A Carputer, or 'CarPC', is a general purpose computing platform installed in a vehicle
(these are available in off the shelf systems)
NOTE: Some of the features/ideas below may be illegal to run while a vehicle is in operation.
* Play music from CDs, hard drive (MP3s, other compressed files) or external device (USB/PCI FM radio receiver, etc)
* Play video from DVDs, VCDs or from the harddrive
* GPS: Provide location tracking, route planning/navigation, etc. (Note: Hard drives are sensitive to vibration, so driving with your carputer turned on may shorten the life of the hard drive. Because laptop (2.5") hard drives are designed for such a portable device, they are generally more tolerant of shock and are an ideal choice over desktop (3.5") hard drives. Laptop (2.5") hard drives are designed to endure the stress of moving and extreme conditions, unlike that of a desktop hard drive (3.5") which is usually used as a stationary device, rarely if ever moved.)
* Satellite radio radio through external receivers. (Both Sirius and XM available)
* Ease of operation through touchscreen display
* Internet browsing through an eligible cell phone or wireless 802.11 connection
* Hands free cell phone control via software with bluetooth
* Other external application support
Intermediate features
* Display video from car mounted camera for backing up. (infrared cameras are available for backing up at night)
* Record video from a webcam/mini-dv camera and store it to the carputer for later perusal. (good for recording close calls on the freeway - setup a rolling buffer which stores the last X minutes on button press)
* Connect with your cars OBD-II interface and display real-time data on all diagnostic information available. (RPM/Temps/Speedo/etc.) Pull error codes immediately. Never wonder what a check-engine light is for again.
* Wardriving: Using your 802.11b or g wireless connection and GPS, locate and log locations of wireless routers.
* Play video games: Run an emulator and have every Atari game. Alternately include actual gaming system in the car.
* Download traffic/weather information from internet. (use home WIFI or connect through mobile phone)
* Connect to a mobile phone or other device using Bluetooth (useful for voice and data comms and synchronizing with PDAs, etc.)
* Interfacing with factory steering wheel buttons or equivalent.
* Provide night vision capability with infrared cameras.
* Wireless synchronization of files between desktop and carputer
* Use broadband internet phone options with cellular data card
Advanced features
* Process video from car in real-time using image recognition software. Capture license plates and store in database with GPS location.
* Using your GPS receiver, store logs of locations vs speed and time of day. This could be uploaded to a collaborative site for predicting travel times vs time of day. (very useful in areas where freeway congestion is variable)
* Provide realtime tracking of vehicle location.
Advantages
* Car computers can provide functions that a stereo system does not, such as internet connectivity.
Disadvantages
* Higher current draw from the car battery compared to a car stereo
* Many hard drives can fail in a car environment
besides than that u can go to www.mp3car.com
www.civiccarputer.com
www.acm.org/crossroads/xrds13-2/carputer.html
www.mycarputer.co.uk
carputers.org
