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Delphi OBD Quick Start

This quick start shows how to scaffold a Skia-enabled OBD UI with the updated package wizards and non-visual components.

What the wizards generate

  • Main Form Wizard now drops the touch header, subheader, status bar, and a circular gauge alongside non-visual components:
    • TOBDConnectionComponent preconfigured for a serial adapter (COM1 @ 38400 baud).
    • TOBDProtocolComponent bound to the connection with auto-binding enabled.
    • TOBDHeaderComponent and TOBDSubheaderComponent wired to the visual header/subheader for caption and indicator updates.
    • TOBDGaugeComponent bound to the gauge for automatic value application.
  • Form Wizard mirrors the same visual and non-visual scaffold so secondary forms can participate in the same binding pattern.
  • Data Module Wizard seeds shared connection and protocol components for reuse across forms.

How to build a connected UI in minutes

  1. Create a new project with the ERDesigns OBD Mainform wizard to get the pre-wired controls.
  2. If you need additional screens, add forms with the ERDesigns OBD Form wizard; they arrive with the same bindings.
  3. Add an OBD data module through the ERDesigns OBD DataModule wizard to host shared connection/protocol components and point your forms to them.
  4. Update the generated SerialPort (and other connection properties) on the connection component to match your adapter, then press Connect through your UI flow.

Customizing bindings

  • Switch the ConnectionType property on the generated connection components to Bluetooth, WiFi, or FTDI and fill in the matching properties.
  • Override header or subheader captions by assigning resolver events on the respective controller components.
  • Swap the gauge value resolver if your protocol emits a different message shape; keep AutoApplyValue enabled for UI-thread-safe updates.

Notes

  • All generated controls stay within the Skia rendering path; no GDI or GDI+ primitives are emitted by the scaffolded forms.
  • The non-visual components are design-time friendly and expose IntelliSense comments on their declarations for discoverability.
  • Prefer the ready-made projects under examples/ when you want a runnable baseline for a minimal connect/read/clear workflow or for serial, Bluetooth, WiFi, FTDI, simple, or advanced dashboards.

What's New in v3.79

  • Async UDS client (OBD.OEM.UdsClient.Async) — future-returning facade over IOBDUdsClient so UI threads can fire-and-await every diagnostic call without blocking. Cooperative cancellation via IOBDCancellationToken.
  • Cross-platform DoIP (OBD.Protocol.DoIP.Session.Cross) — TCP-side ISO 13400-2 §8 implementation on System.Net.Socket (Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android), no Indy or Synapse dependency.
  • DoIP TLS (OBD.Protocol.DoIP.Session.TLS) — ISO 13400-3 §7, TCP/3496, mutual TLS via Indy + OpenSSL. TLS 1.2 minimum.
  • Capture/replay transport — TCaptureReplayTransport parses recorded .obdlog pairs for deterministic UDS testing.
  • Catalog Browser (examples/catalogbrowser) — VCL app that walks every shipped OEM catalog (ECUs / DIDs / Routines / Coding Blocks / Adaptations / Actuator Tests / Live PIDs / DTC Extended Data).
  • Coverage harness (tools/coverage/) — delphi-code-coverage against the DUnitX runner, emits HTML + Cobertura + LCOV.
  • 79 OEM catalogs / 247,279 entries / 5 vehicle classes (33 new motorcycles, agricultural, marine, powersports catalogs in v3.78).

See CHANGELOG.md for the full history.

Troubleshooting

Component Installation Issues

Problem: Components don't appear in Tool Palette
Solution:

  1. Reinstall DesignTime.dpk package
  2. Verify library path includes the Delphi-OBD folder
  3. Restart Delphi IDE

Problem: "Skia4Delphi not found" error
Solution: Install Skia4Delphi from GetIt Package Manager

Problem: "Cannot find specified module" error when installing DesignTime package
Solution:

  1. Ensure Skia4Delphi is properly installed via GetIt Package Manager
  2. The packages output BPLs to $(BDSCOMMONDIR)\Bpl so the Skia DLL is on the IDE's search path
  3. First install RunTime.dpk, then DesignTime.dpk

Rendering Issues

Problem: Blank or black components
Solution:

  1. Check that Skia4Delphi is properly installed
  2. Verify component Visible := True and proper Align settings
  3. Do not set DoubleBuffered := True on the parent form — TSkCustomControl already buffers and form-level double buffering interferes with it (see docs/COMPONENT_AUTHORING.md §10).

Problem: Jerky or stuttering animations
Solution:

  1. Reduce FramesPerSecond property (try 30 instead of 60)
  2. Check CPU usage - ensure no other processes consuming resources
  3. Verify Animation.Duration is reasonable (500-1000ms recommended)

Connection Issues

Problem: Cannot connect to OBD adapter
Solution:

  1. Verify correct COM port (check Device Manager)
  2. Ensure engine is running (required by most adapters)
  3. Try different baud rates: 38400, 115200, 9600
  4. Check adapter is powered and has a good connection

Problem: No data received after connection
Solution:

  1. Ensure AutoDetect := True on protocol component
  2. Check that vehicle supports OBD-II (1996+ for US vehicles)
  3. Verify adapter LED is blinking (indicates communication)
  4. Try manual protocol selection if auto-detect fails

Performance Issues

Problem: High CPU usage
Solution:

  1. Reduce FramesPerSecond to 30
  2. Disable animations on non-critical components
  3. Increase update intervals (reduce polling frequency)

Problem: Memory usage grows over time
Solution:

  1. Check for memory leaks using FastMM4
  2. Limit number of simultaneously visible components

Common Errors

Error: "Access violation at address..."
Solution: Make sure you're on a recent v3.x release; all PaintSkia paths are now guarded.

Additional Resources

  • Main Documentation: See README.md for comprehensive API reference
  • Examples: Check examples/ folder for runnable samples
  • Issues: Report bugs at GitHub Issues