MAHLE TechPRO OBD-II Smartbox User manual

MAHLE TechPRO®OBD-II Smartbox
EN Operation Manual
OBD-II Diagnostics

© MAHLE
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1. Information 3
1.1 Document warnings 3
1.2 Important notes 3
1.2.1 User group 3
1.2.2 Agreement 3
2. Product description 4
2.1 Application 4
2.2 Scope of delivery 4
2.3 Specifications 4
3. Product Use 4
3.1 Test OBD-II port before plug in scantool 4
3.1.1 Test without ignition key 4
3.1.2 Test with ignition key in ON position 6
3.1.3 Test with engine running 7
3.2 Monitor voltage during reflash programming 7
3.3 Detect communication protocol 8
3.4 As break out box 9
3.5 Check alternator condition 9
3.6 As power backup for ECU while
replacing car battery 10
3.7 As DC power source for other devices 10
4. Notes 11
Contents

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1. Information
1.1 Document warnings
Warning notices—Structure and meaning
Warning notices warn of dangers to the user or people in the
vicinity. Warning notices also indicate the consequences of the
hazard as well as preventive action. Warning notices have the
following structure:
Warning
symbol
KEY WORD – Nature and source of hazard!
Consequences of hazard in the event of failure to
observe action and information given.
hHazard prevention action and information.
The key word indicates the likelihood of occurrence and the
severity of the hazard in the event of non-observance:
Key word P r o b a b i l i t y o f
occurrence
Severity of danger if in-
structions not observed
DANGER Immediate impending
danger
Death or severe injury
WARNING Possible impending
danger
Death or severe injury
CAUTION Possible dangerous
situation
Minor injury
Symbols in this documentation
Symbol Designation Explanation
mAttention Warns about possible property damage.
tInformation Practical hints and other useful information.
1.
2.
Multi-step
operation Instruction consisting of several steps.
hOne-step
operation Instruction consisting of one step.
1.2 Important notes
Before start up, connecting and operating MAHLE
products it is absolutely essential that the Original
instructions/owner’s manual and, in particular, the
safety instructions are studied carefully. By doing so
you can eliminate any uncertainties in handling MAHLE products
and thus associated safety risks upfront; something which is in
the interests of your own safety and will ultimately help avoid
damage to the device. When a MAHLE product is handed over
to another person, all documentation and and information on
its designated use must be handed over to the person. Contact
MAHLE if you detect a problem that you cannot solve with this
manual.
1.2.1 User group
The product may be used by skilled and instructed personnel
only. Personnel scheduled to be trained, familiarized, instructed
or to take part in a general training course may only work with
the product under the supervision of an experienced person.
All work conducted on pressurized equipment may be performed
by persons with sufficient knowledge and experience in the field
of refrigeration, cooling systems and coolants and, also be aware
of the risks involved in the use of pressurized devices.
1.2.2 Agreement
By using the product you agree to the following regulations:
Copyright
Software and data are the property of MAHLE or its suppliers
and protected against copying by copyright laws, international
agreements and other national legal regulations. Copying or sell-
ing of data and software or any part thereof is impermissible and
punishable; in the event of any infringements MAHLE reserves
the right to proceed with criminal prosecution and to claim for
damages.

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2. Product description
2.1 Application
OBD-II Smartbox provides the following functions when it is
plugged into the car or truck Diagnostic Link Connector (DLC) port:
yTest OBD-II port before plug in Scantool
yMonitor voltage during reflash programming
yDetect communication protocol
yAs Break Out Box
yCheck alternator condition
yAs Power backup for ECU (Keep Alive Memory (KAM) chip)
while replacing car battery
yAs DC power source for other devices
2.2 Scope of delivery
Description
OBD-II Smartbox
2.3 Specifications
Feature Value/Range
Operating range 7.0 - 30 VDC input
Maximum load Up to 5.0 Amps output
Overload protection Yes - PTC fuse (self-healing)
Monitoring voltages Beeper ON: <11.8V, 15.2-24V, >28V
Off after 30 sec
Volt displays 3 digit LEDs, Resolution: 0.1V
Banana sockets 16 outputs x ø4.0mm with LED lamp in-
dicators
Protocols detected PWM (J1850), VPW (J1850), ISO 9141-2,
DIS/ISO 14230-4, Canbus (J-2284)
Operating temperature 50-122°F (0 – 50°C)
Permitted humidity <70%
OBD cable length 5 ft (1.5 m)
Reverse polarity protection Yes - LED lights up with correct polarity
Battery use on OBD Lamp 3V Lithium Battery (Model: CR1220)
3. Product Use
3.1 Test OBD-II port before plug in scantool
The OBD-II Smartbox performs tests on all 16 pins of the OBD-II
port for abnormalities caused by shorting, reverse polarity, etc.
in order to avoid damage to your scan tool prior to plugging in.
tTest is carried out with ignition key in the OFF, ON and ENGINE
RUNNING conditions.
3.1.1 Test without ignition key
1. Connect the OBD-II Smartbox to the OBD-II port on the vehicle.
2. The testing of the DLC port starts automatically as soon as
the OBD-II Smartbox is plugged into it.
tThis test is to check the condition of all pins before the ignition
key is switched on.
Voltmeter LED
As soon as it powers up, the voltmeter will display voltage input.
Notice the alarm beeps on teh following condition:
yFor 12V system: The alarm 'beep" will trigger ON (once at
a time for 30 seconds) when the voltage falls below 11.8V
yFor 24V system: The alarm 'beep" will trigger ON (twice
at a time for 30 seconds) when the voltage falls below 23.8V
Fig. 1: Voltage alarm
When the battery falls below 11.8V for 12V system or 23.8V for
24V system, the alarm will come on. In this case, you may need
to start the engine to run for some time to charge the battery or
replace with a new battery and then test again.

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Pins LED
Testing of the 16 pins individually will also begin immediately with
the following conditions:
yTo detect any voltage present on Car Manufacturer designated
pins No. 1, 3, 8, 9, 11, 12 and 13 (yellow color socket) and
OBD-II assigned protocol pins 2, 6, 7, 10, 14, 15 (blue color
socket) and pin 16 (red color socket) which is positive supply
12V or 24V.
yWhen there is a presence of voltage detected at a particular
pin or other pins on the Manufacturer designated ones, the
LED at the socket will blink in different ways depending on
the voltage detected:
Manufacturer designated pins (yellow color socket)
a. If there is 12V present (below 11.8V or above 15.2V) in
any Manufacturer Designated pins – the respective LED
will blink slowly at interval of 1 sec between each blink.
(The ‘Caution – Check LED will illuminate).
b. If there is a negative voltage present in any Manufac-
turer Designated Pins – the corresponding LED will light
steady. (The ‘Caution – Check’ LED will illuminate).
c. If there is 24V present (below 23.8V or above 29.2V) in
any Manufacturer Designated Pins– the LED will blink
fast. (The ‘Caution – Check’ LED will illuminate).
OBD-II assigned protocol pins (blue color socket)
a. If there is 12V present (below 11.8V or above 15.2V) – the
respective LED will blink slowly at interval of 1 sec be-
tween each blink with a short beep alarm for 5 sec. (The
‘Caution – Check LED will illuminate).
b. If there is a negative voltage present – the corresponding
LED will light steady with a long beep alarm for 5 sec.
(The ‘Caution – Check’ LED will illuminate).
c. If there is 24V present (below 23.8V or above 29.2V)– the
LED will blink fast with a loud beep for 5 sec. (The ‘Cau-
tion – Check’ LED will illuminate).
If any of the above situations is encountered, do not plug in your
Scan tool. Please check and compare the OBD-II circuit connec-
tion with vehicle Repair Manual for the reason of the shorting.
This is because under normal circumstances when the ignition
key is OFF, the ECU is also in the OFF state and there will be no
communication signals or voltage output to the rest of the pins
except pin 4 which is chassis ground and pin 16, the positive
power output supplied from the battery direct.

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3.1.2 Test with ignition key in ON position
If the first test did not indicate any problem, then proceed with
the second test. With the OBD-II Smartbox still attached to the
vehicle DLC, switch the ignition key to ON position then press
Retest button on the OBD-II Smartbox once.
The test starts immediately with the testing of all the 14 pins other
than pin 4 chassis ground and pin 16 positive Voltage supply. At
the same time it will detect the type of communication protocol
(PWM, VPW, ISO 9141-2, ISO 14230-4, CAN H, and CAN L)
that the ECU is using and the blue LEDs will blink indicating the
protocol currently being used.
Ifany voltagepresentonvehicleManufacturerdesignatedpinsNo.1,
3, 8, 11, 12 & 13 (yellow color socket) other than OBD2 assigned
protocol pins 2, 6, 7, 10, 14, 15 (blue color socket) and 5 (Signal
ground), the corresponding LED will light in the following manners:
yIf there is 12V present– the LED will blink slowly at interval of 1 sec
between each blink. (The ‘Caution – Check LED will illuminate).
yIf there is 24V present – the LED will blink fast. (The ‘Caution
– Check LED will illuminate).
In situation where there is 12V or 24V present at the pin, the
voltage was either supplied direct short or through a resistor. Its
resistance value is normally not more than 20Ώ.
However, when a voltage 0V is supplied from the other end of the
Scan tool to this pin, a current bigger than 0.6A will flow. This indi-
cation serves as a warning when using Scan tool without current
limiter built-in because this voltage may damage it when plugged in.
In many cases, Vehicle Manufacturers do provide some pins on
the OBD-II Diagnostic Link Connector (DLC) at the vehicle for
RPM signals or Sensors signals used for testing or adjustment.
These signals are usually found on any of the Manufacturer des-
ignated pins No.1, 3, 8, 11, 12 &13 on the DLC. Therefore such
signals will be detected and indicated as “Caution – Check”.
In other words, you can still plug in and use your scan tool but
with risk in case where the Scan tool has no protection.
It is also important to note that the presence of voltage in one of
the pins maybe one of the reasons why sometimes communica-
tion failed between Scan tool and ECU because of the presence
of the 12V or 24V shorting.
However, almost all Scan tools nowadays come with protective
current circuit and this indication should not be accepted as
danger but served as a warning.

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3.1.3 Test with engine running
When the second test has completed, proceed with the third and
final test. With the OBD-II Smartbox still attached to the vehicle
DLC, start and keep the engine running. Press the Retest button
on the OTM. The test starts and it will repeat as in the second
test but this time it will test for over 15V or 29V presence while
the engine is running.
If the voltage is higher than 15.2V for 12V system or 29.2V for
24V system, the alarm will also come on. In this situation, the
problem was caused by the regulator which had failed to regu-
late and cut OFF after reaching the preset charging voltage limit
normally set below 15V.
Also, if over 15.2V for 12V system or 29.2V for 24V system is
detected at the input or any of the vehicle Manufacturer desig-
nated pins No.1, 3, 8, 9, 11, 12 & 13 (yellow color socket) other
than OBD-II assigned protocol pins 2, 6, 7, 10, 14, 15 (blue color
socket) the LED will blink at a very fast pace. (The ‘Caution –
Check LED will illuminate).
In this case, do not plug and test with the Scan tool while engine
running as this high voltage input may damage it. Check the
charging volts to determine whether the regulator is functioning
properly.
Under normal conditions when after all the testing of the vehicle
DLC port has been done, where there are no abnormal activities,
the green ‘OK’ LED will light up. This indicates everything is OK
and it is ready for Scan tool to be plugged in.
3.2 Monitor voltage during reflash pro-
gramming
The OBD-II Smartbox can also be used to monitor OBD-II port
power output in order to ensure proper function during ECU
programming, adaptation or flashing.
The OBD-II Smartbox has a voltage monitoring feature with
voltage display which will sound an alarm warning when the
voltage falls outside a certain range. For 12V systems, the alarm
will sound if the voltage falls below 11.8V or rises above 15.1V.
For 24V systems, the alarm will sound if the voltage falls below
23.8V or rises higher than 29.2V while doing programming or
coding. This feature will minimize any error while performing
EPROM re-flashing.

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3.3 Detect communication protocol
This method of use is to detect and monitor which type of com-
munication protocol the ECU is using, whether PWM (J1850),
VPW (J1850), ISO 9141-2, DIS/ISO 14230-4 or Can bus (J-2284).
LEDs signals:
OBD-II Smartbox LEDs allows you to keep taps on power and
ground. It identifies the protocol used in the vehicle.
1. RED LEDs (Pin 16) - automatically turn-on as soon as you
plugged into DLC. RED LEDs turn dim when:
— Low battery voltage - refer to Voltmeter and alarm will
beep (below 11.8V for 12V system and 23.8V for 24V
system). Wiring to DLC pin 16 is faulty. Ground circuits
have resistance issues.
2. BLACK LEDs (Pins 4 – Chassis and 5 - Signal) - automatically
turn-on as soon as you plugged into DLC. Ground LED (Pin 5)
is connected to battery voltage via ECU. Therefore, a ground
supply on pin 4 will not affect LED 5. A dim single green LED
will indicate a circuit problem with the corresponding circuit. In
remote case where if there is reverse polarity; the Green LED
will turn into RED color. When this happens, check the vehicle
DLC connector for wrong polarity. Rectify first and test again.
3. BLUE LEDs (Pins 2, 6, 7, 10, 14 and 15) - LEDs should flash
when serial data voltage pulses are present in the data line.
— Blue LEDs is assigned on pins 2, 6, 7, 10, 14 and 15 to
indicate communication with scan tool or interface and
for communication protocol identification. It will turn-on
depend on your vehicle model. For some vehicle model,
one or multiple blue LEDs will turn-on as soon as the
OBD-II Smartbox is connected and you start the igni-
tion. The brightness of the LEDs depends on the nature
of the signal it's pursuing. This OBD-II Smartbox can
identify immediately the protocol used. The better way
to identify the protocol in use is to set-up the scan tool
or interface in to LIVE DATA. This will lead in a constant
data stream between the scan tool and the vehicle, and
then you can locate the LEDs that are flashing.
4. GREY LEDs (Pins 1, 3, 8, 9, 11, 12, and 13) - it should flash
when your vehicle manufacturer use either one on the pins
for any function they prefer.
Pin Assignments
Pin # SAE Designation
1 - Discretionary
2 - Bus + Line of SAE J1850 (PWM/VPW)
3 - Discretionary
4 - Chassis Ground
5 - Signal Ground
6 - CAN High of SAE J2284 (ISO 15765-4)
7 - K Line ( ISO 9141-2 and ISO 14230-4)
8 - Discretionary
9 - Discretionary
10 - Bus-Line of SAE J1850(PWM)
11 - Discretionary
12 - Discretionary
13 - Discretionary
14 - CAN Low of SAE J2284 (ISO 15765-4)
15 - L Line (ISO 9141-2 and ISO 14230-4)
16 - Unswitched Vehicle Battery Positive
Pins listed as "Discretionary" indicate that the vehicle manu-
facturers may used them for specified purpose. Check with the
manufacturer's specifications for these connections. For voltage
and current limits, refer to SAE J1962 (ISO 15031-3.3). Test tool
must not draw more than 1.5 amps through the pin number 5
(Signal ground).
Helpful Tips:
tWhen activating some ABS and diagnostics wires to recover
flash code, you can use pin 4.
tIf red (power) and green (grounds) LEDs turned dim or flicker-
ing when you plugged a scan tool supplied via DLC, it indicate
a problem with your vehicle wiring that causes the voltage
to drop.

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3.4 As break out box
The OBD-II Smartbox provides easy access to any of the 16 pins
from the OBD-II DLC port for gathering of signal pulses when diag-
nosing with an oscilloscope, for data logging when used with a Y-
cable, easy activation of blink codes, adjustment of idling rpm, etc.
This OBD-II Smartbox is a pass-through breakout box for the
OBD-II DLC (diagnostic link connector). It can be connected to
your OBD-II compatible tools: such as scan tools, code readers,
monitor readers or data loggers.
Fig. 2: Utilizing OBD-II Smartbox as a break out box
Any tool that uses a standard test lead or probe that use 4mm
banana plugs (including those with safety heaths) can be plugged
to OBD-II Smartbox’s 16 pins sockets, these include, lab scopes,
multi-meter, logic probes, test lights, etc to read the voltage,
resistance, frequency, pulse width or duty cycle.
Pin 16 sockets is protected by a self- recovery fuse rated at 5 amps.
Jumper cable and Blink Code cables are standard accessory:
— Jumper cable: for direct pin to pin or stacking connection
while scanning or perform special functions and tests.
— Blink Code Cable - N/O (Normally Open) contact switch
cable for Reset, Adaptation or codes activation.
Fig. 3: Jumper cable for OBD-II Smartbox
Fig. 4: Blink code cable for OBD-II Smartbox
Some Typical Applications:
— VW - To protect the Scan tool such as aftermarket radios
on VW's
— GM - Transmitter Programming on some GMs
— Honda - Set the ECM in SCS mode with your scan tool
connected
— Lexus - Help diagnose electronics systems (Sirius, GPS)
on pin 6 and 14
— Bosch - Troubleshoot Bosch controllers that short to
ground
— Proton - needs to short pin 1 to ground in order to access
into OBD2 functions.
— Toyota Avanza - the base RPM can only be achieved by
shorting pin 4 and 12
3.5 Check alternator condition
The OBD-II Smartbox also can be used to perform a quick Al-
ternator charging check during idling and high RPM conditions.
Fig. 5: Voltage display
With ignition key in OFF position; plug OBD-II Smartbox into
the car DLC without connecting the scan tool. Switch key to ON
position and the volt LED will display the battery voltage. Start
the engine; observe the voltage display while the engine is idling.
It should be above 12.6 Volts for 12V system or 25.2V for 24V
system. If not, check for loose drive belt.
Then rev engine up to 3,000rpm and observe the change in volt-
age. If the voltage is above 15.2 Volts for 12V battery or 29.2V
for 24V battery, the alarm will beep indicating that the charging
voltage is too high. In this case, the regulator may be faulty and
it needs to be checked.
Then switch ON all electrical loads, rev engine to 2,000rpm and
observe the changes in voltage at the tool. The voltage should
above 13.6 Volts for 12V system and 27.6V for 24V system. If the
voltage is below, check for loose drive belt and the Alternator.

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3.6 As power backup for ECU while re-
placing car battery
The OBD-II Smartbox also acts as a method to feed power to
the ECU. For the last 10 to 15 years, car ECUs were designed
to have Keep Alive Memory (KAM) chip that allows it to maintain
normal vehicle performances by compensating for sensors and
parts wears. This KAM chip needs power to store all the data
gathered and it will lost if power is disconnected. Therefore it
is essential to provide power to the ECU while replacing the
car battery.
Fig. 6: Connecting OBD-II Smartbox as power backup
1. ConnecttheOBD-IIcablewithbatteryclipstoOBD-IISmartbox.
2. Turn ignition key to OFF position and connect the tool to the
car DLC.
3. Attach the battery clip to an external battery (not the battery
from the same car).
tIf the external battery voltage is above 12V, the battery volt
indicator LED on the Data saver cable will light up. Now it is
ready to proceed for replacing the car battery.
4. After job done, remove the battery clips from the external
battery, unplug OBD-II Smartbox from the car.
tThe data saver cable comes with surge voltage protection,
short circuit and polarity protection.
3.7 As DC power source for other devices
The OBD-II Smartbox can function as a power source for other
DC loads up to 5 Amps DC output at pin 4 (Ground) and pin16
(+) Socket.
While connected to the DLC, you can tap +12V or +24V depend-
ing on the power input at the DLC connector red banana socket
(pin 16) and Chassis Ground (-) at black banana socket (pin 4)
to power other DC loads. This voltage will also be displayed on
its digital display.
Fig. 7: Use as a power source

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4. Notes

2017-10-30
035 82569 00
MAHLE Aftermarket Inc.
10 Innovation Drive
York, PA 17402
USA
717-840-0678
www.servicesolutions.mahle.com