*To be revised as my knowledge grows*
One of the important hurdles to cross when putting a computer into your car is power.
You have two options to power your computer PC.
Option 1: Power Inverter DC-AC
Your car battery outputs 12v of DC current. In order to use this power with a standard Computer Power Supply we have to convert the DC current to AC current. Standard PSU units are designed to use the 120v AC current provided by the wall outlets in your home (USA).
Choosing a power inverter requires you to consider two things:
The maximum wattage output of the Inverter.
The voltage of the AC current output.
For example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817182006
is a 350Watt power supply.
on the back of most/all power supplies there is a 115v/230v switch. this switch allows the buyer to switch between 120v and 240v inputs.
the inverter you need to use this power supply will need to be able to convert the 12v DC to:
120v AC and provide more than 350Watts continuous.
The closer the maximum wattage the PSU is the lower the power efficiency will be.
For example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-304-_-Product
This power inverter plugs into a cigarette lighter outlet in your car. It takes the 12v DC and outputs 120v AC at 375Watts continuous. The peak power is up to 600Watts but should not be what you want to look at.
This option is less of a permanent option. I have done this with my laptop but never a standalone PC. It is nice if you need to use a laptop in the car and your battery for the laptop is dead. I would not suggest it for a permanent solution since it requires wires running everywhere.
Option 2: Using a DC to DC "car" power supply
While I have not used this option yet I plan to on my next project car.
Basically, this is a power supply that instead of using your standard 3 prong power cable it has a set of connections for bare wires from you computer.
This is a Power supply without an enclosure or fan to cool it, i suggest buying both of those things in addition to any DC-DC power supply that does not come with either.
http://www.mini-box.com/M4-ATX?sc=8&category=981
This power supply outputs 250watts continuous which is one of your design constraints for your car-puter.
When using an "integrated" DC-DC PSU I suggest using windows' hibernate option whenever you turn your car off to prevent your system from suffering constant "power outages."
The PSU i listed above has several power/safety features. It will turn off after 1 minute once the power being supplied drops below 12v. This will prevent your computer from draining your car battery while the car isn't on.
It also has connections that allow your motherboard to receive "turn on" and "turn off" signals when the car ignition is in the on-position or off-position.
It also has built in fail-safes for when you car starts where it may deliver a higher voltage than 12v or if it ends up delivering a lower voltage such as 6v.
Since you car-puter shouldn't be designed to run FarCry it shouldn't need as much power as your standard desktop but carefully picking out parts is a big part of designing a car-puter. You probably want to be able to play music and use the car-puter as a beefed up head unit that you have much more flexibility with. I'll start a second thread with lower-power components that would help for setting up a car-puter.
I will spell check revise and reformat as time allows and suggestions are made.
Edited by whocares8310 - 4/12/11 at 12:55pm
One of the important hurdles to cross when putting a computer into your car is power.
You have two options to power your computer PC.
Option 1: Power Inverter DC-AC
Your car battery outputs 12v of DC current. In order to use this power with a standard Computer Power Supply we have to convert the DC current to AC current. Standard PSU units are designed to use the 120v AC current provided by the wall outlets in your home (USA).
Choosing a power inverter requires you to consider two things:
The maximum wattage output of the Inverter.
The voltage of the AC current output.
For example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817182006
is a 350Watt power supply.
on the back of most/all power supplies there is a 115v/230v switch. this switch allows the buyer to switch between 120v and 240v inputs.
the inverter you need to use this power supply will need to be able to convert the 12v DC to:
120v AC and provide more than 350Watts continuous.
The closer the maximum wattage the PSU is the lower the power efficiency will be.
For example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-304-_-Product
This power inverter plugs into a cigarette lighter outlet in your car. It takes the 12v DC and outputs 120v AC at 375Watts continuous. The peak power is up to 600Watts but should not be what you want to look at.
This option is less of a permanent option. I have done this with my laptop but never a standalone PC. It is nice if you need to use a laptop in the car and your battery for the laptop is dead. I would not suggest it for a permanent solution since it requires wires running everywhere.
Option 2: Using a DC to DC "car" power supply
While I have not used this option yet I plan to on my next project car.
Basically, this is a power supply that instead of using your standard 3 prong power cable it has a set of connections for bare wires from you computer.
This is a Power supply without an enclosure or fan to cool it, i suggest buying both of those things in addition to any DC-DC power supply that does not come with either.
http://www.mini-box.com/M4-ATX?sc=8&category=981
This power supply outputs 250watts continuous which is one of your design constraints for your car-puter.
When using an "integrated" DC-DC PSU I suggest using windows' hibernate option whenever you turn your car off to prevent your system from suffering constant "power outages."
The PSU i listed above has several power/safety features. It will turn off after 1 minute once the power being supplied drops below 12v. This will prevent your computer from draining your car battery while the car isn't on.
It also has connections that allow your motherboard to receive "turn on" and "turn off" signals when the car ignition is in the on-position or off-position.
It also has built in fail-safes for when you car starts where it may deliver a higher voltage than 12v or if it ends up delivering a lower voltage such as 6v.
Since you car-puter shouldn't be designed to run FarCry it shouldn't need as much power as your standard desktop but carefully picking out parts is a big part of designing a car-puter. You probably want to be able to play music and use the car-puter as a beefed up head unit that you have much more flexibility with. I'll start a second thread with lower-power components that would help for setting up a car-puter.
I will spell check revise and reformat as time allows and suggestions are made.
Edited by whocares8310 - 4/12/11 at 12:55pm
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