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Trail Cam from Gladiator to Wrangler

Marco#1

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I was just joking honestly ... but the more you drive the more you will develop your 6th sense of which line to take. Its a skillset like anything else.
Oh, I agree. Like I said, at this point I want to figure it out simply because nobody else has figured it out yet.
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AnnDee4444

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pablo_max3045

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Just a general info, FAKRA connections are what is used for the majority of connections in modern vehicles. The connection stays securely fastened over rough travel and they can be keyed to a specific port to avoid a wrong connection. They also support higher speed requirements.
Anyhow, they will typically be a 50 Ohm connection, whereas a RCA cable is 75 Ohm impedance.
So, you can convert to RCA and use an RCA 12v input switch box, but there will be a drop in signal amplitude due to the impedance mismatch.
That can give you a worse signal but it should still technically work.. just not well.

The boxes like poster above mentioned as designed to stay on input A until a 12v input signal is detected.
Then it swaps out to signal B input.
The Jeep won't care if it's A or B.
If you wire that switch to your Aux button, you can just push the button and get the font camera when you put it in reverse or manually activate the camera. It should actually be relatively simple to wire up.

The easiest is to get what the post above linked. (2nd link)
It's in German, but I guess it's clear how to wire. Rückwärtsgangsignal is just the 12v input trigger to input 2. Masse is the wire. Needs to be wired inside the cab since it's not waterproof.
Jeep Wrangler JL Trail Cam from Gladiator to Wrangler 1595591152284
 
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Marco#1

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Not really... It's not cheap, and you need to be comfortable ordering things from overseas: https://www.ebay.de/itm/Umschaltbox...mandsysteme-und-LAND-ROVER-Navi-/232980887048

https://www.ampire.de/Multimedia-Sy...essionId=&a=article&ProdNr=SW-V2X1-FAK&p=3809

It might be easier & cheaper to build one.
I just ordered the item from Ampire.de (second link). Cost me about $100 (only 83 Euros, though! Haha). Hopefully it doesn't take 3 months for shipping. Also, hopefully they don't need any additional information because Marc don't spreche deutsch.

What are your thoughts on helping me building one of these? Having this switcher on order is nice, but I want to be able to replicate my results for others at the lowest cost possible. I have literally spent about $600 trying to figure this out already, and I'm willing to spend twice that much if it means when I am done I can present a solution to the community that costs a total of $100 or less. If I could source the parts I would be happy to build a bunch of them and sell them to other members for slightly over cost. I'm just guessing here, but I bet the components could be sourced for less than $20 per unit.

If the part I ordered works, I'll be happy to disassemble and reverse engineer it. Then the only other piece to the puzzle will be the Gladiator front camera. An OEM camera will cost $156, plus the $8 bracket. Again, I'm certain we could find an equivalent camera somewhere for a fraction of the price. I'm feeling pretty optimistic right now...

If this works:
Switcher: $100
Camera: $156
Camera bracket: $8
Total cost: $264

Potential costs (if we can source/build lower cost)
Switcher: $20?
Camera: $50?
Camera Bracket: $8
Total cost: $78

I would consider this a huge win if I can patch a front and rear camera switcher through the Fakra HD input for under $100.

Fakra connections are what is used for the majority of connections in modern vehicles... They will typically be a 50 Ohm connection, whereas a RCA cable is 75 Ohm impedance.
So, you can convert to RCA and use an RCA 12v input switch box, but there will be a drop in signal amplitude due to the impedance mismatch. That can give you a worse signal but it should still technically work.. just not well.
What are your thoughts on removing both the wires and connections from an RCA device and replacing it with coaxial cable and a Fakra connection? That would eliminate the ohm issue and also eliminate the RF interference that is inherent in those type of cables. My concern is, from what I'm reading it seems RCA connections are used on CVBS sources, and the Jeep's head unit is set up to receive an LVDS source. Won't there have to be some sort of conversion to make those devices work with our head units?
 
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Marco#1

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Oh, I also ordered this stuff yesterday. If it works, that will bring the cost of the switching function down to about $50 per unit. I think it isn't unreasonable to continue to drive this down under $30 with some better sources. There are definitely some inefficiencies with this setup (Fakra to BNC, then BNC back to Fakra). Also, I have yet to figure out how to control this switch using an Aux button. It will probably need a relay controlled DPDT switch. Again, if it even works.

Jeep Wrangler JL Trail Cam from Gladiator to Wrangler Screen Shot 2020-07-24 at 12.11.32 PM
 

JonW

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Honestly, at this point I just want to do it because so many people are interested in it, but nobody has solved the problem yet. I don't think spending $510 for the Tazer solution is reasonable when the actual components to make it work only cost tens of dollars.
This is an unfair statement about Tazer. You're talking about adding a camera and the Tazer product is doing a whole lot more. Most of what it is doing is all about CAN bus programming that takes an incredible amount of time (and money) to reverse engineer. For those looking for a plug & play camera as an add-on to their existing Tazer, there is nothing wrong with what they are charging ($179). That's a perfect fit camera with plug and play installation and a simple software option to enable it.

Hopefully you'll get a splitter/camera system setup that works for you at a minimal cost, but that solution will never get you the cargo cam enabled features that the Tazer gives you.
 

Marco#1

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This is an unfair statement about Tazer. You're talking about adding a camera and the Tazer product is doing a whole lot more. Most of what it is doing is all about CAN bus programming that takes an incredible amount of time (and money) to reverse engineer. For those looking for a plug & play camera as an add-on to their existing Tazer, there is nothing wrong with what they are charging ($179). That's a perfect fit camera with plug and play installation and a simple software option to enable it.

Hopefully you'll get a splitter/camera system setup that works for you at a minimal cost, but that solution will never get you the cargo cam enabled features that the Tazer gives you.
I disagree. I don't think it's an unfair statement BECAUSE all I'm talking about is adding a camera.

I agree. If someone wants to take advantage of the many options the Tazer offers, then it is a great product and reasonably priced. Then, adding on a camera to that system is pretty simple and not crazy expensive. Although, I will say that paying $179 for an SD camera is definitely expensive when HD cameras can be purchased for significantly less. I get it, they spend lots of time reverse engineering the software and that's where a lot of the price comes from. Another factor to consider is they are pretty much the only company that provides a solution to unlock the cargo cam. A lack of competition means a lack of competitive pricing.

For someone like me who only wants to add a front camera to my vehicle, I think paying $510 is very expensive to get SD resolution and have to deal with some of the drawbacks to connecting a Tazer to my vehicle (such as losing Uconnect functionality). For those of us who only want to add a front camera to their vehicle, I'd speculate many Jeep owners would be okay with spending $179, but the camera should come with a TazerCam (fictional) which would do nothing other than unlock the cargo cam on the head unit. But they don't. Someone like me who only wants a front camera is expected to help subsidize the cost of the R&D for the TazerJL Mini.

With that said, I'll reiterate. I don't think spending $510 for the Tazer solution is reasonable - for those only interested in having a front camera - when the actual components to make 'this' work only cost tens of dollars. And if I can offer a front camera with HD resolution and allow camera switching by using one of the aux buttons for under $100, I'd speculate many Jeep owners would be okay with that too. Maybe some competition would help incentivize competitive pricing.
 

Dieselruby

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Reading though this string it is a bit hard to keep track of what the Fakra talking about. I have gathered that I don’t want a tazer to modify the coaxial coming from my rear....

(sorry had to say it....)

I like the McGyver attempts and cams , anyone hear more on the ‘21 trailcam option and reverse engineering to earlier model JLs?
 

Marco#1

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...what the Fakra talking about.
Very funny, lol

I have gathered that I don’t want a tazer to modify the coaxial coming from my rear....
Also funny. The point is the Tazer doesn't modify the rear input at all. That is what I am trying to accomplish

I like the McGyver attempts and cams , anyone hear more on the ‘21 trailcam option and reverse engineering to earlier model JLs?
What we know about the trail cam option so far is it uses a video processing unit that receives both the front and rear camera inputs, then switches which one the head unit receives. It integrates seamlessly with the head unit an allows the user to select cameras via the touch screen.

Again, this is pretty much what I am trying to do. I have read about one person who has reverse engineered and retrofitted their Jeep with the trail cam from the Gladiator, but I think it ended up costing about $1200. I would like to build a solution that can switch between a front and rear camera using an auxiliary switch instead of the touch screen. My solution would not require a Tazer or any other software/reflash, and my target cost is less than $75.
 
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Marco#1

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Is the rear camera HD and the cargo / front non HD?

Is the JT HD on both front and rear ?
Yes, and yes. The difference is the input in the back of the head unit. Anything that is connected to it is displayed in SD. The JT has a Video Processing Unit, which is basically an HD switcher. The selected camera is then routed to the HD input in the back of the radio.
 

Marco#1

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Anyway... I got all my parts today. Hopefully I can do some testing tomorrow. Still need another OEM camera. I don't know where to find an aftermarket one. At least not with a Fakra connection.
 

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I was just joking honestly ... but the more you drive the more you will develop your 6th sense of which line to take. Its a skillset like anything else.
yep that is what i have been doing for years. Getting to know your track width and going from there..... Plus and maybe many years in the Military and driving in many countries different terrain you do develop a kind of 6th sense as to which line to take and how fast and wwere with just a simple glance.
 

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Anyone see any references to a factory fitment kit for our JL's yet? Not really interested if its not a factory retrofit. ;) That's just my choice and it works for me (to a point). Saw a reference in this thread to it being a 2021 option, so hoping we can order the parts from Mopar soon and have a dealer flash it into action. ;)

Guess that would kinda make it a Frankenstein mod! LOL
 

Revolution_322

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I mean its a pretty basic mod in the aftermarket. Any head unit worth its salt nowadays has provisions for up to 4-6 cameras...
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