Will Davis
Projects / Smart gauge

Modular smart gauge

An automotive gauge that reads sensors directly and pulls live vehicle data from CAN bus, with its configuration set by the application.

Status
Revision 2 PCB in prototyping
Electronics
STM32, CAN bus, QSPI
Design & manufacture
Autodesk Fusion (Design & Electronics), JLCPCB / JLCCNC
Assembled gauge from the rear: round housing, back plate with four hex screws and a circular connector
Assembled unit, rear, with the circular connector on the back plate.
Round PCB with STM32 microcontroller, voltage regulators, pin header and passive components
Revision 2 PCB, component side: STM32, power regulation and interfaces.
Rear of the round PCB marked Genos G1-CI-02 with the panel-mount circular connector fitted
Connector side of the board (G1-CI-02) with the panel-mount connector fitted.
Cylindrical gauge housing with a recessed front lens
Housing, front.

What it does

The gauge can read sensors wired straight to it, or take live data from the vehicle's CAN bus. It's modular, so its configuration depends on the application it's fitted to.

How it's designed

The electronics and the enclosure are developed together in a single Autodesk Fusion project, so the round PCB, connector position and fixings are checked against the housing before anything is ordered. Boards are made by JLCPCB and machined parts by JLCCNC.

  • STM32 microcontroller
  • CAN bus interface for live vehicle data
  • QSPI
  • Circular connector on the back plate

Before this I built a CAN bus telemetry display for my Mazda RX8.