[PC/XB1/PS4] vrHive - Dashes/Telemetry/Live Data/Arduino/Client-Server/+more

[MikeyTT]

** Please be aware that there is a duplicate vrHive thread in the Project Cars 2 section (here). I'll keep monitoring both threads, but please try and keep any feature requests or issues in the other thread. Thanks... **



Welcome to my little corner of the pCars world. This is where I'll help support my vrHive companion app for pCars.

** Update: Support for the new network UDP stream for PC, PS4 and XB1 is now available as of v0.4.5.0. It's been a PITA as the data available via UDP isn't the same as with the Shared Memory, but it's working now. Please post in the thread if you have any issues.

What's vrHive??

vrHive will run with data captured from the XBox1 (UDP), PS4 (UDP) and PC (shared memory & UDP). vrHive started development so I could have an app that delivered what I wanted while I was virtually racing. So I developed an app that saved telemetry for later analysis, provided me with a live dash view as I was racing and provided support for Arduino dashes (I plan to make one).

So what can it do??

Main features:

• Telemetry data logging
• [New] Car Setup saving (as many as you like, compare up to 3 setups and export to share with others
• Race Engineer view of live data being fed directly from API
• Added new dash views (Motec, Timing and Racers Dash)
• Flashing of fuel icon on low fuel
• Flag status on selected dash views and Race Engineer screen
• Resizing of dash views to any size, any monitor and to persist when exiting and restarting
• Work in client/server capacity. Send data to connected clients (up to 10)
• Improved network data size for improved responsiveness (Tested over the internet with great success)
• Work as client only on 2nd PC and take feed from server running on another machine
• [Enhanced] Arduino support (or any device that can read from a COM Port - Please have a look at an implementation for this with sketches, parts list and code so you can build you own dash here: GarySwallow's Arduino 16x2 LCD 'extension' to vrHive

Telemetry and Analysis:

• Analyse your racing laps
• Overlay chosen race laps for analysis (up to 3 laps)
• Pan/Zoom on the lap to gain better clarity
• Analyse using positional axis or time based (Positional axis provides clear "at apex, I was on throttle then on this lap and here on that lap" analysis)
• Export and Import saved laps to analyse with your friends
• Export the stored session to Excel format for additional analysis
• Save your favourite laps to a lap gallery for prosperity (you can remove the session without losing the saved gallery lap)
• Review all exposed raw data to investigate to the lowest level of detail

Gauges and Controls:

• RPM is dynamic to the car. Jump in a car which revs to 18000, then the dials will show this. Roll out in another that revs to 7000 and guess what ;-)
• RPM red range is set via the CarDB page
• Max speed range is set via the CarDB page
• MPH/KPH are set in the main app settings screen
• Water/Oil Temps and KPa ranges are set in the CarDB page, including start range/end range and optimal colour ranges
• Fuel gauge is in litres - It will auto scale to the tank size of the car
• l/Lap is the average fuel used over the current laps covered
• Stop in is an estimation of the amount of laps you can do before fuel is your downfall
• Tyre Temp control, with tyre wear, brake damage, suspension damage and wheel slip indicators
• Delta time bar. Uses the session best lap to monitor your lap progress against

Lap timing table:

• Theoretical is the best sectors rolled into a theoretical best based on your past performance
• World and Personal are the lap times recorded by SMS - Delta times displayed are from your current session best lap time
• Laps are recorded in reverse order so you can see what you just did

Lap timing:

• Current lap with large +/- of how you are doing compared to the best lap
• Last lap with +/- comparing with the best lap
• Live delta, updated at 250ms intervals, comparing your current lap with the session best

Dash views:

• Main view with session details, live lap timing data, lap history and fuel data
• [New] Motec style dashes in monochrome and colour
• [New] Timing and fuel only display. This is sized differently for smaller monitors
• [New] 2nd Main view with white dials instead of the existing red ones (slight performance improvement with these too)

** Installation Link **

Follow the instructions on the vrHive download page: http://vrhive.co.uk/download/

Please note that once you've downloaded and installed the app it will auto update if there is a new version available

** Installation Instructions **

The installation instructions I have included in a PDF guide that describes in a lot more detail what the app can do and how you can configure it to do what you want: vrHive Guide and in the vrHive apps help section. I don't update the guide as quickly as the app, so you may find some discrepancies between the app and the guide.
Alternate location for the guide: vrHive Guide Alt Location

VrHive on PC requires that Shared Memory is enabled in pCars. Please follow these instructions on how to do that:
- Go to "Options & Help"
- Select "Visuals" menu
- On the "Hardware" tab change "Use Shared Memory " to "Yes"

** Running Instructions **

It's as simple as clicking the green "Connect Data Source" tile of the main menu. This will automatically connect to the pCars API.

For more detailed explanation of the settings please have a look at the help file in vrHive, or from the link above.

** Donate to help the development **

Although I had many discussions in the old WMD thread about it, I decided to offer up a donation page for anyone willing to help support me. My primary reason is to recover some of the costs of the 3rd party controls I've used. I invested in the Telerik tools to provide a clean, feature rich UI and enhanced capabilities to the controls, like charting and gauges. These controls have cost me $1500. The output of which you will see today in vrHive.

I develop for fun in my limited spare time, so any donation will be greatly received and will go to supporting these controls into the future. Thanks...

Donate to vrHive Development

** Video Guides **

Quick Start for connecting XB1/PS4/PC to vrHive with UDP:



** Gratuitous money shots **







** Todo:
- Add video installation guide
- Add video of new version running and a walk-though of the configuration


** Finally: A huge thank you to all those who have supported the app by donating

[MikeyTT]

Changelog and Important support notes:

Known issues

• New twitter tile is selectable. Ignore this as it's a fault with the 3rd party control

Changes in this release (v0.4.13.0) - Updated 24/05/17 - The Quick & Dirty Edition

• Fix to COM Port variable output data
  
  - Delta and other timing variables had an errant esc character so didn't render the sec value

Changes in this release (v0.4.12.0) - Updated 20/05/17 - The Overdue Edition

• Added new Car Setup main menu option
  
  - You can now create, share and compare car setups
  - Each car has to have a default car setup, which must be created manually
  - Exported car setups will have the default setup included
  - Right click to select the setups to compare in the same way as with the telemetry analysis
  - Added export and import ability for the car setups
  - In future I'll add the ability to attach the car setup to previous race laps and sessions
• Added rudimentary fuel strategy calculator
  
  - On the "PageMainDash" & "AltPageMainDash" dashes when you enter the pits an overlay
  - will provide fuelling information when you are in Race mode, doing an event based on laps.
  - At present it's basic, but I have tested and the fuel suggested is on the conservative side
  - I will look to extend the capability in the future
• Added Pit Warning popup overlay on "PageMainDash" & "AltPageMainDash" dashes
  
  - Will popup warning when a pit stop is required, due to fuel level
• Reworked the entire COM port implementation for Arduino and alike devices
  
  - Settings now has a table where you can add up to 5 x COM ports
  - Any existing COM port entries you had setup will be lost (sorry)
  - Support added for hot-plugging of COM port devices when you're in-game and running
  - Fixed some issues with the COM port output variables not correctly identified and duplication
  ******* Please read the help as some COM variables have been changed
  - Updated the Help Document to show the COM variable changes and the Car Setup implementation
• Added license implementation for releasing features in a staged fashion
  
  - Please be aware that no features will ever be locked, e.g. No paywall for features
  - I will however release some features on a timed basis to reward those who have donated
  - Donators will get an email with a license file to unlock the timed feature
• Added check to ensure vrHive isn't run in an administrative context
  
  - There have been issues with permissions on the vrHive files, so this is now officially blocked
• Made the following changes to the export to Excel option in telemetry analysis
  
  - Added export option to produce a summary page instead of the full export with multiple worksheets
  - Added sector times for each of the laps into the Session & Lap Data worksheet
  - Changed some of the time values so they are in a better format Excel likes
  - Added new column to output the speed in the format the app is configured for (mph/kph)
  - Changed the header on a few columns to clearly identify what the format value is in
• Added fix for being able to right click and delete a session when it's not loaded properly
• Removed the menu dropdowns on the telemetry and engineer screens (was causing some exceptions)
• Changed "Computed Stats" in the Telemetry page to "Zoomed Area Computed Stats"
  
  - to make it clearer what the section does
• Added old lap export format extension into the import dialog for the telemetry page
  
  - so old exports are visible
• Fixed issue where running in Server and not storing telemetry would stop the data collection
  
  - You can now run a dash window in server mode and not store telemetry
• Fixed (I think) null reference issue when linking video files in telemetry

Recent changes (v 0.4.11.0) - Updated 25/03/16 - Happy Easter

• Added new session export option to export data to Microsoft Excel xlsx Format
  
  - Right click the session and now choose to export "to vrHive" format for sharing sessions
  - or choose the "to XLSX Spreadsheet" to create a spreadsheet
  - The export option creates a sheet with the main session info and lap list in
  - then each laps telemetry data is included in its own sheet
  - Be warned these can get very large. At present I output almost all data, so it may be
  - this is reduced over time to limit the spreadsheet size
• Forced log levels to always log everything, to help with fault finding of issues
• Added code to provide the license checking for new features that will be rolled to donators first
  
  - To reward those who donate, some new features will be given to them ahead of other users
  - At this stage all features will be unlocked to all users, but after a set waiting period
  - Nothing is locked currently. The Car Setups will be the first trial of this in a future release
• Slight modification to main page layout
• Fixed issue where not all charts would change to postional based from time based axis changes
  
  - This allows you to view the charts at the same physical position, which is great to
  - understand how you performed on a lap by lap basis
• Changed racers name in settings to be disabled. Now used for car setup authoring identification
• Fixed issue where track name could still be blank under certain conditions
• Fixed issue where participant data changes our index position, but hasn't updated the name yet
• Fixed issue where RPM axis would disappear when deselecting the series
• Fixed issue where the button to close the dashes in settings would always be disabled
  
  - It's now forced to enabled

Recent changes (v0.4.10.0) - Updated 28/02/16 - Big release this one

• Large changes to the way the data is read from shared memory or UDP and processed
  
  - This was a ground-up rework of the processing procedures
  - The following fixes should have been remedied by the changes
  1a) Fixed issue where Time Trial laps wouldn't load from database
  

  - If you have a previous lap stored it should load and provide live delta info (it does now)
  1b) Fixed issue where racers index in participant list wasn't correctly set
  

  - Index changes as you view other racers in the pits, and occasionally the API recreats

  - the entire participant array and your position changes
  1c) Fixed session detection (in session/garage etc.) to not reset on in-game transitions thru menus
  

  - When going back to pits vrHive often thought this was the start of a new session
  1d) Fixed issue where car may be written blank in database
  1e) Fixed issue where track may be written blank in database
  1f) Fixed issue where delta timer just wouldn't work (due to session/lap and racer detection)
  1g) Fixed issue where pitting wouldn't trigger the laps list pit indicator
  1h) Fixed issue where fuel average per lap would be negative if you go back to pits and back out
• Added option check the consistency of the database
  
  - New menu item on the settings pane to check consistency
  - Please enable logging and check the logs afterwards for errors
  - ONLY use this if you see car or track entries with () on them
• Added session time remaining or laps remaining on the lap counter widgets
• Added check for being on outlap and notify the user of this in the dash pages
  
  - Only on the timing widget so far, but it will remove any times and show an "outlap" indicator
  - Makes it clearer why there is no time shown in the widget
• Added option detect the wheel being attached and/or API data available
  
  - Tyre widget shows a red cross when the data isn't available instead of arbitrary tyre data
• Added option to set the rate at which the COM Port data is sent. Default set to 60Hz
  
  - "Core Features" of settings pane has a "COM Port Data Interval (Hz)" option
• Added option to fill the telemetry indicator on the track map in the analysis screen
  
  - Selectable from a new option in the Settings -> General tab
• Added option to change the colours of the telemetry indicators and lap colouring in the charts
  
  - Selectable from a new option in the Settings -> General tab
• Added option to change the line width of the chart series in the charts
  
  - Selectable from a new option in the Analysis charts dropdown menu
• Added missing "min" values when copying car data between vehicles
• Improved the speed of the trackball on the analysis charts
• Changed the way the track variant is handled and removed the (), as this is different than the DS
  
  - Looking ahead to supporting the Dedicated Server, this would result in mismatches and issues
• Fixed issue where after copying car data the existing copy-to list was still populated
• Disabled code that looks for connected Android devices. This was legacy code from when I was
  
  - looking for vrHive to act as the server to VDash
• Fixed issue where "Operation Mode" dropdown isn't selectable on touch devices - I think so anyway
• Fixed issue where a display converter may try and convert a null value, which is bad

Recent changes (v 0.4.9.0) - Updated 20/01/16

• Added extra app status for "Idling" when the app isn't waiting for data
• Added ability to choose the default location for the session database and the telemetry data
  
  - Selected in the Core Features under "Use alternate location for Telemetry Data storage..." setting
  - This will allow you to choose a OneDrive/DropBox or alternate location, i.e. D:\??, R:\??
  - If you change this path and have existing data it will be preserved in the original location, but
  - will not be transferred to the new location. If you want to copy your existing telemetry data then
  - copy the SessionData.vrhdb and the TelemetryData folder, including contents, to your chosen location
• Fix for tyre temp issue when running on shared memory
  
  - Tyre pressure isn't available with shared memory, so it will always result in ?? in the tyre gauge

Recent changes (v 0.4.8.0) - Updated 17/01/16

• Added option to switch between gauge or underlying value for tyre wear
  
  - Enabled in the "Core Features" of the settings screen
• Added ability to export and import session data
  
  - Session data appears in the main "Session Data" tab
  - Import menu on the top of the analysis screen now has both Lap and Session import capability
  - Export menu added to the session right click menu
  - Imported session takes the current time as the unique identifier to protect from duplicates
• Added validation check to Session Delete menu to make sure you wanted to do it
• Added header byte to export files to define it's purpose (if the file extension is changed)
  
  - This is internal and can't be viewed, but ensures I don't try and import a car onto a lap, etc.
• Changed the default export filename extension for lap data and session data
• Fixed issue where linking video would cause an exception
• Fixed issue where running in client mode the tyre widget would only update the front left

Recent changes (v 0.4.7.0) - Updated 31/12/15

• Removed access to WIP Dash editing control on Main Tile screen (Doh!!)

Recent changes (v 0.4.6.0) - Updated 31/12/15

• Added BHP/Torque chart, Lap Timing Info and Fuel Gauge as selectable chart types
  
  - You MUST reset the Analysis layout to enable the extra charts/gauges
• Added functionality to persist the chart view state between vrHive sessions,
  
  - i.e. Delta, Tyre or Steering Charts, on "Core Analysis" and "Tyre Analysis" tabs
• Added functionality that detects GPU capability and changes the rendering of the charts accordingly
  
  - Should result in faster charts with less lag now the GPU is used
• Added extra explanation text on the usage of Operation Mode and vrHive + link to video on forum thread
• Added button to open log file location and to compose an email for support in the logging section
• Added tyre pressure to the tyre/suspension widgets. Top value is temp and bottom is pressure
• Added option in configuration to switch between KPa/PSI and BAR for tyre pressure
• Added check for Practice sessions to update the total laps with actual laps driven and not zero
• Fixed issue where right clicking in the lap grid header would cause a crash
  
  - Thanks to ??? Sorry, seem to have deleted your PM and can't recall who it was
• Fixed issue where the lap timing info on the alternate Main Dash didn't work
  
  - Thanks to notanuva for the heads up on this
• Removed option to log to Growl. This was put in early doors so I could log the error messages
  
  - to a Growl location (http://growl.info/). I don't think it's used, so I will remove for now
  - Shout if you want it back

Recent changes (v 0.4.5.0) - Updated 16/12/15

• Added support for UDP data streaming for PC/PS4/XB1
  
  - Choose the UDP option from the "API Access Method" dropdown
  - Running in "Client Mode" will ignore these settings, as they are not used
• Added UI changes so selecting the Operation Mode will hide UI elements not needed
• Exposed via the UI the API DataSource and API Access Method drop downs to enable the UDP option
• Not all new UDP data types are exposed in the UI at present. These new elements are being
  
  - stored, and as soon as I expose UI elements they will be readable
• Slight change in size of main page logo, to allow smaller screens to render more tiles

Recent changes (v 0.4.4.0) - Updated 31/07/15

• Fixed issue with Serial Port data being limited by pre release development code

Recent changes (v 0.4.3.0) - Updated 22/07/15

• Added Aero and Engine damage gauges to the RacersDash and moved the Lap valid indicator
• Changed the fuel average on the Racers Dash to show two digit decimal and not whole integer
• Changed colour of headlight "on" indicator to be blue and not red (Doh!)

Recent changes (v 0.4.2.0) - Updated 20/07/15

• Renamed "Analysis" tile to "Telemetry Analysis" to make what it does clearer
• Fixed issue where the new Tweet tile wouldn't allow the links to be selected
• Added extra exception checking on app startup to try and fix issues for user "t0daY"
• Added Engine Damage option to Car Configuration Database
• Added Configuration option to choose between Clutch/Brake/Throttle or Aero/Engine Damage gauges
  
  - for displays that have the option to choose
  - Selectable from the App Config -> Core Features tab
• Fixed issue where the Car Configuration Database was mixed with Suspension Damage

Recent changes (v 0.4.1.0) - Updated 09/07/15

• Added new tile on main page that reads a twitter feed.
  
  - This looks at the @vrHive user and grabs the tweets so I can provide a method of updating on general news
  - Right clicking the tweet will allow you to clear a tweet down, once you've read it
• Changed general popup notifications to use new less intrusive approach (please provide feedback on this)
  
  - I'm not convinced it's the right way to go, but doesn't interfere with the app flow as much
• Fixed issue in delta calcs where an exception could result

Recent changes (v 0.4.0.0) - Updated 03/07/15

• Complete back-end rewrite. Switched to a database driven model (This has taken months of effort)
  
  - Numerous fixes for many of the exceptions reported
  - Fixed huge issue with bloating of the session data source
• Changed the entire network stack, so the server is running at all times.
• This allows for a command structure to control the client operation[/INDENT]
• Added a live delta display that checks against your best lap
• Added Import/Export for Car Data, so the configurations can be shared with others (right click the tree)
• Implemented better tyre monitoring displays
• Gauges are dynamic with the max values now
• Added slip detection logic and implemented an indicator on the tyre gauges for when tyre is in slip.
  
  - Change the slip value via the core features in App Config
• Added ability for Time Trial stored best laps to be used as baseline for live delta display.
  
  - Only for Time Trial as the fuel/conditions are all fixed
• Added shift point light dash information. Configured from the Car Dash Configuration screen
• Modified the Car Dash Configuration screen to be a better user experience
• Modified the App Config screen to be a better user experience
• Added support for a light and a dark theme (accessible from the core features in App Config)
• Added reset to default layout option on Analysis and Race Engineer screens
• Overhauled the Race Engineer screen to include a lot more useful information
  
  - Including advances in the other controls, such as the tyre monitor, slip detection, etc.
• Fixed noob error in calculating brake and tyre wear. These will now show wear properly
• Part moved som of the code to reusable PCL structures to support Windows Phone and WinRT versions
• Started moving all visible dash components to reusable controls to enable user created dashes
• Replaced some of the images with XAML images to reduce size and improve performance
• Switched Window #2 back to a standard window, as it was more useful than a semi transparent one
• Added new dash (Racers Dash), which is tuned to what you really need when you're racing
• Added Suspension damage to the tyre display (That's the large inner line)
• Modified detection code so returning to the pits, or in the tuning menu doesn't reset the session

Recent changes (v 0.3.2.0) - Updated 05/05/14

• Changes in the motec style gauge view to decrease CPU usage by about 70%
• Changes in Race Engineer view to decrease CPU usage by about 15%-20%
• Improved performance of Analysis charts
• Experimental support for COM Port data clients, i.e. Arduino (See this post)
• Temporary fix (fudge) for Participant Index being incorrect. Add ONLINE name in config screen

Recent changes (v 0.3.1.0) - Updated 02/04/14

• Change to release numbering. External releases will always now be n.n.n.0
• Final fix for session DB size issues. This was a real PITA and a proper fudge if I'm honest
• Added a new dash page type with full white needles instead of the current red ones
• Added ability to unlink a video from a session (right click on session in Telemetry screen)
• Added ability to delete a session completely (right click on session in Telemetry screen)

Recent changes (v 0.3.0.2) - Updated 22/12/13

• Fix for sessions data not always loading

Recent changes (v 0.3.0.1) - Updated 20/12/13

• Modification of session detection logic
• Additional error capturing in session saving
• Better re-use of some classes
• Added tracking of SessionsDB size (this file should always be very very small)
• Added main tile for donations: Please click and read the description around why

Recent changes (v 0.3.0.0) - Updated 06/12/13

• Far too many to list here for now. 90% of code rewritten and this is a huge release with many more features than previously were available

Future features

• [Done] Implement a configuration screen to set up defaults like mph/kph
• [Done] Blinking fuel warning light of some description
• Implement the pitboard with info
• [Partial] More dash screens with different view options - More dash views to come (suggestions welcome)
• Bind to Windows key press to change the screens whilst in-game and no focus on this app
• [Done] Telemetery view
• [Partial] Track map view in Telemetry screen (dash view with other drivers coming soon)
• View car setups (If this is exposed in the API)
• [Uncertain] Log data to a central database backend and have a view with many drivers data being logged (Maybe for leagues, etc.)
• Speech? I've toyed with this to get the app to talk the lap time, or on certain events like low fuel, but it's not reliable. Will have a deeper look and review this one
• [Done] Client/Server option for 2nd PC usage
• [Partial] COM support for Arduino type projects (Experimental)
• [Done] Implement tyre temps and general car info screen
• Client/Server/Client option for use in championships (connect to central source and pass lap data only. Also feed lap data from other clients back to all clients via the server for realtime-ish lap data (now called Race Control - partially implemented, but not yet available)

[MikeyTT]

** Reserved **

[F3n3k]

Thanks you very much !! I try this weekend !

[MikeyTT]

I've just uploaded a new version, with a few bug fixes and a couple of simple new features. The biggest of which is the introduction of a tile that reads the vrHive twitter feed. When I post up new announcements and information, such as downloads, then you'll get this right into the app!!

Recent changes (v 0.4.1.0) - Updated 09/07/15

• Added new tile on main page that reads a twitter feed.
  
  - This looks at the @vrHive user and grabs the tweets so I can provide a method of updating on general news
  - Right clicking the tweet will allow you to clear a tweet down, once you've read it
• Changed general popup notifications to use new less intrusive approach (please provide feedback on this)
  
  - I'm not convinced it's the right way to go, but doesn't interfere with the app flow as much
• Fixed issue in delta calcs where an exception could result

[SpeedDog]

Just downloaded this it looks fantastic will give it a good try out.

Btw what does Ang Vel measure as I can't find anything in the help.

Regards

Mike

[MikeyTT]

Just downloaded this it looks fantastic will give it a good try out.

Btw what does Ang Vel measure as I can't find anything in the help.

Regards

Mike

Ok, so an easy question then ?!

I'm not 100% sure actually. It's a radian based variable, so I would guess that it's related to the angle/attitude of the car in relation to the direction it's travelling. So if you're drifting through a turn I would expect to see a higher value here than if you just drove around it normally. If I recall, it's a Cartesian co-ord system, so 0 is x, 1 is y and 2 is z.

I'm away from home this week, but when I get back I can have a look with some saved laps and see how it changes. Sorry can't be more definitive than that.

Maybe start with a simpler question, like what's RPM? I can help with that ;-)

[MikeyTT]

Exceptions!!

I've seen a couple of exceptions being logged, one for a French user and a couple in Kuala Lumpur. I can't see enough info in the reported exception to understand what was happening at the time. There is a total of 6 exceptions in the last 20 days actually.

Can you, and this applies to everyone who gets an exception, please report it to me with what you were doing at the time. If it's an exception that breaks the app, then I want to know about it and I'll investigate a fix.

Thanks...

[t0daY]

You got a pm Got a problem, need your heeeeelp!

[pedrochapps]

ok So This has happened it was working this afternoon. Any ideas