Live data

Live data shows what your car is doing right now, read from the EngineMon device plugged into it. This page covers opening it, reading its status, and setting up the dashboard on the web and in the phone app.

Open live data

Values only flow while the device is plugged in and the car is on, so start the car first.

On the web, live data belongs to a car. While a car is streaming, a Live (or Catching up) badge shows on its row in Cars, on the car page, and on its device's row and page. Click the badge, or the car's or device's row, to open it. A drive in Logs that's still recording opens it too. When nothing is streaming, the page says Not streaming right now and you can't edit the dashboard until values arrive.

In the phone app, you have more ways in:

On the car's screen, tap View live data. It's there whenever the car has a device, even with the engine off, so you can set up your dashboard in the driveway.
In the Garage, long-press a car and tap Live data, or tap a car's Streaming or Live badge.
Tap the live banner at the top of the app (Tap to view data), a live drive in the car's drive list, or the Engine started notification.
Android only: long-press the EngineMon app icon for shortcuts to your top three cars.

The web page keeps your screen awake. The phone keeps its screen on once values start arriving, and while Live data is open over Bluetooth the device stays awake too, even with the engine off.

What the status bar means

The bar at the top tells you whether the values are current. While data is live it also shows how many sensors are reporting and Engine on or Engine off. On the web it adds the delay, highlighted when it goes over 2 seconds.

On the web

Live: fresh values are arriving.
No signal: nothing for more than 5 seconds. Widgets keep their last values, grayed out and marked STALE, and the bar counts the seconds since the last reading. Check the car is on and the device is plugged in.
Waiting for device…: you're connected, but nothing has arrived yet, or nothing for over 30 seconds. Widgets show -. Start the car.
Catching up: the device is uploading what it recorded earlier, and the page shows Syncing old data. Live values appear once it's done. See what Catching up means.
Identifying car: the device hasn't confirmed which car it's in yet, so the values may not be from this car.
Car is off: the device is awake but can't reach the car, so only its own sensors update. Turn the ignition on.
Not plugged into a car: the device is on USB power, so only its own sensors update. Plug it into the car.
Connecting… or Reconnecting…: your browser is connecting to EngineMon and retries on its own. If it sticks, check your internet connection.
Disconnected from server: the page can't get this device's feed. If it also says "Live data isn't available for this device right now", you don't have access to it (see Who can watch).

In the phone app

Streaming: values are coming over Bluetooth straight to this phone.
Live: values are coming through EngineMon, from the device's own Wi-Fi or another phone.
No signal: same as the web. Values stay on screen, dimmed and marked STALE. Over Bluetooth, move the phone closer to the car.
Link lost: the Bluetooth link dropped and the app is retrying. If the device is also online, values from EngineMon fill the gap.
Catching up: the device is uploading earlier recordings. Over Bluetooth you see Syncing old data with its progress.
Waiting for data or Not connected: nothing has arrived yet, or nothing for over 30 seconds.
Error: the Bluetooth stream failed. If it keeps happening, see Troubleshooting.

Often the phone spells out the problem instead, like "Car is off. Turn the ignition on." or "Plug device into a vehicle and turn the ignition on." Do what it says. "Update the device firmware to see live CAN values." means the device needs a firmware update.

Build your dashboard

On the web, an empty dashboard has an Add a widget button. Once you have widgets, click Edit, then Add. Choose Sensor or Plot, pick what to show, and click Done. For a sensor, pick how to draw it:

Numeric: a large number.
Line chart: the reading over time.
Gauge: a semicircular dial.
Bar: a horizontal bar.

Gauges, line charts and bars need a sensor that reports a number, so yes/no sensors only get Numeric. The sensor list hides sensors that aren't reporting right now; click Show unavailable sensors at the bottom to pick one anyway.

Plot combines sensors: G-force plots lateral against longitudinal acceleration with a ring every 1 G, and Wheel slip shows each wheel's speed against the car's, rising while a wheel spins and dropping while it locks. Plot is only offered while the car streams the acceleration or all four wheel speeds it needs, and it shows a live preview before you add it.

In the phone app, tap Add your first widget on an empty dashboard. Otherwise tap the lock icon at the top to unlock the layout, then the + at the bottom right. The phone asks for the type first (Numeric, Line chart, Gauge, Bar or Plot), then the sensor or view. Tap Done.

Arrange and remove widgets

On the web, drag widgets to move or resize them while you're in edit mode. Each one has an Expand button to make it bigger (Restore puts it back), a gear for its settings, and an X to remove it. Click Done to lock the layout so you don't nudge it while driving. Clicking a widget while it's locked only shows Layout locked.

On the phone, unlock the layout and tap a widget to select it. Then drag it, resize it with its handle, or use its gear or X. Tap the lock icon again when you're done.

The gear opens Configure widget. What you can change depends on the type:

Label: leave it blank to use the sensor's name. Under Display (Type on the phone) you can switch the widget to another type.
Thresholds: set a Warning (amber) and a Danger (red) level, on the High side (at or above) and the Low side (at or below). Leave any of them empty for none. They have to go up in order: low danger, low warning, high warning, high danger.
Range (called Y axis on a line chart): Min and Max. Leave them on Auto and a gauge starts at zero and grows to fit, while a line chart fits the readings on screen.
Time window (line charts): 10 s up to 5 min, 30 s by default.
Appearance: color, decimal places, and on gauges Recent high and low markers for the last 5 minutes.

Ranges and thresholds follow your units, so they convert if you switch between °C and °F. Plots only have settings on the phone.

Tip: Set a high Danger threshold on oil temperature or RPM and the widget turns red the moment you cross it, which is easier to catch at a glance than a number.

Grid settings

These set how the whole dashboard is laid out:

On the web: click Edit, then the settings icon next to Add.
On the phone: unlock the layout, tap the sliders button at the bottom right to open Settings, then Grid.

Both have the same three settings: the number of columns, from 2 to 6 (called Columns on the web and Grid columns on the phone), the Card style (Default, or Dense to put widgets edge to edge) and Show borders. They're part of your layout, so they sync like everything else on it.

One layout everywhere, plus saved views

You have one dashboard layout, and it's the same for every car and device. It syncs between the web and the phone app, so a widget you add on your laptop shows up on your phone. If you want different setups, say one for the track and one for the commute, use saved views.

Open Saved views (the layers icon, shown while you're editing) and save the current layout under a name. The view you're on is marked Changes save here: any edit you make goes into it. Tap another view to switch. If your current layout isn't saved as a view yet, you're asked before it's replaced. Copying a view makes a new one with "copy" added to the name and leaves the original alone.

Saved views live on your account, so they're the same on the web and the phone. On the web, deleting a view happens right away without asking; the phone asks first.

EngineMon AI can open live data for you, switch to a saved view by name, change the number of columns, or add widgets.

Phone settings for live data

These are in the app's Settings, under App:

Open live data when streaming starts (on by default): opens Live data once per drive when a Bluetooth stream starts, while you're in the app.
Show live data on lock screen (Android only, on by default): keeps Live data visible when the phone is locked.
Auto-open on engine start (off by default): needs background sync turned on. When the engine starts, Android brings the app up on Live data, or posts an Engine started notification if it can't. iPhone posts the notification right away; tap View live data in it.

The live data screen has two more of its own. Unlock the layout, tap the sliders button, then Screen:

Full screen: hides the header and system bars right away (Always) or after 10 s, 30 s or 1 min untouched. Tap the screen to bring them back.
Status border: shows the connection status as a colored border around the screen, handy for a phone mounted on the dash.

The phone's live notification shows up to four readings, taken from your dashboard's Numeric, Gauge and Bar widgets.

Who can watch

Everyone you share the car with can watch it live, viewers included. See Who can do what for roles.

Live data follows the car. If your device is in someone else's car and you aren't a member of that car, you can't watch it.
While an access request for your device in someone else's car is pending, nobody can watch that drive.
On the web, only the device's owner sees the device name in the status bar as a link.

Use it without internet

The phone app streams over Bluetooth with no internet at all, as long as it has been online with that device at least once. Your layout works offline too. If Bluetooth drops while the device is also sending values online, the screen carries on with those.

Watching through EngineMon (Live on the phone) needs an internet connection and the app open on screen. The web always needs a connection.