Palm Mount - V2


These pictures show the mountings of my Palm Device that sports the Rav4INFO program.  My first attempt at mounting (V1) can be found here. Main Rav4INFO page found here.

The Palm Device (M515) is mounted with RAM components. The base uses a foam adhesive (permanent) disk to attach to the dash.  And since I don't trust that with the leverage and the summer heat, I added a screw through the dash as well.  The arm has a ball joint on each end, allowing for lots of adjustability. If I had to do this again, I would definitely repeat this version.  All RAM parts found at GPScity.com The components are:

Note: Cathy Sexton is working on a new OBD2 monitoring device. Follow the progress here.


Rav4INFO in action

These next two pictures are taken through the (dirty!) windshield to show the mounting base, and how I cut it flat on one side. A single self-tapping screw was used into the plastic of the dash to assure no movement.

Side view from the steering wheel

Below is the OBDII and 12V connection for the Palm. Tough angle on this one. This is taken with my head on the floor in front of the driver's seat - looking up under the dash. Metal bracket on the right is for the brake pedal. The over-exposed white block is the OBDII port adapter of the Rav4INFO (Michael Schwabe calls this the "interface"). Below and to the right is a three-port 12V power outlet that I screwed to the OBDII support brace. Plugged into the top port is my 12V-5V USB transformer. The USB end of the Y-cable for the Palm is plugged in there for power. The Serial end is plugged into the interface. The bottom 12V port is occupied by the power/speaker plug of the Garmin GPS.


The best choice of Palm device to run the Rav4INFO software in the car is the M5XX. These devices draw just a few milliamps when the back light is off. Some offer color or B&W displays. The M515 is brighter than the earlier generation (m505) color model. The M515 is the one I use and recommend. The display is high-contrast, and the back light can be turned on low, high or off. When the battery needs to be replaced (mine lasted 6 years of constant use in the car) find the battery and special tools on eBay.

The M130 will work as well, but has proven to be less durable. The M130 also requires the back light to be on whenever the Palm is on which limits the usefulness of the device when the device cannot be powered externally.

 


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