free: Reusing my digital camera, which records 720p video. May opt to get one of these instead.
  • Free: Reusing my existing laptop to record and analyze the data.

Worst case, even if you have to buy a new camera and (low-end) laptop, it's still cheaper than a commercial system. Plus, you have much more control - and likely many more data parameters!

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