Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!newstop!exodus!oobleck.Eng.Sun.COM!bender From: bender@oobleck.Eng.Sun.COM (memory fault - core dumped) Newsgroups: sci.electronics Subject: Re: Inductive pickups. Message-ID: <14719@exodus.Eng.Sun.COM> Date: 7 Jun 91 05:46:39 GMT References: <1970@ole.UUCP> <5170138@hplsla.HP.COM> <1991Jun6.151435.484@otago.ac.nz> Sender: news@exodus.Eng.Sun.COM Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mt. View, Ca. Lines: 28 In article jon_sree@world.std.com (Jon Sreekanth) writes: ->In article <1991Jun6.151435.484@otago.ac.nz> grahaf@otago.ac.nz writes: -> -> > totally off-the-wall, but ... isn't there enough leakage from the -> > spark plugs, both as radiated and conducted interference for it -> > to be picked up ? In other words, if you plug into the cigarette -> > lighter, don't you see noise correlated with the spark plug firing -> > on top of the 12V ? Can that be used ? -> > -> ->Well, I actually got to thinking about this in context of a 'transportable ->trip computer'; something you could use on rental cars, for example. ->Then rather than messing around under the hood, you could plug the ->sensor into a (still messy but more accessible) cigarette lighter. Since most (all?) late-model cars have engine computers, and I belive most of the computers have a service/diagnostic port somewhere on the car, is it possible that you could periodically interrogate the engine computer for the various parameters that you're interested in? There's probably not a standard way to do this yet, but I have heard of GM (and other automobile manufacturers) proposing a vehicle network where most of the electronics on the vehicle would talk to one another with a standard signalling protocol. mike -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1985 Honda Shadow VT1100 | DOD #000007 1989 Honda NX-650 | AMA #511250