LeafDD - Dash Display for Leaf

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Nubo said:
GregH said:
I'm also curious to hear where people would like to mount it. It's pretty small and light but has that standard OBD2CABLES.com 6ft right angle connector cable on it.

;) :lol:

That's where I've got my proto right now! I think it'll need some shade to be better visible in bright daylight driving. The one downside is that with the stereo blasting, I've accidentally left the left turn signal on while driving down the freeway because I couldn't see the turn indicator.. :shock:
 
Unfortunately I only have two extras right now.. I thought I'd have a dozen by now but my assembly gal has been side tracked the last few days. I should have more in a few days. I'll bring the two extras to folks at the Hometown Buffet tomorrow around 11 if you'll also be at Phil's potluck the following week..
 
GregH said:
garygid said:
Greg,
Assigning the Shunt-On bits in the order 4,8,1,2 appears to be
the correct order for applying then to corresponding cell-pairs.

No, that's not correct.
Aell, I could be wrong.
Do you think that 8,4,2,1 is the correct ordering?

The app we have now allows the user to specify the order,
so we could do some comparisons tomorrow, if you are willing.

I look forward to seeing your new Dash Display.
Cheers, Gary
 
Update.. I've got a dozen working LeafDD boards at the moment and will have a few more in a few weeks. Unfortunately after that it won't be until late July for any more until I get a new batch of OLED displays (the distributors are sold out, new batch in mid July). Here's the latest cover cad work:
leafdd.png

The cover will be a dark grey or more likely charcoal black (still working that out), but I expect to have units in hand next Friday which means I can start shipping the first units then.
Disregard the black thing on the right side of the image, that's just where the programming dongle goes.
The V1.1.1 software has been running solid in my car and a few folks are testing the slightly older V1.1.0 software now.
I'll start taking orders next week, if you're interested then e-mail me directly at dashdisplay at gmail.com

P.S. I'll amend the first post in this thread with a user manual of sorts for the LeafDD later this weekend.
 
A quick 4min intro to the Leaf Dash Display..
I have (almost finished) units ready to ship.. just waiting on the first batch of gray enclosures due at the end of NEXT week. I might order some black enclosures later in the month if there is interest.

Sorry about the flicker in the video, that's an artifact of the iPhone camera, not the display.
http://youtu.be/Js8Ek64zvp0
 
Great video, thanks!

I have some questions and assumptions about some components you explain. Was hoping you could confirm or educate me:

First Screen
1) GID - This is the # out of 281 (for a brand new battery pack)?
2) SOC % - For a pack with 95% heath, would this show "100%" if I charged fully using "100%" setting?
3) GID % - For a pack with 95% heath, would this show "95%" if I charged fully using "100%" setting?
4) Ah% - Shouldn't this show the same as #2 or #3?

Second Screen
Health - Would this be the same as the GID % if I charged fully using "100%" setting?

Other
Is there a screen/setting that shows the number of Kw's the motor is putting out or putting in? Similar to the Energy Screen that car has built in? I heard that the regen shown by the car is not always accurate and maxes out on the circular graph at a lesser number than the car actually is collecting.

With all that said, it looks like you did a great job - can't wait to get my hands on it and fret even more about the battery in my LEAF :shock:
 
EricBayArea said:
Great video, thanks!

I have some questions and assumptions about some components you explain. Was hoping you could confirm or educate me:

First Screen
1) GID - This is the # out of 281 (for a brand new battery pack)?
2) SOC % - For a pack with 95% heath, would this show "100%" if I charged fully using "100%" setting?
3) GID % - For a pack with 95% heath, would this show "95%" if I charged fully using "100%" setting?
4) Ah% - Shouldn't this show the same as #2 or #3?

Second Screen
Health - Would this be the same as the GID % if I charged fully using "100%" setting?

Other
Is there a screen/setting that shows the number of Kw's the motor is putting out or putting in? Similar to the Energy Screen that car has built in? I heard that the regen shown by the car is not always accurate and maxes out on the circular graph at a lesser number than the car actually is collecting.

With all that said, it looks like you did a great job - can't wait to get my hands on it and fret even more about the battery in my LEAF :shock:

Thanks! Sure thing..
Page 1:
1: Yes, raw Gids from the EV-CAN bus. Although there is nothing magic about 281. Many of the new 2013s can charge to 282-284. I saw 281 on my new 2012 only a few times. Now best I see is 270-272.
2: The true SOC will be 80% at 80% and about 95% at "full". Regardless of your battery capacity. Ie each percent shrinks over the years as your pack loses capacity (if you're in a warm climate).
3: This is just Gids * .356... 281 or higher will cap at 99.99%. Just a convenience for those brought up on the old Gid meters.
4: it's #2 * your pack capacity. So if you have a 66Ah pack capacity and charge to 80% SOC, this will be 52.8Ah... The idea was to have a constant unit (like Gids) but with more precision and less hysteresis (ie, you get credit for regen!). While its fun to look at, I still find myself going back to good ole Gids..

Page 2:
Health would be more precise than trying to use Gids in theory. Amp hour Capacity may ultimately be best. I found the "health" number in the Group 1 active CAN data and on all the 2011/12 cars it seems to be a "% of new" capacity.. My car was 66.1Ah new and showed just over 100% health. Now it's around 63.5Ah (if memory serves) and about 95% health. Oddly the two 2013s I've tried so far showed 67.3Ah capacity and 111% and 115% health.. ??? It'll be interesting to see what others get as we get more units in the field.

And yes, it doesn't show kW (Vpack * Amps), but it prominently shows Amps at the top. It takes slightly more Amps to get the same power at lower SOCs but it's similar and fun to watch. Especially alongside the pack voltage "dot".. As you use power and Amps grow from the top left corner you see the voltage dot dip right also.. Similarly with strong regen or DCQC (like the video) the Amps grows from top right and you see the voltage spike up to the left slightly. The Vpack dot becomes a lot more important at lower SOCs (like below VLBW). At some point near the bottom of charge the voltage becomes more important than SOC, Gids or anything.. I guess at the very bottom you're better off on Page 3 :)
 
Thanks for the updated pics of the screens. Forgive my ignorance but I'm going to ask a few more questions...

So for a car with 12 capacity bars (CBs) and a car with 8 CBs, this will always show 95% when someone charges to "100%?" Why is that?
GregH said:
photo25vh.jpg

Precise SOC from the car. This will go up to about 95% on full and down to a few percent on empty, regardless of you're battery capacity. Fun to watch and it gives responsive feedback for regen (unlike Gids).

So this % readout will age with the health of the pack? Meaning, if a car shows 12 CBs this will show one number, and when that car shows 10 CBs, this will then show a lower number... when charged to "100%" ?
GregH said:
photo3kr.jpg

Gid%.. This is just the raw Gids multiplied by .356 (99.99 max) for the convenience of those accustomed to the older Gid-meters. Press again for:

Thanks in advance. Can't wait to receive mine!
 
1. The SOC describes how full the cell is, but is not a measure of the,
size (capacity) of the cell. Like a AAA cell and a D cell might each be
full (say 99% State of Charge) at 1.52 volts each, but the D cell, with
its much larger Capacity, would be holding a lot more energy (watt-hours).

2. Yes, the GIDs (or %GIDs) attempt to indicate the amount of
(hopefully usable) energy in the battery pack. So, if the capacity
drops to 50%, even when full, the battery pack would contain
only about half of the energy that the "new" battery could hold.
 
So, if I understand this correctly, this meter could be used to assess battery condition (health?) on a used Leaf for sale without having to have the candidate car fully charged.

Florida dealers are so darned greedy, and I dislike the idea of leasing. I'm mulling going used, especially after learning the price of a new / upgraded / rebuilt battery by "the end of Spring"
 
Gary - thanks for the confirmation... that's what I thought.

Curt - Yes you understood that correctly. This (among other tools like it) can measure the battery's "health" in terms of degradation.
 
Got my LeafDD today, and thought I'd post a pic of my (unique) installation. You know that plastic piece covering what would be the ignition "hole" on an ICE car? Well, it makes a great storage location for the LeafDD! If I really want to see/access it, I just let it dangle from the steering wheel...
 

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I received the Leaf-DD Saturday 6/15/13

Love the simplicity and minimalist approach Greg engineered into the user interface.

Very crisp readable display ultra sharp contrast.
Can easily get useful data.
All in a small compact size.

My 2011 28.5 K Leaf Per the Leaf-DD started at 260 gids after 100% charge. Health is 94.31.
Nice to see all the other data points as well.

So easy to use even my wife will appreciate.

Thanks for creating the LeafDD.

Danny Ames
 
What is the little square hole in the end of the enclosure?
Perhaps a Reset?

There is an explanation of the screens in the first post of this tread:
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=44&t=12561" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I believe that the back of the enclosure is all non-conducting.

I suspect that there are still some details to be discovered
in the cell-pair shunting, since I do not seem to experience
the same shunt pattern on startup, and only see the
fuller cells being discharged.

However, still a very nice job, and congratulations.
 
garygid said:
What is the little square hole in the end of the enclosure?
Perhaps a Reset?
No: just a hole. I believe the (future) intended use is for some sort of add-on cover; I fed some tie-wraps through them to try hanging it from the mirror, but it didn't look good.
garygid said:
I believe that the back of the enclosure is all non-conducting.
Actually, the "back of the enclosure" isn't there at all: that's another reason it didn't look good hanging from the mirror (all you see is a circuit board). I'm contemplating covering the back with something so as not to short anything when touching it, but nothing comes to mind just yet.
 
It was expected that most users would install the
LeafDD someplace where the back would not be visible,
I think.

Is the square hole low on one end and high on the other end?
If so, perhaps the holes are for ventilation?

However, if you want a back, just use scissors to cut out
a suitable shape and size piece of thin plastic, of the color
you want, and use some double-sided foam (or other) tape
to hold it in place? Or velcro, or tiny dots of glue.

However, consider heat ventilation before closing
up the back completely, as some down-low holes
might be a good idea.
 
garygid said:
Is the square hole low on one end and high on the other end?
If so, perhaps the holes are for ventilation?
Definitely not: they are across from each other.

garygid said:
However, consider heat ventilation before closing
up the back completely, as some down-low holes
might be a good idea.

I've considered the same thing, and (in talking to the designer, Greg) I'm hesitant to do anything that will "trap" heat generated by the regulator or restrict airflow in general.
 
garygid said:
...However, if you want a back, just use scissors to cut out
a suitable shape and size piece of thin plastic, of the color
you want, and use some double-sided foam (or other) tape
to hold it in place? Or velcro, or tiny dots of glue.

However, consider heat ventilation before closing
up the back completely, as some down-low holes
might be a good idea.
I've thought about Velcro: stick-on Velcro is readily available. That way it could be placed securely in a convenient place on the dash.
 
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