Cabling

Computer Power Wire:

To power the computer, I ran 10 gauge wire direct to the battery. To prevent fires and other mishaps an inline fuse holder was added, near the battery. A relay was used to switch the computer on and off with the vehicle's ignition. Below is a basic wiring diagram, which assumes that one power supply is being used.

[Wiring Diagram - Power]
Since I'm using two power supplies the wiring was a bit more complex. Additional relays were used to switch between the two power supplies.

Turn-on wire:

This wire was hooked to "accessory" in the car's fusebox. The wire doesn't need to be as heavy as the main power wire, because it's only used to trip the relay coil. This coil consumes a small amount of current. I used 18 gauge wire for this.

[Wiring Diagram - Serial] LCD Serial Cable:

A standard cable serial cable would work, but to save money I chose to build my own instead. The Matrix Orbital display only requires three conductors: 2 data lines, and a ground.

LCD Power Cable:

I used the computer's power supply to provide a clean source of 5 volts to the LCD. A pair of 18 gauge wires were used for this: one for +5, the other for the ground. Don't ground the LCD to the vehicle, or you'll risk frying the LCD display.

[Wiring Diagram - Joystick] Joystick Extension Cable:

The following extension cable will work for the Gravis Gamepad Pro if you're using a single controller in GrIP mode. Pin 1 supplies +5V. Pin 4 is a ground. Pins 2 and 7 are for 'button 1' and 'button 2'.

Note: When in GrIP mode the Gamepad Pro does not use the X&Y axis on the gameport.


Audio Cable:

For the audio connection to the front of the car, a pre-made RCA patchcable was used. Don't fall for the "$50 cable hype." As long as it has good shielding and is of sufficient length, it'll work fine.


Last Update: 12-09-2006