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Joe's app/Waveshare also works with the Vgate iCar 2 Bluetooth dongle.
I Made A Thing
- Thread starter SlothBurger
- Start date
Joe's app/Waveshare also works with the Vgate iCar 2 Bluetooth dongle.
Yup it's been tested with the Vgate too and works. Any ELM327 standard dongle should work. You don't need the device (waveshare) at the start if you don't want to buy it - just go with the app as it does everything that the device does and then if you want later you could get the device. One additional thing I forgot to mention about the app is that your phone screen in sunlight is hard to see (at least it is for my iPhone) but the device is much easier to see when mounted. So depending on your phone sceen brightness in sunlight (mine is crap) the device has an advantage over that.
One question around this - is the device display dimmable so it’s not too distracting at night?
Not that I know of but that is something I could possibly add. I use it at night driving quite a bit and whatever the screen is made from it doesn't seem to glare at night somehow. I'll investigate how it might be controlled though and see how far I get with dimming the light it emits. Thanks for the idea.
Good point. I've got one of Joe's displays I've been testing, don't think I've actually tried it at night.
Mine too, thanks, I just meant the brightness of ESE circular display unit.
It's currently stuck to the dash well out of my eyeline, will fire it up later (when it's dark).
I've not had any issue with the display/ driving at night. I wouldn't say it was any brighter than your head unit
Oh damn, forgot to go and look in the dark 
So with the dongle and the wave share hardware you’re looking at over £40 …. Which is double what some of us have been using … the DPF monitor app + vgate …. Which works really well
I'd stick with the app you have and vgate if costs are the deciding factor. Even if nobody were to buy this my goal was targeted at building something with hardware (the firmware + device) and software (the app) and to get an app into the app store. I succeeded in that I think. I learned a shitload & broke my brain a few times along the way.
I'll give you a summary of what it costs to get to here & maintain this just for information of what is involved in getting any app or firmware device to this level. Not looking or expecting any sympathy but want you to get an understanding of what's involved.
## What It Costs To Build And Run
**Development:**
- 2,000+ hours of development in spare time across app, firmware, cloud infrastructure, and web services
- Two platforms maintained simultaneously (iOS + Android)
- CarPlay and Android Auto implementations
- ESP32 firmware with BLE OBD communication stack, display rendering, touch input
- Ongoing testing across multiple vehicles, engine types, and dongle brands
**Infrastructure (monthly, paid regardless of revenue):**
- Azure DB — stores trip history, regen data, fleet insights, vehicle profiles for every user
- Azure Blob Storage — firmware hosting, web flasher, OTA delivery
- Apple Developer Program — €99/year
- Google Play Developer — $25 one-time + ongoing compliance
- Domain, hosting, SSL for website and privacy policy
**Every user costs money:**
- Each trip synced = DB write (billed per request unit)
- Each regen stored = DB write
- Each cloud restore on app launch = DB read
- Each fleet insight query = cross-partition scan
- Each firmware OTA = blob download bandwidth
- With zero paying users, the infrastructure still costs money every month
**Ongoing work (unpaid):**
- Supporting testers with log analysis and debugging
- Adding new engine codes as vehicles are tested
- Fixing edge cases unique to specific ECU software versions & devices (Phones)
- Keeping up with iOS/Android OS changes, BLE stack updates, store policy changes
- Time responding to support emails & forum
## What You're Getting
- Real-time DPF soot monitoring with live percentage and grams display + other metrics for DPF temps and oil etc.
- **Regen countdown timer** — estimates minutes until your next regen starts based on soot build rate, AND minutes until an active regen completes based on burn rate
- Automatic regen detection with start/end alerts and progress beeps every 5% soot reduction
- DPF snapshot on launch — see your last-known soot level and time remaining without connecting
- Automatic trip recording with GPS routes and fuel efficiency tracking
- DPF health scoring based on your driving patterns and regen history
- Fault code scanning across all vehicle ECUs (read-only & informs Vehicle health)
- CarPlay and Android Auto integration — see DPF status on your car's display
- Multi-vehicle support with automatic detection by VIN
- Cloud backup of all your data (survives phone changes/reinstalls)
- Fleet insights comparing your vehicle against others with the same engine
- Smart notifications (regen approaching, regen predicted, fuel deviation, device sync)
- Regular route detection with fuel trend analysis per route
- Driving style scoring and insights
- Soot production metric (grams per litre of fuel burned)
- Low fuel regen warning (alerts when fuel is low and regen is imminent)
- Optional companion device support (ESP32 dashboard display with buzzer alerts)
- OTA firmware updates for the companion device
- Continuous updates adding new engine codes, features, and vehicle support
So yes things cost money. When they are used they cost to maintain that experience. The other thing to note is that this model where you purchase the device direct from waveshare is the only model I could see working because it would cost more if I buy the devices and then ship them to you.
Joe’s app costs just £9.99 if you’re only interested in monitoring it via your phone or CarPlay with an existing Bluetooth dongle. The Waveshare is an optional extra and completely unnecessary for this to work.
It’s a classic case of personal preference. Sometimes I find myself actively searching for van accessories even though I don’t actually need them.
Someone who uses their van or car solely for transportation probably wouldn’t spend money on all the optional extras. However, someone like me who maintains their van obsessively, enjoys modifications and fancy additions, and already monitors DPF status through the app you mentioned would likely happily spend the cash.
You can buy a push bike for £100 or spend £6000. Suppose it depends on the level of features you're after.
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I don’t want to use my phone to view this data so, for me at least, the DPF monitor app is no different to the app Slothburger has done (although they may vary in their offer).
I like the idea of a gauge for the purpose and, again personal opinion, I quite like the look of the hardware here.
Bonus for me - I already have a Carista evo sat round doing nothing.
Plus: it’s always nice to have choices. People seem to forget that these days.
I can understand if you want to nerd out with all the data but for day to day when am I going to regen etc the phone app works fine
Btw I didn’t realise you could just use his app so maybe it shows more the one we use
Btw I didn’t realise you could just use his app so maybe it shows more the one we use
Just jumped on board and loving the app. The amount of work involved getting it to it's current state is phenomenal and shows in the app layout and sheer volume of stats nvm the post above detailing the actual work involved.
The fact it's the ONLY app for DPF stuff that allows you to connect to an external display is the USP here and for £50 (app and display) it's a complete bargain imo.
Stellar work.
The fact it's the ONLY app for DPF stuff that allows you to connect to an external display is the USP here and for £50 (app and display) it's a complete bargain imo.
Stellar work.
Thank you so much. I'll be putting up a post on getting the device & firmware & enclosure in the for sale section later with details on the waveshare firmware etc. The app does everything & more but I prefer the waveshare myself as I just leave it in the van & it just connects up then when you start the van. The app can then add trip metrics & GPS if you stream from the device to the app, There's a lot of layers & functionality to discover.
So does the wavshare store DPF data as well? Does it then send this data to the cloud if you connct your phone at a later date?
If you have the waveshare it stores approx. 300 regens and approx. 100 trips on the device if you never sync it to the app (after initial setup using the app). If you connect to the app it then syncs those regens and trips from the waveshare to the app and then stores them in the cloud. Reason for cloud is if you reset etc. you can get back your data over time. I also aggregate data from all vehicles to generate a "fleet" stats screen in the app. I like stats so I like keeping track of my regens over time. It also feeds into the health metrics in the app to give you some insights into how your vehicle might be running over time.
Stunning.
Just purchased the App and looking forward to using it this week.
