The old v1 design went through a series of upgrades and it became more powerful than ever.
The main ATmega2560 microcontroller has been replaced with ESP32-PICO-D4.
Its wireless capabilities are not developed yet.
Official LCD support has been withdrawn from the latest firmware but I2C-pins are still broken out to a 6-pin connector for future use. I2C logic voltage is 3.3V.
The UART protocol provided by ESP32 has a built-in logic inverter feature. This means that the SCI-bus of SBEC2 PCMs can be supported with a simple adapter cable.
PCI-bus transceiver has been added to support diagnostics with PCI/SCI-bus equipped PCMs.
With the v2 hardware it’s now possible to reprogram SBEC3 PCM flash memory via SCI-bus.
Note that this scanner does not comply with J2534 standards, so it’s not a passthru device. The demo video above shows the simplicity of writing a new flash file to an SBEC3 PCM. This comes with the disadvantage that the flash file compatibility is not checked. Therefore the user needs to decide whether the selected flash file is compatible with their PCM or not. As a precaution the GUI makes backups of the current flash memory / EEPROM content in case they need to be restored.
Tuners are going to enjoy this feature the most because they can upload their modified flash files easily without hassle.
Chrysler Scanner 
Does this mean the CCDBusTransceiver Arduino code could be updated to use an ESP32?
I don’t see the changes for the ESP in the ChryslerScanner Arduino code yet however. I didn’t look very hard and I am not familiar enough with the code to say for sure.
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Yes, although the v2 scanner firmware for ESP32 is written in PlatformIO / ESP-IDF framework. It’s possible to port to the CCDLibrary Arduino library, I just didn’t dive into it.
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Ah ok. Would be nice to get a small micro on the transceiver that handles all the lower level hardware. Mostly the unusual baud rate. That way one could remove most of the hardware specific code from the main CCDBusTranceiver Arduino code. Would work with a lot more boards that way. It would raise the cost for sure and with the lack of part availability might not be easy to do currently.
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Any thoughts on creating an APK version of the software? I see a lot of off brand hand held scan tools using retro fitted Pixel Tablets or the like running a standard Android 10 firmware as the base and configure the tablet to run their scan software in proprietary. I think you would find a lot of demand for an app/dongle combo that could be loaded up on to a more budget friendly hand held device that does not readily communicate with older vehicles to the level in which your software does. At least personally I can see the value in being able to buy a Android base scanner that can communicate with and receive updates for newer vehicles whilst also having the convenience of a tablet and though a switch of an app I can browse the web and check emails like any other modern smart device. Yet also, I can see any even higher value if there was a hardware/software package that could be purchased to apply that same convenience of switching apps to switching a dongle and an app that would let that same affordable unit communicate with vehicles using legacy networks.
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Completely agree, it would be great to have an APK alternative. It has been brought up in the past but I don’t have any smart phone app development skills, nor web development skills and I’m too busy maintaining the project as is. I’m willing to provide packet protocol description and a free V2 scanner if that helps to anyone. Eventually I will get to it, though.
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I don’t believe IOS support is within reach given the limited hardware specs of the ESP32. Apple requires special hardware and Bluetooth certification for operability. That leaves wired and WiFi. Revisiting the hardware constraints of this device I don’t believe that running a webserver sketch in conjunction with the main sketch would be viable. Having said that, I didn’t have a chance to view the BOM to see what size memory was used in the device. Android shouldn’t be too difficult, however. I would think that a simple BT connection would cover the majority of it, however I haven’t looked at the requirements of taking control of modules (ie: blend door positioning, fan speed control, IAC relearn, etc). Writing and changing the PCM would be sketchy. My main concern is timing and the inherent risk of bricking. This doesn’t utilize a custom RTOS ASIC or FPGA. We are talking about a $2 micro. The $2 micro is still a huge step forward from the previous iterations I have been secretly lurking at. I am interested in this.
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Things have radically changed since my last comment. A .NET MAUI Android app is in the works with BLE communication. This brought the heavy price that the ESP32 code in the V2 scanner had/has to be completely rewritten to support precise timing of CCD/PCI/SCI/BLE all together. MAUI supports iOS as well but first things first.
Changing PCM settings is well understood. Some settings are stored in EEPROM with easy access. Rest are hardcoded in the flash memory. SBEC3 and JTEC units can always be resurrected one way or another, provided that the flash chip is not damaged.
An example: IAC or TPS relearn is a matter of a simple command sent via SCI-bus, that resets a RAM value.
Stay tuned for updates!
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Hi, would this tool allow ABS brake bleed on a 1996 Jeep XJ with OBD2?
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Actually, I think more accurate of a question is: Will this allow me to use DRB3 emulator so that I can carry out the ABS brake bleed, along with other functions?
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Hi, ABS is not supported at the moment. And the V2 scanner’s communication protocol is incompatible with DRB3 Emulator. Currently you are better off with a Micropod 2 clone and the DRB3 Emulator.
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Okay, thank you for letting me know. I think your tool will be helpful for a diesel conversion I have planned for the future.
Can you suggest a decent link to buy a Micropod 2 clone at all?
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Look for one on AliExpress. I bought mine there. There are a couple of sellers offering it around 100-150 USD.
Be aware that you need a Windows 7 laptop to use it (or a virtual machine with Win7, but it’s a pain), and if you plan to use it for PCI-bus comms then an onboard chip needs fixing (guide in the top blog post).
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Okay, perfect. Thanks for all that information. 🙂
Another quick thing, can your converter and software:
– Clone PCM’s
– Remove (disable) SKIM on PCM’s
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You are most welcome!
The tool can backup both flash and EEPROM content of a PCM and write it to another. I think you can call this cloning.
SKIM/VTSS is tougher. Currently the learned status can be reset/cleared in EEPROM, and if SKIM is disconnected then PCM won’t look for it. But some PCMs are programmed to look for SKIM despite the learned status. In this case the flash content needs modifying too, and this feature is not explored yet. I’m still looking for switches and hacks in SBEC/JTEC to permanently disable security functions.
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Hello Daniel, regarding your last comment regarding SKIM, and specifically talking about SBEC3 PCMS, can you tell me please if the PCM stores the SKIM secret code? Thank you in advance.
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Hi Ezequiel, yes, SKIM-capable SBEC3 PCMs store the SKIM secret key in EEPROM.
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Thank you.
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Daniel, thank you so much for your answer, I had already replied back to you, but I can’t find my posts. Anyway, I just want to thank you and please keep on going with such a great work. Regards from Mexico City.
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Hello, it seems like a good working tool. How can I get the software? I’m interested if you can give me the information. Thank you.
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