How To Make a VIOFO OBD2 Adaptor

[tmanch]

I tested the Thinkware OBD-II cable with the U3000. It would exit parking mode and return to continuous recording mode when I would open my car's trunk lid or latch/unlatch any of the car's doors. I created a video of my testing the Thinkware OBD-II TOC-300 power cable while I monitor car's CANBUS activity. I suspect the TOC-300 is detecting some CANBUS or other activity via the connection to the OBD-II data link connector and that's why your Q1000 is exiting and re-entering parking mode while parked.

I tested the IROAD OBD-II power cable. It relies on voltage level checks and motion of the vehicle to determine when the accessory power is turned on/off.

If you haven't read my thread on the IROAD OBD-II power cable, please check out the following thread:

IROAD OBD-II Power Cable

I'm testing a Thinkware OBD-II power cable and it appears to use the CANBUS signals on OBD-II data link connector pins 6 & 14. It was suggested I get the IROAD OBD-II Power Cable (JW-100) to see how it behaves. @BlackboxMyCar was kind enough to send me one of the IROAD OBD-II power cables...

dashcamtalk.com

Thanks for this video, very informative and I think this is not a good feature using the TW OBD cable. Have you done any testing using the Iroad OBD cable on the TW cams? I read somewhere that it is compatible with TW cams with full Park mode functionality. I think this would be a good alternative since it will not trigger anything from Canbus activity. I think any modern vehicle using the TW cable will influence the camera whether you like it or not. I sure would like to see how this Iroad cable works on a TW cam. Thanks for all you do here and on Youtube.

 

[rcg530]

Thanks for this video, very informative and I think this is not a good feature using the TW OBD cable. Have you done any testing using the Iroad OBD cable on the TW cams? I read somewhere that it is compatible with TW cams with full Park mode functionality. I think this would be a good alternative since it will not trigger anything from Canbus activity. I think any modern vehicle using the TW cable will influence the camera whether you like it or not. I sure would like to see how this Iroad cable works on a TW cam. Thanks for all you do here and on Youtube.

I successfully used an IROAD OBD-II JW-100 power cable to power a Thinkware U3000 2CH dash camera during a two week test run. The U3000 would enter parking mode when I turned off the vehicle's engine which turns off the charging system and the vehicle was stationary for 5 minutes and 30 seconds. The five minute portion of that time period was the IROAD OBD-II power cable waiting to turn off the accessory power to the dash camera. The last 30 seconds was due to the U3000 firmware setting for the delay to enter parking mode after the dash camera accessory power has been turned off.

Parking Mode Conditions

• Enter Parking Mode
  • Vehicle is stationary for 5 minutes & vehicle system voltage (pin 16) is below 13.5 volts
    • Accessory power is turned off
  • Vehicle system voltage is 13.5 volts or higher
    • If the vehicle system voltage remains at or above 13.5 volts, the accessory power will remain on no matter how long the vehicle is stationary
• Exit Parking Mode
  • Vehicle begins moving & vehicle system voltage is between 11.2 volts and 13.49 volts
    • Accessory power is turned on
  • Vehicle remains stationary but the vehicle system voltage increases to a minimum of 13.5 volts
    • Accessory power is turned on

 

[tmanch]

Excellent news. Thanks for your answer and sharing your expertise. So for that 5 minutes of being stationary, the cam is recording in 'Normal mode' or did it shut down, after 30secs then went into 'Parking mode? I hope it would be the same for the Q1000. For me, I do not recommend the TW OBD power cable if others are experiencing what Im experiencing. Im retired and there are days I do not drive anywhere. My car would just turn the camera on so many times in a day till it got down to the 12.1v setting.

 

[rcg530]

Excellent news. Thanks for your answer and sharing your expertise. So for that 5 minutes of being stationary, the cam is recording in 'Normal mode' or did it shut down, after 30secs then went into 'Parking mode? I hope it would be the same for the Q1000. For me, I do not recommend the TW OBD power cable if others are experiencing what Im experiencing. Im retired and there are days I do not drive anywhere. My car would just turn the camera on so many times in a day till it got down to the 12.1v setting.

The IROAD OBD-II power cable will keep the dash camera accessory power turned on while it's waiting for vehicle to be stationary for five minutes. That means the Thinkware dash camera is still recording in continuous (normal) recording mode for those five minutes. Once the vehicle has been stationary for five minutes, the IROAD OBD-II power cable will turn off the dash camera accessory power which causes the Thinkware dash camera to wait for the amount of time configured in the firmware settings for the parking mode delay amount. The U3000 has a minimum value of 30 seconds for that setting. After the 30 seconds (or whatever time you've configured it for) has expired, the Thinkware dash camera will then enter into the parking mode you've selected in the firmware settings.

 

[speed88]

We are working on the OBD cable now, it can be released before 2024.

Is this still the case and if so when can we expect to get our hands on one?

 

[vjau]

I would like to build a DIY ODB power cable for my Viofo Dashcam.
I have bought the Viofo Hardwire Kit and an ODB plug.
Since i am not interested by the parking mode, if i just want the power for normal dascham operation, i would need to solder the red and yellow cable both on the +12V pin of the ODB plug, correct ?

 

[vjau]

I would like to build a DIY ODB power cable for my Viofo Dashcam.
I have bought the Viofo Hardwire Kit and an ODB plug.
Since i am not interested by the parking mode, if i just want the power for normal dascham operation, i would need to solder the red and yellow cable both on the +12V pin of the ODB plug, correct ?

@viofo @VIOFO-Support @rcg530 do you know the answer to my question ? Thank you.

 

[rcg530]

I would like to build a DIY ODB power cable for my Viofo Dashcam.
I have bought the Viofo Hardwire Kit and an ODB plug.
Since i am not interested by the parking mode, if i just want the power for normal dascham operation, i would need to solder the red and yellow cable both on the +12V pin of the ODB plug, correct ?

Pin 16 in the OBD-II data link connector is constant power. Most OBD-II data link connectors do not provide a switched/accessory power source except for some select makes/models. If you connect the VIOFO hardwire kit's yellow (accessory) and red (constant) wires together and connect them to pin 16, the dash camera would record continuously and the low voltage feature of the hardwire kit would not be functional since the VIOFO yellow (accessory power) wire would always be powered. If you happen to have a vehicle with an OBD-II data link connector with pin 16 constant and some other pin with accessory power (see your vehicle's service information), then you could connect the VIOFO red wire to pin 16 and the VIOFO yellow wire to the other pin that provides accessory power and the VIOFO black (ground) wire to pin 4 or 5.

The dash camera OBD-II power adapters on the market have some smarts built into them. They are using pin 16 as their constant power source and they use other "logic" to determine when to send accessory power to the dash camera. The units with two/three pins (16 for power and 4 or 5 for ground) are using vehicle motion to determine when to turn on/off the accessory power to the dash camera. The units with more than pins 16 and 4/5 will use other indicators from the power/signals present on other OBD-II data link connector pins to determine when the vehicle is in use. For example some use pins 6 and 14 (CANBUS) to make some of the decisions when to turn on/off the dash camera accessory power.

 

[Panzer Platform]

Viofo was working on their own OBD2 Power Cable with an ETA "before" 2024.
Maybe they will reply to your post with an updated ETA.

 

[vjau]

Pin 16 in the OBD-II data link connector is constant power. Most OBD-II data link connectors do not provide a switched/accessory power source except for some select makes/models. If you connect the VIOFO hardwire kit's yellow (accessory) and red (constant) wires together and connect them to pin 16, the dash camera would record continuously and the low voltage feature of the hardwire kit would not be functional since the VIOFO yellow (accessory power) wire would always be powered. If you happen to have a vehicle with an OBD-II data link connector with pin 16 constant and some other pin with accessory power (see your vehicle's service information), then you could connect the VIOFO red wire to pin 16 and the VIOFO yellow wire to the other pin that provides accessory power and the VIOFO black (ground) wire to pin 4 or 5.

The dash camera OBD-II power adapters on the market have some smarts built into them. They are using pin 16 as their constant power source and they use other "logic" to determine when to send accessory power to the dash camera. The units with two/three pins (16 for power and 4 or 5 for ground) are using vehicle motion to determine when to turn on/off the accessory power to the dash camera. The units with more than pins 16 and 4/5 will use other indicators from the power/signals present on other OBD-II data link connector pins to determine when the vehicle is in use. For example some use pins 6 and 14 (CANBUS) to make some of the decisions when to turn on/off the dash camera accessory power.

Thank you for your detailed answer, very much appreciated.
If i plan to remove my viofo dascham from the gps holder every time i leave my car, it won't draw the battery, right ? The gps without the dascham attached doesn't draw any current by itself ?

 

[Panzer Platform]

If i plan to remove my viofo dascham from the gps holder every time i leave my car, it won't draw the battery, right ? The gps without the dascham attached doesn't draw any current by itself ?

Incorrect.

Because I’m too lazy to go out in my garage, and measure the power consumption of the Hardwire Kit attached to the A229 Pro GPS mount WITHOUT the camera attached,
and I just happen to have it sitting next to me on my desk connected to a BBMC PowerCell 8 Battery Pack I used the smartphone APP to check power consumption.
The APP fluctuates from 0mA - 9mA @ 13.4 Volts = 0.12 Watts.
According to RCG’s power consumption charts the hardwire kit alone uses 3mA @ 12.6 Volts.
So it looks like the GPS module may consume power even when not connected to the camera.
RCG is not lazy like me so, I’m sure he’ll measure it and provide the measurement with a proper 12.6 power supply, and Fluke meter.
Oh yeah, there is fancy LED’s in the QUAD MODE GPS mounts now.
Maybe that has something to do with the power consumption.
See attached screenshots.

 

[rcg530]

I ran a test with an A229 Pro 1CH with a GPS module which was powered by a HK4 hardwire kit. Before starting the test I checked the power consumption of the HK4 without it being connected to the GPS module. This HK4 was consuming 5 mA @ 12.6 volts (accessory power on or off). I connected the GPS module to the A229 Pro and booted up the dash camera. I let it run for about 5 minutes and I then used the Power/Menu button to power down the A229 Pro. I removed the A229 Pro from the GPS module and the power draw dropped to 5 mA @ 12.6 volts, just like it was with the HK4 not connected to anything.

 

[Journeyman]

We are working on the OBD cable now, it can be released before 2024.

Did this happen?
I'm planning on buying a Viofo & would like to power it with OBD with a switch on it so I can use parking monitor only occasionally when needed. I'd much prefer getting one from the cam manufacturer than a 3rd party.

 

[Jackal07]

Did this happen?
I'm planning on buying a Viofo & would like to power it with OBD with a switch on it so I can use parking monitor only occasionally when needed. I'd much prefer getting one from the cam manufacturer than a 3rd party.

Hi

I sent off a message directly to Viofo UK and here is their response:

"I have just contacted the manufacturer for an update on this item and they have advised me that this hardwire kit is still under development and not likely to be available until around May."

 

[safedrivesolutions]

Did this happen?
I'm planning on buying a Viofo & would like to power it with OBD with a switch on it so I can use parking monitor only occasionally when needed. I'd much prefer getting one from the cam manufacturer than a 3rd party.

If they want to properly develop it they should probably talk to retailers who install their products all day and not people who review dash cameras and only have access to 1 car. But that is just my opinion. @viofo

 

[Panzer Platform]

not people who review dash cameras and only have access to 1 car.

Hey, I have 2 cars. lol

 

[syadasti]

Any update on the Viofo ODB adapter release?

 

[rcg530]

Any update on the Viofo ODB adapter release?

It's still being worked on by VIOFO. Last I heard, it was likely to be ready by the end of May.

 

[safedrivesolutions]

It's still being worked on by VIOFO. Last I heard, it was likely to be ready by the end of May.

Not likely. Noone is testing them in the field.

 

[rcg530]

Not likely. Noone is testing them in the field.

The end of May could be when they send it out for testing in the field. I'm just stating what I was told when I asked when they would be available.