{"podcast":{"title":"Elixir Wizards","slug":"elixir-wizards","podcast_index_feed_id":674321,"rss_url":"https://feeds.fireside.fm/smartlogic/rss","website_url":"https://smartlogic.fireside.fm","image_url":"https://media24.fireside.fm/file/fireside-images-2024/podcasts/images/0/03a50f66-dc5e-4da4-ab6e-31895b6d4c9e/cover.jpg?v=3","author":"SmartLogic LLC","episode_count":201,"summary":"Elixir Wizards is an interview-style podcast from SmartLogic featuring conversations with developers, engineers, and industry leaders about the Elixir programming language and the broader software development landscape. Each episode explores how modern systems are built, from distributed architectures and infrastructure to developer workflows, security, and emerging technologies like AI. While rooted in the Elixir ecosystem, the show often branches out to compare approaches across languages, platforms, and disciplines. Whether you’re working in Elixir or just interested in how software is evolving, Elixir Wizards offers practical insights and thoughtful perspectives from the people building today’s systems.","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/elixir-wizards"},"episode":{"title":"Building an Open Vehicle Control System using Elixir and Nerves with Marc, Thibault, and Loïc","slug":"building-an-open-vehicle-control-system-using-elixir-and-nerves-with-marc-thibault-and-lo-c","published_at":"2024-12-26T11:30:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/elixir-wizards/building-an-open-vehicle-control-system-using-elixir-and-nerves-with-marc-thibault-and-lo-c","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/elixir-wizards","url":"https://smartlogic.fireside.fm/s13-e11-ovcs-vehicle-control-system-elixir-nerves-spin42","audio_url":"https://aphid.fireside.fm/d/1437767933/03a50f66-dc5e-4da4-ab6e-31895b6d4c9e/3657c934-7196-4133-948a-d186b2482df7.mp3","summary":"Engineers from Spin42 detail their journey retrofitting a 2007 VW Polo with an electric powertrain using Elixir and Nerves. The discussion explores building an Open Vehicle Control System (OVCS) to extend vehicle lifespans through open-source hardware and software.","meta_description":"Learn how Elixir and Nerves power an Open Vehicle Control System for retrofitting older cars with electric engines and modern digital interfaces.","key_points":["Main idea: Using Elixir GenServers to model independent vehicle components and coordinate them via a distributed architecture","Practical takeaway: Leveraging Nerves and the Erlang socket module to interface with the CAN bus and parse proprietary messages","Failure mode: The difficulty of reverse-engineering CAN messages and the risks of not documenting hardware traces before disassembly","Technical approach: Implementing a YAML-based DSL for CAN frame descriptions and building custom hardware to avoid unreliable off-the-shelf hats","Safety implementation: Designing fail-safe mechanisms, including software-level monitoring and physical emergency shutoff buttons"],"chapters":[{"start_ms":65000,"title":"Introduction to Spin42","summary":"The engineers introduce themselves and their background in the financial sector and startup ecosystem."},{"start_ms":290000,"title":"The Vision for Retrofitting","summary":"The motivation behind converting older internal combustion vehicles to electric power to meet new regulations and reduce waste."},{"start_ms":555000,"title":"Elixir for Vehicle Management","summary":"How GenServers mimic independent vehicle components and communicate over an internal bus."},{"start_ms":810000,"title":"Nerves and CAN Bus Integration","summary":"Using Nerves to handle CAN communication and the benefits of developing on a laptop without constant firmware uploads."},{"start_ms":1300000,"title":"Reverse Engineering Challenges","summary":"The technical hurdles and regrets encountered while attempting to decode proprietary CAN messages."},{"start_ms":1830000,"title":"Building the Infotainment System","summary":"Developing a custom touchscreen interface using Nerves to replace physical buttons for gear selection."},{"start_ms":2535000,"title":"Safety and Fail-safes","summary":"Implementing hardware and software safeguards to ensure system stability and emergency control."}],"topics":["Elixir","Nerves","Embedded Systems","CAN bus","Electric Vehicles","Open Source Hardware","Raspberry Pi","Automotive Engineering"],"duration_seconds":3259,"processing_state":"processed","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/elixir-wizards/episodes/building-an-open-vehicle-control-system-using-elixir-and-nerves-with-marc-thibault-and-lo-c/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/elixir-wizards/building-an-open-vehicle-control-system-using-elixir-and-nerves-with-marc-thibault-and-lo-c.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}