PocketLOGGER OBDII Quickstart Guide

It is assumed you know how to install Palm applications onto your Palm device. If you need assistance with the installation, please refer to the Palm Desktop documentation.

Cable installation is straightforward. The OBDII connector in the car is typically found under the driver's side dash. Simply plug the appropriate end of the PocketLOGGER cable into the OBDII connector and the opposite end into your Hotsync cable.

The PocketLOGGER menus and commands are intuitive and should be easily learned within a few minutes of using the software. For those that want to datalog immediately, here are simple instructions for the datalogging functions:
Main Screen

Main Screen



Menu Button



Registration Screen
 This is the main screen. If this is the first time running PocketLOGGER, tap the Menu silkscreen button (Menu button is in the very bottom left corner of the display, right under the "Home" silkscreen button) and tap the "Register" menu item. This will bring up the registration screen. Tap the line with your stylus to bring up the cursor. Write your registration code on the line provided and tap OK. If the registration code is correct, you will no longer see "Unregistered" under the OBDII logo on the main screen. PocketLOGGER remembers your registration code so you will not have to enter it again. If you have any problems with registering your software, please fill out a help desk ticket at http://help.pocketlogger.com.

Tap "Datalog" to collect data, store data, and retrieve saved logs.
Tap "View" to view raw sensor values.
Tap "Diagnostic" to check and clear stored DTCs.
Byte Timing
This exclusive feature is fairly simple and key to getting the most out of your PocketLOGGER. This screen enables the user to control the communication timing. By tweaking the byte and packet timing, you can extract data from your ECU at a higher rate than the standard 6 samples per second. From the main PocketLOGGER screen, tap the Menu silkscreen button, and then tap "Byte Timing".

Whenever you connect to a different car, you must run this test.

Start by pressing the Reset button. This resets the two delay values to a default value. All ISO 9141-2 OBDII compliant cars should have no problems communicating when these values are used. At this point PocketLOGGER should have connected to the car and you should be seeing the Samples Per Second value being updated. If it has not connected within 10 seconds, cycle the car's ignition. Improper settings on this screen may stop the ECU from responding to the OBDII port, requiring the ignition to be cycled.

Make sure the Test pull-down menu is on Inter-Packet Delay and tap the Run button. You will notice that the Inter-Packet Delay value will slowly decrement. As this value decreases, you should see the samples per second start to increase.

There will come a point where PocketLOGGER will send data too fast for the ECU to understand and this will cause errors. When this happens you will see the Error Count value start to increase. PocketLOGGER will automatically detect communication errors and will start incrementing the Inter-Packet Delay until a reliable connection is made.

The longer you let the test run, the more reliable the connection is. The tradeoff is that the connection may be a little slower. We recommend running the test until the "Time Since Last Error" value reaches at least one minute or more.

Once everything has stabilized, you can tap the Stop button. Tap the Test Drop-down menu and switch to the Inter-Byte Delay test. Tap Run and the above procedure will repeat for the Inter-Byte Delay value.

Again, press Stop once everything has stabilized. Tap the OK button to return to the main menu.

PocketLOGGER is now set up to extract data at the fastest reliable rate possible for that particular car. These values will be saved until you change them. Remember that every car is different so you must re-run this test when connected to a different car. Failure to do so may cause PocketLOGGER to be unable to connect to the new car.

You can use the Up and Down arrows next to each delay value to manually change them as long as a test is not running. They are not needed for normal operation. While a test is running, none of the buttons respond.
Datalogging

1: Set what parameters you want to datalog by tapping the icon. Not all parameters are supported by all cars, so your list may differ. Tap OK when done.

2: Check the connection status in the upper right hand corner.

      = connection not established
      = connection established

3: Tap the "GO!" button to start the datalog.

4: Tap the "STOP" button (same as the GO button).

5: Tap the icon to save the log or tap the icon to clear the unsaved log and start over.

6: Tap the icon to see a list of previously saved logs

 
 
 

Viewing the Log

When saving a log, you have a choice of viewing the log or returning to the datalog screen for more logging. The "View Log" screen is where you can view your saved logs in detail. The buttons on the bottom of allow you to navigate the log.
- Jump to the beginning or end of the log
- Scroll the log to the right (back) or left (forward)
- Change the currently viewed parameters
  (only if there's more than three)
- Go back to the previous screen
- View the note attached to the log
- Toggle slider

Use the hard Page Up/Page Down buttons to zoom in and out.

 
 

Slider Control

Slider Control

Use the slider to jump to any spot in the log.

As you slide the slider, the log time will be updated to reflect the position in the log, but the screen will not be updated until the slider is released.

 
 
While viewing a graphical representation of an engine parameter is nice, in reality it's pretty useless without knowing real numbers. To get the values at any point in the log, just tap! Tap the screen at any point in the log and the actual values will be displayed on the right side above each graph window, including the time in the upper right hand corner. This is where the zoom comes in handy. You can drag your stylus across the screen and the actual values are displayed in real time. If you drag your stylus to the edge of the screen, the log automatically scrolls in that direction. By tapping the left side of the parameter name, it is possible to lock that parameter on the screen. (Indicated by the lock icon) Locked parameters will not move when using the up/down arrows to change parameters. This allows you to compare any three parameters. A maximum of two parameters can be locked. Tap the lock icon to unlock it.
Viewing a saved log
From the datalog screen, tap the icon. This will bring you to a list of saved logs.

Tap a log in the list to highlight it and tap:

- to view the log
- to view or edit the note attached to the log
- to delete the log
- to go back to the datalog screen
View

Use this screen to view raw sensor values in real-time.
Tap the icon to set the parameters you want to view (up to 12)
Tap the to return to the main screen
Diagnostic

The diagnostic section allows reading and clearing of DTCs (Diagnostic Trouble Codes).

Stored Errors

Any errors stored in the ECU will be displayed in the list.
Tap the "Clear Errors" button to clear the error memory.



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