OpenPilot on the F-150 (BlueCruise alternative)

[hitchhiker]

For those unfamiliar, OpenPilot is an open-source driver assistance software primarily developed by comma.ai. You can run it on any hardware you'd like, or purchase a device from them. It is designed to provide level 2 driver assistance capability similar to BlueCruise and other hands-free systems.

Recently, support was added for various Ford vehicles, though our F-150s are not yet officially supported. I'm a software engineer with a penchant for early adoption who is greatly disappointed with BlueCruise, so I decided to take the plunge and recently ordered one of their 3x devices.

I was going to wait for my device to come in before starting a thread, but discussion around OpenPilot has started up in a few different threads recently, so I decided to start one now.

Your vehicle of course does not require BlueCruise in order to support OpenPilot. This chart, from the OpenPilot Ford wiki page, should help you determine whether your vehicle can be supported. NOTE: This doesn't necessarily mean your truck will be supported yet, just that support is possible (maybe in the future).

I'll try to keep this OP up to date as I document my own experience with it, as well as important info that others may post in the thread. Let's try to keep this focused on OpenPilot and its support/compatibility with our vehicles. If you'd like to argue its safety vs OEM systems, its unsuitability for mass-market consumption or anything else, please go ahead and start a separate thread for that!

Info:

Our trucks use a CAN-FD platform. This hardware is supported by the latest Comma 3x device, with the Ford Q4 harness. When ordering, search the harness dropdown for Ford and scroll to the bottom, where you will find it listed under development harnesses.

If you already have a previous version of the Comma device, you will need their "panda" CAN-FD kit to interface with the gen14 F-150. The Comma 3x has the panda built in.

You will need a USB-C 3.1 gen 2 cable long enough to run from the driver's footwell up the headliner. If you wish to use the right-angle cable included with the Comma 3x, a USB 3.1 extension will work.

The Comma device uses the OBD2 port. If you have any other OBD2 device you'd like to use along with it, you will need an OBD2 splitter. It's probably best to unplug the Comma/Splitter and connect to OBD2 directly when using FDRS or Forscan.

Links:
OpenPilot Ford Wiki
Mach-e forum OpenPilot thread
comma.ai

Helpful posts from this thread:

Install video
Install instructions (text)

Installer URLs:

URL	Description
installer.comma.ai/commaai/master	comma.ai official openpilot
installer.comma.ai/commaai/ford-comfort	Branch with improved Lateral control
installer.comma.ai/tinkerborg/master	Openpilot master branch with hard-coded F-150 signature
installer.comma.ai/tinkerborg/ford-comfort	Openpilot ford-comfort branch with hard-coded F-150 signature, updated with latest changes from master
installer.comma.ai/tinkerborg/sunny-master	Sunnypilot master branch, with hard-coded F-150 signature, updated with latest changes from openpilot master
installer.comma.ai/tinkerborg/sunny-ford-comfort WARNING: YOU MUST UNPLUG YOUR COMMA.AI DEVICE BEFORE USING FORSCAN OR FDRS	Sunnypilot master branch, with hard-coded F-150 signature, updated with latest changes from openpilot ford-comfort

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[rugedraw]

Interesting. Is it a one-time purchase fee, or does it require a monthly/yearly subscription, as well? Seeing that Ford wants $900 a year for BC to work after the trial expires, if it is a one-time charge, this seems like a no-brainer for people that like and use ADAS,

 

[HammaMan]

Interesting. Is it a one-time purchase fee, or does it require a monthly/yearly subscription, as well? Seeing that Ford wants $900 a year for BC to work after the trial expires, if it is a one-time charge, this seems like a no-brainer for people that like and use ADAS,

This is more FSD beta competitor than BC. Curious if it has access to the sensors in the vehicle or if it's entirely vision based.

Bluecruise is highway gated, this can see traffic lights as well as navigate on surface streets. It's still a beta product for more advanced features so it's not for everyone, but its lane centering is much better than the current lane centering software we've got.

 

[Buyer2021]

@hitchhiker thanks for the OP, I'm not a software engineer by any stretch of the imagination but the topic is of vicarious interest to me.

Nope, there's zero chance I'll ever venture to add any aftermarket driver assistance to my vehicles, but that doesn't dampen my interest in the subject.

You seem to be effective in communicating to both 'lay persons' like myself and 'experts', so I'm hoping you'll keep that up and I'm looking forward to watching this thread and learning.

 

[Eskram]

Interesting.

I followed the comma project years ago, but haven't kept up with progress. The guy that started comma.ai is a legit genius - first to carrier unlock the iPhone (when he was 17), untethered jailbreaks for the iphone and jailbreak the PS3 (and subsequently sued for it).

Definitely curious about how this will work on the F150.

 

[hitchhiker]

Interesting. Is it a one-time purchase fee, or does it require a monthly/yearly subscription, as well? Seeing that Ford wants $900 a year for BC to work after the trial expires, if it is a one-time charge, this seems like a no-brainer for people that like and use ADAS,

No subscription required. It’s free and open source. The device actually arrives with no software installed. They do have a cloud service with a subscription fee that adds additional functionality.

https://www.comma.ai/connect

It is an alternative for BC, sure, but only for a specific audience comfortable with installing and configuring this kind of device.

This is more FSD beta competitor than BC. Curious if it has access to the sensors in the vehicle or if it's entirely vision based.

Bluecruise is highway gated, this can see traffic lights as well as navigate on surface streets. It's still a beta product for more advanced features so it's not for everyone, but its lane centering is much better than the current lane centering software we've got.

I don’t believe longitudinal control is currently working on our trucks, which means gas and brake are currently controlled by the OEM system. When that’s working some limited functionality similar to Tesla FSD does exist. It won’t ever be on par at least with the current hardware, due to lack of input, ie limited sensors compared to an OEM solution. That could definitely change in the future.

The fact that is not restricted to highways is the biggest draw to me. The vast majority of my driving is on rural Maine roads and state highways. It’s rare that I drive on the interstate and it’s usually only for a few miles. Many of the surface roads have faded or no lane marking, which is another situation OP can handle where the OEM tech falters.

 

[Meterman]

Very interesting, I’m curious to see what comes of this. I have BC, Co-Pilot, Lane centering but having it not limited to the highway is of interest.

 

[nomarhits400]

Interesting.

I followed the comma project years ago, but haven't kept up with progress. The guy that started comma.ai is a legit genius - first to carrier unlock the iPhone (when he was 17), untethered jailbreaks for the iphone and jailbreak the PS3 (and subsequently sued for it).

Definitely curious about how this will work on the F150.

GeoHot!

 

[Eskram]

GeoHot!

Here's a throwback -

Anyway, back to the regularly scheduled program. Keep us posted on progress on OpenPilot!

 

[Ajzride]

Other than the shopping list; (Comma3x and Ford Q4 Harness) there is likely to be little information available until the hardware arrives for someone. Mine is on a 1-8 week back order and I think the others are as well.

 

[Sapphire]

It's super tempting to dive into this. My background is in engineering too. I'm going to start by familiarizing myself with the code.

 

[hitchhiker]

Other than the shopping list; (Comma3x and Ford Q4 Harness) there is likely to be little information available until the hardware arrives for someone. Mine is on a 1-8 week back order and I think the others are as well.

Yup, same here. When did you order?

 

[Ajzride]

The 8 degree mounts that our F150s most likely require are out of stock, so I'm going to 3D print a batch this weekend. Send me a PM with shipping address if you want one.

 

[rpold150]

It definitely looks like a good option when the BC trial period ends. I watched a couple videos and among features mentioned above, this also supports the blinker lane change that comes with BC 1.2.

The device has a camera to monitor the driver's face. I wish it would be able to instead use the IR cameras that may already be in the F150s so we wouldn't have to mount a device on the windshield. The comma device is relatively large, but I suspect new versions to shrink in the future.

 

[hitchhiker]

The device has a camera to monitor the driver's face. I wish it would be able to instead use the IR cameras that may already be in the F150s so we wouldn't have to mount a device on the windshield. The comma device is relatively large, but I suspect new versions to shrink in the future.

Yes, I'd really like to be able to use the existing camera for driver monitoring, as well as the existing external cameras to drive OpenPilot. It's something I'm planning on exploring once I have a better handle on OP itself.

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