Need some guidance, please on BBB's or BPi, or whatever

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skypuppy
 
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Joined: Wed May 28, 2014 6:00 pm

Need some guidance, please on BBB's or BPi, or whatever

Post by skypuppy »

I have a project that involves sensors, cpus, RF comms, A/D, and so on.
The idea is to digitize as many aspects of engine and motion as I can and display them in real-time.
Currently, the data points come from:
1. 10 DOF unit that has the primary motion sensors, gyro, accel, magnetic heading, and the 10th is barometer but it's useless as there is no way to pipe the air from outside to the chip.
Note: wish to display the orientation in 3D, maybe with OpenGL or equivalent.

2. 2 J-type thermocouples (TC) that measure exhaust gas temps
3. 2 K or T (have both) thermocouples that measure cylinder head temps
Note: tc's outputs will be simple bar graphs, along with digital temp

4. GPS data, including WAAS, from your Ultimate GPS. Have both board and standalone-module.
Note: GPS data needs to feed an Android tablet. Probably wind up doing that wirelessly, via Bluetooth since that is all the [simple] Android's know how to do. WiFi in on the tablet but the -commercial- software that needs the GPS data only knows how to do the Bluetooth. <sigh>

5. Other various temps and air pressures are needed to be sensed as well.
Note: display will be bar graphs and digital values.

Now, so far, I've bought several hundred dollars worth of stuff, mostly from you guys.

My questions are:
1. Seems like the BeagleBone Black is the best fit for this project, but not it by itself. The main problem there is that <censored> 1.8V limit on their ADC inputs. Bah. Most of my older TC sensors (Analog Devices 494 and 495) put out an analog voltage of 0-5VDC, but if I must, I will change over to the I2C types -- IF I can find some! The BBB can read I2C but I don't know if the new sensors can have their I2C addresses changed, and I need 4 for ths project (2 cylinder) and 8 for my other (4 cylinder) engine. Doing the 2 cylinder first. :)

2. Do you recommend using an Arduino or something else to get the 0-5VDC analog in, or what? And if using multiple cpu types, how do I get them to talk back and forth with the BBB? Each usually only has 1 USB line.

3. I need a good sunligh-readable display to show the sensor data. The commercial app that runs only on the Android tablet works fine, but the tablet SUCKS for outside daytime use, so I'll have to work that out somehow. If the BBB is the "main brain," I can use it's HDMI output to drive a 7-10" dialay. Which display do you guys recommend?

4. Have been a pro programmer since 1977 and have used several levels of programming, from assembly through C to some bit of today's IDE's and it looks as if Qt outshines them all but I have no experience with it yet. What do you guys recommend? I don't mind writing base code but lots and lots of places on the web have code already available for these devices. Any suggestions on which is best for driving the sensors as well as the overall display handiling?

There's more but I've probably already blown two or three of your fuses so I'll stop here. :)

Thanks!

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skypuppy
 
Posts: 44
Joined: Wed May 28, 2014 6:00 pm

Re: Need some guidance, please on BBB's or BPi, or whatever

Post by skypuppy »

Argh, "BPi" in the title should be "RPi." Sorry.

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