Hack the nav - enable trip computer and AC

[comquat1]

Can you pm us instead????

Can you say whether or not you had to burn a new dvd or is there some code or sequence of buttons you pushed to activate it?

[csimo]

I wish I could report that all problems are solved and the update is easy, but that wouldn't be the case.

I'm relying on the spare time of others for technical assistance. I can't be too demanding.

There are legal issues of course. It's possible that Honda, Alpine, or NavTeq may not like what we're doing, but I don't see how it would be to their benefit to do so.

The result is that I can't even say what we've done.. what worked and what didn't work. Very frustrating.

If we can get to the point where we have something to offer then I can approach the necessary entities and find out if they have objections. Even if they do have objections we may have alternatives, but until we have a stable working model we're just putting the cart in front of the horse.

It is my opinion that Honda went to the trouble of eliminating the trip computer... by that I mean they apparently spent money to take it out of the nav system. I've heard their reasoning but it just doesn't make sense to me. Honda was more interested in surveys and opinions than they were in providing valid and valuable functions to the people who spent a lot of money for the vehicle. A very bad way to do business.

[KorieRidgeline]

CSIMO

Just let me know what I can do to help

[comquat1]

What would the legal issues be of modifying the nav? So long as you are not making a profit on it and it is not a service that otherwise would be paid for I don't see the harm or foul. Can you enlighten on the legal issues you are concerned about?

[kd4z]

Originally Posted by csimo

..."MENU" + "MAP/GUIDE" + "Cancel" for 5 secs enters standard diagnostics mode.

Then "GPS Information" button:

Then "MENU" for 5 secs and you get the "GPS Detail" screen.

You can also hit the "Delete" button and get other info.

Ok, I was just wondering where you see the "Delete" button, my GPS Information screen only has a "return" button. Holding down MENU here gets me to GPS Detail, which shows the GPS raw ephemeris data, including Horizontal and Vertical Dillusion of precision. (both are indicators of how good the "gps fix" is in accuracy. I think lower is better. The PRN is the sat number. ST is status (used in fix calc or not) AZI is azimuth, EL is elevation. I think C/N is a channel noise figure. Dunno what the ACC is.

[ridgeline5]

Im ready to chip in whenever!! HOW EXCITING!!

[SilverRidge]

Originally Posted by csimo

I wish I could report that all problems are solved and the update is easy, but that wouldn't be the case.

I'm relying on the spare time of others for technical assistance. I can't be too demanding.

There are legal issues of course. It's possible that Honda, Alpine, or NavTeq may not like what we're doing, but I don't see how it would be to their benefit to do so.

The result is that I can't even say what we've done.. what worked and what didn't work. Very frustrating.

If we can get to the point where we have something to offer then I can approach the necessary entities and find out if they have objections. Even if they do have objections we may have alternatives, but until we have a stable working model we're just putting the cart in front of the horse.

It is my opinion that Honda went to the trouble of eliminating the trip computer... by that I mean they apparently spent money to take it out of the nav system. I've heard their reasoning but it just doesn't make sense to me. Honda was more interested in surveys and opinions than they were in providing valid and valuable functions to the people who spent a lot of money for the vehicle. A very bad way to do business.

I'd be willing to help in anyway I can. Just let me know.

[captmiddy]

It is likely that they would try to invoke the DMCA, as long as you publish only the methods to add the feature and not share the actual binaries you would likely be okay. The reason being is that you aren't defeating a copyright tool to provide someone with something they weren't already entitled to. The problem is that it has depended on how grumpy the judge has been when you arrive on their doorstep. The better approach would be to work directly with Honda to get permission to share modification techniques with others who own the hardware.

[biggesthonda]

But if i own it cant i modify it?

[csimo]

Originally Posted by biggesthonda

But if i own it cant i modify it?

You don't "own" it. You have been granted a license by four different companies to use the software. The companies are:
Honda
Alpine
NavTeq
InfoUSA

They all claim copyright to the software.

Part of the license agreement prohibits disassembly of the code. Barring permission to disassemble the code the only remaining option is reverse engineering (very difficult). Even if you were to successfully reverse engineer the program you would then need permission to use the map data. A catch-22 situation.

There is an additional hardware glitch that has to do with the fuel meter. The Ridgeline apparently uses a different style fuel meter than the Acura RL or MDX. It reports back to the f-can bus in a different way than the others. If someone from Honda would PM me about this issue it would be appreciated (I think there are at least a couple Honda people here).

The whole thing would be much simpler and easier if Honda would just cooperate and do the right thing.