Looking for ideas - engine braking, need a brake light on to warn others

[FinalImpact]

Good point, I forgot about contaminants getting inside the pressure sensor. Even a tiny spec of dust or moisture will kill one. Those things are too sensitive for this application. Jeez, I must've been really tired when I posted that. Fridays, I swear! lol

Can't wait to see this thing finished. :thumbup:

FWIW; pressure transducers are used in plenty of harsh and dirty environments. The FZ's intake has one. They can handle it. If need be in line filters can be used but seldom is that required as there is no flow to create deposits. Just a dead end street so to speak of.

Flow meters and/or flow sensors on the other hand are very sensitive to contamination especially when the rates are low, i.e. below 1 ccm. Tiny particles can easily skew the calibration substantially! I guess it really depends on the type of sensor used. Hot wires and bridges are the most common and they are very fragile w/regards to contamination.

As you were.. .. .. but yes, the addition of a vacuum sensor with an A to D converter for the G force/position sensor would make this very robust if designed properly.

So the question is, can it all be done at a hardware level?

 

[pulsar2]

One thing I really overlooked is the most simple and straight forward solution - use the speed sensor on the bike. Maybe someone already thought about it, but I seriously overlooked the fact:spank: that the bike has a digital speedometer, and hence easy to interface than put fancy sensors all over the bike. Any idea where the sensor is? It would also help to know what rpm is measured at the sensor to know if the accuracy will be good enough.

 

[motojoe122]

One thing I really overlooked is the most simple and straight forward solution - use the speed sensor on the bike. Maybe someone already thought about it, but I seriously overlooked the fact:spank: that the bike has a digital speedometer, and hence easy to interface than put fancy sensors all over the bike. Any idea where the sensor is? It would also help to know what rpm is measured at the sensor to know if the accuracy will be good enough.

I have a speedo healer, can you tap off that?

 

[pulsar2]

I have a speedo healer, can you tap off that?

Yup, I think I get some good signal from that... Maybe we can get some testing done this weekend?

 

[motojoe122]

Yup, I think I get some good signal from that... Maybe we can get some testing done this weekend?

That may be a possibility:thumbup: Either sat afternoon or sunday morning:rockon:
I would think that it would work, the SH plugs into the ECU so it receives the signal, corrects it then sends it back out...I think:don'tknow:

 

[FinalImpact]

One thing I really overlooked is the most simple and straight forward solution - use the speed sensor on the bike. Maybe someone already thought about it, but I seriously overlooked the fact:spank: that the bike has a digital speedometer, and hence easy to interface than put fancy sensors all over the bike. Any idea where the sensor is? It would also help to know what rpm is measured at the sensor to know if the accuracy will be good enough.

What are your thoughts on using the bikes speed sensor?
It could be used be used to determine acceleration / deceleration rate over time, but like the vacuum thing, much testing is required to determine what constitutes a valid input for a brake signal we want the world to see.

IIRC it's a hall effect sensor so you need an high impedance amplifier circuit to buffer it and output as digital for use.

This is cool, people keep coming up with more ideas! :thumbup:

 

[jdoorn14]

Isn't this similar to what you're looking to design & build?

Unique motorcycle safety device aims to reduce rear-end collisions | Fox News

 

[pulsar2]

Isn't this similar to what you're looking to design & build?

Unique motorcycle safety device aims to reduce rear-end collisions | Fox News

Well, that IS the final solution if we take the accelerometer based design. The article says patented technology... does it mean that we cannot build a custom open source project which makes use of similar technology?

The other solution of sensing the speed to turn the brake lights on while decelerating is also available as a product. I am confused, can we open source a project which implements a solution, using similar technologies?

 

[FinalImpact]

No legal expert, but ideas are just that; ideas. We have taken nothing that we didn't find on our own so I see no need to be alarmed. It's not like we intend to compete. Then again - maybe one day! I do need income when this job ends!

Earlier it was brought up that we could use this for security purposes also. i.e. if the bike moves while not having other "valid inputs" like key on for example, it could be utilize more of the sensors abilities. With this it seems people might want to step up (pay for one) as it has more than one purpose and is worth investing in. :don'tknow:

 

[motojoe122]

I would think that if there is no copyright or patent on it, it's free game:thumbup:

 

[Ohendo]

Isn't this similar to what you're looking to design & build?

Unique motorcycle safety device aims to reduce rear-end collisions | Fox News

Love what you guys are doing with this idea, and I encourage you to keep at it. You recognized a need, and necessity is the mother of invention they say. Interesting how this 'Vololights' enterprise is hitting the market right now when I see that this thread started over a year ago. Who knows, this could have been some forum members had the wheels turned a bit quicker on the idea!

I'm pretty curious about the Vololights module, which will just wire in series with the brakelight vs. installing their bulky plate frame. I may even plop down the $69 to support the venture and obtain one when available. But I'll also keep tabs on your efforts here, and won't hesitate to support your "competing" technology when you have a finished solution. :cheer:

 

[pulsar2]

Latest update(accelerometer version):

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMZqUGk1hJs]accel - YouTube[/ame]

I will package it better this week before handing it to Joe(motojoe) for testing. For now it will be powered by AA batteries to minimize installation effort.

The speed sensor based one will take a bit more time since I need to build a bit more complex circuit to read the speed sensor value. Will keep you guys posted on this.

 

[pulsar2]

Accelerometer based device - bike test:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfvAjHcpqOA]accelerometer - bike test - YouTube[/ame]

Its been hard to find anytime to work on the project, but just a couple more days of work and I will be able to complete this one, along with the security feature I mentioned earlier.

Below is the latest iteration of the device(with bike keys for reference):

 

[motojoe122]

Looks good! Should we try for next weekend?

 

[pulsar2]

Looks good! Should we try for next weekend?

Sure, we will plan for next weekend.

One question - the Givi case on your bike - does it have the brake light connections available on it? I would like to mount the lights on the case if possible.

 

[motojoe122]

Sure, we will plan for next weekend.

One question - the Givi case on your bike - does it have the brake light connections available on it? I would like to mount the lights on the case if possible.

No, I dont have them hooked up. We would have to wire something up. I had thought about it but got side tracked with painting parts.