PiDash Screen Setup

Overview

Setting up an Enhanced LCD screen is a somewhat complex process but we’ve tried to provide instructions to make it easy for anyone. If you prefer, you can purchase a ready-to-install kit that has all components assembled and the software configuration completed.

PiDash installations are recommended for customers who are at least familiar or more experienced with computers and electronics. PiDash kits include additional components and circuit boards that will need to be mounted by the customer. This includes the PiDash computer itself and a bare circuit board that connects the PiDash computer to the screen. If a touchscreen setup is purchased, there is an additional circuit board to control this. Please reach out to OneGauge if you are at all concerned about the complexity or additional work required to mount a PiDash system before you purchase your OneGauge setup.

OneGauge connects directly to the TunerStudio program that is typically run on a Raspberry Pi computer. Raspberry Pi provides a larger variety of screen options since it has HDMI, VGA, and other display ports. It’s important to note that TunerStudio offers a vast array of features like tuning, tables, datalogging, mapping, and more for MegaSquirt and some other aftermarket ECUs, but OneGauge does not utilize these features. When connected to TunerStudio, OneGauge simply provides gauge data and does not use any of the tuning or other advanced features of the software. If you’re concerned about this, please reach out to us before purchase!

One downside to Raspberry Pi the boot time; since TunerStudio requires an actual computer, boot time may be 20- 30 seconds or more. Nick at PiDash has reduced boot time to a minimum, which is about 15-30 seconds. One workaround for boot time is to use a relay to trigger the boot sequence when the vehicle is unlocked, for example, so that the dashboard is ready to go shortly after the vehicle is started. Once it starts up, your dashboard should automatically load and, after connecting to the OneGauge hub through the USB connection, your gauges will be displayed.

TunerStudio can be more easily customized, and there are tutorials and gauge designs on the internet that provide plenty of detail on how to build your own custom dashboard and design your own screens. Below are some tutorial links:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjwnTELkgso
http://tunerstudio.com/index.php/manuals/53-using-tunerstudio-dashboard-designer?format=pdf
If you have trouble with the above link, click in the address bar and hit enter and it should load the page.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/tunerstudiodashboards/
https://tunerstudiodashboards.com

Connecting Pidash to OneGauge

Combining a OneGauge setup with a PiDash kit from PiDashs.com allows you to add a huge variety of screen sizes and shapes to your OneGauge system. Once you have your PiDash or Raspberry Pi set up and ready to use and TunerStudio is installed, follow these instructions to connect it to your OneGauge hub.
• You will need to purchase a TunerStudio registration and activate this registration on your device before you can customize your gauges. Note that TunerStudio will still function with OneGauge without registration, but many features will be limited. You can register here for about $60. Please note that use of on screen buttons/switches (relays) requires the purchase of the TunerStudio Ultra upgrade, which is closer to $120. https://www.efianalytics.com/register/register.jsp?appName=TunerStudioMS
• First, download the OneGauge TunerStudio .INI setup file to your Raspberry Pi. The most up-to-date file can be found here: https://bit.ly/2OVsM7W
o Save this file to a location you remember on your Pi. You will need to reference it later.
• Using a standard A to B USB cable (same as a printer cable), connect your OneGauge Hub to your Raspberry Pi.
o This will likely provide enough voltage for the basic OneGauge setup without any additional screens. You can also power the OneGauge using the same 12v source as provided to the PiDash system.
• Open TunerStudio and create a New Project
• Under ‘Firmware’ click Other/Browse and navigate to where you saved “OneGauge.ini” and select it as your firmware.
• Connect to “/dev/ttyACMO”
• Set baud rate to 230400.
o Do not try to test the connection. It will fail each time but move forward with the setup and if the OneGauge does not connect you can troubleshoot the setup later.
• Once your project has launched, for best results you’ll need to adjust a few settings in the main project window.
o Turn off “Perform Difference Report on Connect” under Options>Preferences.
o Turn on “Load Last Project on Startup” and “Make Dashboards Full Screen” in the same menu.
o Leave “Automatically Load and Save Current Tune” on.
o Make sure both boxes are unchecked in the Options>Preferences>Advanced menu.
• You can then design your own gauge layout using TunerStudio, which has a ton of options for setting up your design. Here are a few good videos that show you how to do it:
o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ru9a3EgJaNg
o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjwnTELkgso
o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OffS9X7dBFg
• To create buttons that will trigger your OneGauge relays (if purchased), follow these steps:
o Under ‘Tools’, click ‘Action Manager’.
o Click on ‘User Actions’ at the top.
o Add a ‘New User Action’. You’ll need to add a new action for each button/relay you have.
▪ Add a Display name that you want- like ‘Button 1’.
▪ For Target Action, select ‘Send Controller Command’.
▪ You can add a description if you want but it’s not required.
▪ In ‘User Parameters’, you’ll need to select the correct message as listed below. Please make sure these are correct, as this determines the message that is sent to the OneGauge and an incorrect message will not trigger the relay.
• Relay 1: “cmdtestinj1on”
• Relay 2: “cmdtestinj1off”
• Relay 3: “cmdtestinj150dc”
• Relay 4: “cmdtestinj2on”
• Relay 5: “cmdtestinj2off”
• Relay 6: “cmdtestinj250dc”
• Relay 7: “cmdtestinj3on”
• Relay 8: “cmdtestinj3off”
o Once you have set up an Action for each of the relays, go back to the main window and make sure the Dash Designer is on. Right click on any gauge, button, or object and the Display Names for the actions you created should be in this list. Select whichever relay you want activated when you touch or click on that object.
o To set up a button that displays the on/off status of each button, us the following Output Channel in
the properties dialog of each button.
▪ Relay1: r1
▪ Relay2: r2
and so on…