FoxLAP - Dedicated board

The purpose of this post is to build the pro version of the FoxLAP device using the dedicated board. This board was developed and tested for 2 years. It has been used in competition here in France by my son and other drivers. With a technical hindsight of 2 years, this PCB is reliable and works very well.
This PCB include a larger screen and the overlay layer including the buttons protects the screen and gives a better look to the device.

1. Dedicated Board version

In this tutorial we will build a FoxLAP device based on the dedicated board and working with the external sensor pack

1.1 – Print the model

STL files were created using Blender.
3D Printer: Creality CR10s PRO.
Slicer: I used Cura to slice the 3D models
3D filament: i used the 1.75mm ZIRO Filament PLA with carbon fiber. Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IICFS4Y/
Print settings: 0.4mm nozzle, Standard quality (0.2mm), 40% infill, Support (zig zag support)
Print Speed: Usually I set the speed to 60% of the maximum speed the printer can achieve. Because I saw that the more I increase the speed, the more faulty prints I get.

The zip contains both top an bottom part

Download Foxlap-dedicated-case-V1.0 Download

1.2 – Get required parts

The board is coming with the display. The firmware is also alreday on it – no need to flash the board.

I made a package including what you will need. The FoxLAP dedicated pack includes:

1 FoxLAP dedicated PCB board (display included).
1 adhesive overlay layer with push buttons
1 M8 connector (will be mounted at the bottom of the FoxLAP device) with JST connector for external sensors
3 JST cables (2pins: battery; 3pins: rpm sensor; 4 pins: external GNSS module)
5 M3 5mm screws
4 M2 4mm screws

There is dedicated boards available. you can already contact me if you want some.

All the boards are fully tested before expedition.

2. Assembly guide

1- You must have printed the box enclosure – top and bottom part. (this is not the same model as the DIY version)

2- Inspect your print and make sure there are no defects. test the holes for the screws. You can enlarge the holes in the upper part of the box to make sure the screws fit properly.

3- Place the M8 30mm screw add regular glue at the top of the screw, then screw it.

4- Insert Hot glue inside remaining space where the M8 head is inserted (it’s very important to solidify this part, hot glue is mandatory)

You must have this. Now test your case assembly and try to screw in the M3 9mm. You need to be sure that the assembly of the box is correct and that you can close the box. once everything is ok you can continue.

5- Take the PCB and add insulation paste to the bottom of the USB connector (be careful not to get this paste inside the connector)

6- Put the PCB in the upper part of the box. You will have to start from the USB connector side.

7- Secure the PCB with 4 M2 4mm screws

8- Flip it over. The PCB must be securely attached and must not move. don’t go pushing on it like crazy just to see if you can break the support. Of course you are capable. It just has to stand up to something reasonable.

9- Grab the overlay layer. Make sure your hands are washed and don’t put your fingers on the display or on the screen of the overlay

10- Add regular glue all around the screen. a thin layer only to fill in the irregularities of the 3D printing. Do not overflow onto the screen. otherwise it will be ugly.

11- It’s time to be delicate. remove the protective film from the display. I said keep your fingers off!

12- remove the protective film from the adhesive side of the overlay and also remove the protective film from the transparent part. Did I already say don’t stick your fingers in?

13- insert the tail of the overlay in the hole (please no jokes). and stick the overlay on the box. make movements with your fingers to ensure perfect adhesion and adjust the positioning

I generally place my Bible on top to let it dry for about 20 to 30 minutes. Oh no! not this bible, but the c/c++ programmer’s bible. the one that weighs 3 kilos. And yes I’m old, i learned with books in the 90s. High five if you’re old too !

14- insert the overlay tail into the connector. can be hard, use this kind of tools to insert the tail

Well done, the upper part is finished. And all this without any soledring… too easy. But wait a little, maybe we’ll do some later… Soldering is something for the real men. and we’re real men, right?

There is still a protective film on the display. You will remove it only at the end – YOU WILL SEE THIS AS A REWARD FOR THE GOOD WORK CARRIED OUT.

15- Take now your 18650 battery. Use a spot welder to add Nickel strips to your 18650 battery. solder the cables (JST 2 pins cable). red for positive and black for GND obviously.

16- place your battery into the bottom part of the box. make sure to let enough length for the cable

17- add hot glue to make sure it don’t move.

18- insert the M8 connector.

19- You may need to use a tool, depending on the print qualty, i t can be hard to make the first loop

Recommanded: Fill the space where the M8 connector is installed with hot glue. I recommend this in order to solidify this part, in fact, a cable will be connected here and if the cable is torn off brutally (shock, crash), the cable could damage the case by tearing off the connector.

The dedicated board can host a GNSS directly. You can solder a GNSS chip (ublox) on the board. There is also an ipex connector for the antenna. But here we will use the Mateksys M10Q (the same used in the DIY version)

20- Take your GNSS module and the JST 4 pins. Plug the JST into the board and solder the cables 5V, GND, RX, TX to your module. once it is done, unplug the JST
IMPORTANT: RX on the board goes to RX on the GNSS module. And TX to TX

21- place the GNSS module into the place holder and add hot glue to keep it in place.

22- insert the SDCARD. FAT32 formated. Don’t use no name sdcards !

Version for “External sensor box”

JST connectors for the external Sensor pack. this wiring will be compatible with the external sensor pack to monitor RPM and water temperature.

from the M8 connector, connect the cables as follow (take the JST 4pins and JST 3 pins connectors also provided in the pack.

BLUE -> 3V3 (JST 4 pins)
WHITE -> TEMP (JST 4 pins)
BROWN -> GND (JST 3 pins)
BLACK -> RPM (JST 3 pins)

Version for “Internal sensors”

This part is dedicated to the “internal sensors” version. The “internal sensor” is the best option for the dedicated board. With this little board, you will only have to clip the RPM cable behind the box

This sensor board comes with the JST connector and you only have to plug it into the main board (“RPM SENSOR” connector).

from the M8 connector, connect the cables as follow:

BLUE -> 3V3 (JST 4 pins)
BROWN -> TEMP (JST 4 pins)
White -> TC- (JST 4 pins) (exhaut gaz temp)
BLACK -> TC+ (JST 4 pins) (exhaut gaz temp)

This internal sensor board comes with his own cable allowing to plug an exhaust gaz probe and the water temperature probe. this cable goes to the M8 connector.

24- It’s time to close the box

3- First launch and configuration

On the first launch, you must get this screen. If it is not already done, create a FoxLAP account here

You need to enter your name, select a password, etc. Some characters are not allowed, so be careful. You’ll need to enter this information into the device, and screen space is limited, so I had to make choices about which characters were allowed or not.

Only these characters are allowed at this time: 0-9, a-z, A-Z, ! # $ % & ‘ ( ) * + , – . @ : ; =

What you will need to enter on first launch is shown in this video. The device will must be able to connect to the internet, that’s why you will have to enter Wifi credentials. You can have some issues with passwords containing special characters not supported by the device, in that case, you can share your connection via your mobile creating a hotspot with a password containing characters supported by the device.

If the connection is unsuccessfull, shutdown the device and restart to retry

Once the connection is successfull, the device will retrieve the settings stored on your account available at that page https://foxlap.com/mydevice.php

You will be able to change settings and also select/unselect available tracks on your device. Don’t select all tracks. Only select tracks from your country or the ones you will use. The more you select tracks, longer will be track detection. don’t forget to click on “Save Track selection” when you change selection.

And, on the device, go to the “Synchronize” icon, then click on “Update track databse“.

What to do if your track is not available on the device?

I recommand to create your own track using the provided tool available here https://foxlap.com/track_creation.php

Once the track is created, go to https://foxlap.com/mydevice.php then select your newly created track in “My own tracks” category, then “Save selection”.
And also on the device: go to the “Synchronize” icon, then click on “Update track databse“.

4. Setup (using the RPM “internal sensor”)

Here you can see how to setup the foxlap device based on the dedicated baord with the internal RPM sensor. This will allow you get RPM (cable clip behind the box), water temperature and exhaust gaz temperature

1- Install the water temperature probe.

2- install the cable with the K-type connector for the exhaust gaz and the connector for the water temperature probe. Use zip ties to fix it on your gokart.