Sorry if this has already been asked & answered, but...

Does anyone know what type of interface the navi touch screen uses? Is it a simple RS-232 or something considerably more complex?

I'm trying to put a pc in my CL-S & wanted to see if it's possible to use the Navi Screen as the input device.

 

Ahh qkli, something that I have researched myself as well. Well, I might as well answer your question before I give you the bad news. The device uses a 2 wire (unidirectional on each wire) signal from the navi to the brain. It is I BELIEVE a proprietary standard. Now, for the bad news - there are only 60 touch points on the screen total. If you didnt know, the screen is NOT resistive matrix like a common touchscreen computer or PDA but instead a series of 10 lasers on the top and 6 on the side. Position is computed by which X axis and Y axis laser you are blocking at the same time.

AdamR

 

Out of curiosity, what would you do with your PC in the car?

AdamR

 

I have a pc in my 2001 honda accord. I use it to play games, watch dvd's, and most importantly for music. I have 20,000+ mp3's stored on it that I run through my system. And if someone is ridding with me and I want to copy a cd they have I just pop it in and connect with my wireless connection and rip it.

 

yeah, they are great. I currently have 2 laptops in my CL and I love it! I get wireless internet, DVD, email, whatever in the car.

AdamR

 

Thanks for the info AdamR! That kinda SUCKS! Oh, well, might end up mounting a touchpad inside a front cup-holder, under the "folding doors". As far as the reason why, it's great for games, music, video (DVD & mpeg). Wireless Internet? Controlling my house (x-10) as I pull in the garage? MANY possibilities!

 

yeah I use one of my laptops to control the house too.... cool stuff.... also I sync my mp3's with the computer upstairs when the car is starting in the morning.

AdamR

 

Do you know if the Navi LCD's RGB signal is compatible w/ standard VGA? After looking at the wiring (posted by TypeSDragoon) it seems that they might be. Any idea?

 

warrencm,

I have been trying to setup my car with that exact setup. HAving a PC in my car for mp3s, games, dvds... would you be able to share any more info with me? Like how to start?

Thanks, bsomm22

 

I'm currently experimenting w/ connecting a PC VGA out to the Navi Screen... There are a few basic differences between the VGA and what appears to be RGBS signal used by the screen.

1. VGA is an RGBHV signal - converting that to RGBS is farly simple, all you'll need is a few XOR gates, couple of transistors and a few resistors. I'll keep everyone posted on wether or not that works

2. I'm not sure what the refresh rate of the screen is... I believe it's in the 15Hz range, while the PC produces 31.7 or 37.1 Hz in DOS and 58+ Hz in windows. So you'd most likely need a line doubler / divider to comensate for that. There are a few converters out there that can be bough off of ebay for under $50 that might do the trick, they're the Extron RGB series adapters. However, I still haven't tested that for sure, although theoretically they might be able to do the job...