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PANASONIC LAPTOPOBD port type: OBD, OBD1 and OBD2. You may have heard about the OBD diagnostic port in your car. Or have you heard technicians call the port on your car an obd port, or obd2 port? How do you know what type of diagnostic port your vehicle has and, more importantly, how to read the information on it yourself? In this article, we will explain everything about OBD and the type of OBD port in your car.
There are two standards, the OBD1 standard and the newer and more popular OBD 2 standard. OBD1 is not as easy to read as OBD2 and is less common, used mainly on older cars. You can take your car to the workshop to read data via OBD or OBD2 port or do it yourself at home, work or anywhere on the road with different tools from hundreds of devices and applications. existing mobile applications.
I. Why was OBD born?
In the seventies, America became increasingly aware and concerned about the impact of vehicle emissions on the health and well-being of its citizens. Vehicle exhaust from internal combustion engines contains harmful gaseous substances such as sulfur and nitrogen oxides, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and microscopic solid particles, known as particulate matter. States became increasingly interested in the issue, and Clean Air regulations began to be enacted.
California took the lead and soon required vehicles to have an integrated system that continuously monitors emissions control equipment in real time and communicates any faults to the driver via lights. error. The vehicle can then be taken to the workshop where the fault can be read from the emissions control system. This is done through the OBD port and the OBD type becomes the OBD1 standard
II. Why does the OBD1 port have problems?
OBD1 is problematic because it is a very loose standard and protocol in terms of uniformity. Automobile manufacturers began implementing their own proprietary ports and protocols under the OBD1 port, which meant that workshops often had to be equipped with multiple OBD1 readers if they were dealing with multiple vehicle brands. Of course, this was the 80s and 90s, and widespread consumer diagnostic devices did not yet exist because Obd1 readers were extremely expensive, often costing thousands of dollars.
Another reason why Obd1 was considered unsuitable was because vehicles were starting to become more technologically advanced, with the increasing popularity of computer systems not only for controlling emissions but also powertrain management, brake system management, safety systems and amenities such as HVAC and infotainment.
The first type of car diagnostic system was not designed to serve these purposes. All these shortcomings have led to the birth of a new type of diagnostic port, called OBD 2 protocol
III. What is OBD2?
OBD2 is the current obd and the most important iteration of the diagnostic standard, as it still stands in 2023, having been introduced in 1996. One of obd1’s most serious flaws that obd2 fixed is the unification of ports required to communicate with vehicle systems. The OBD2 port has a standard 16-pin female J1962 connector. Automakers began adopting the port, and by 2005, basically any new car sold by a major automaker since then was equipped with an OBD2 port. Obd2 also allows defining standard functions as well as manufacturer-specific functions. Standard functions cover critical in-vehicle systems, while manufacturer-specific functions are provided for manufacturers to customize on their vehicles, allowing communication with their own systems . This has worked extremely well, which is one of the main reasons why Obd2 is still popular in 2023.
Of course, Obd2’s shortcomings are being exposed in the era of hybrid and electric vehicles, and the Obd3 standard is being developed to address these issues.
Like the OBD1 system, a fault in the vehicle’s system is indicated by an error light or ‘check engine’ light in the instrument cluster, and some vehicles may display an error message on the multi-information display or infotainment screen if equipped.
IV. How to read Obd2 data on my car?
The simplest way to read Obd2 data from your vehicle is to drive to a workshop and have them carry out a diagnostic scan. The workshops are well equipped with the tools and equipment to read Obd2 data from most vehicles and a diagnostic scan can take between 15 and 30 minutes.
