Bicycle lights and computers

[Gökhan SEVER]

Hello,

I bought a new bike a few days ago which could be seen at this link:
http://img127.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gsbikexc6.jpg

Even though I have some cat-eyes on my bike I want to add some additional
led lights on it to make my night-travels safer. I have some spare power
leds for this purpose. Also some regular leds for the purpose of building a
fancy propeller type led lighting (the ones that are attached onto spokes,
and make customized light patterns on wheels)

I have seen some cool cycle-computers on the web. Unfortunately many of them
is more expensive than my bike (By the way, I got it with a great discount -
it is just about $120). Probably I will use my Atmel AVR Butterfly kit which
has an LCD built on it. The kits fits very well on the handle bars of the
bike.

I am sure we have cyclists (well exactly hobbyist cyclists who like to build
their own electronics stuff for their bikes) here. I would like to hear some
recommendations and guidelines about my intended designs. Where should I
start? What are your recommended web-sites for hobbyist bike electronics? I
would be very pleased to know if you have any additional ideas to make my
trips more enjoyable and safer.

Thank you to all who read and response my posting.
Gökhan SEVER.
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[David VanHorn-2]

Have a look at Osram Diamond Dragon LEDs for general illumination.
Very efficient, very bright.
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[Andy Tuthill]

Hello,

Try this link http://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php?f=259 to the bike forums web site.  This sub forum is dedicated to lights, electronics, etc. and will have more information that you will need.  You might also find the rest of the site a good reference as well for other cycling questions.  

Regards,
Andy

> Date: Sat, 3 May 2008 00:14:35 +0300
> From: gstr2005@...
> To: piclist@...
> Subject: [EE] Bicycle lights and computers
>
> Hello,
>
> I bought a new bike a few days ago which could be seen at this link:
> http://img127.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gsbikexc6.jpg
>
> Even though I have some cat-eyes on my bike I want to add some additional
> led lights on it to make my night-travels safer. I have some spare power
> leds for this purpose. Also some regular leds for the purpose of building a
> fancy propeller type led lighting (the ones that are attached onto spokes,
> and make customized light patterns on wheels)
>
> I have seen some cool cycle-computers on the web. Unfortunately many of them
> is more expensive than my bike (By the way, I got it with a great discount -
> it is just about $120). Probably I will use my Atmel AVR Butterfly kit which
> has an LCD built on it. The kits fits very well on the handle bars of the
> bike.
>
> I am sure we have cyclists (well exactly hobbyist cyclists who like to build
> their own electronics stuff for their bikes) here. I would like to hear some
> recommendations and guidelines about my intended designs. Where should I
> start? What are your recommended web-sites for hobbyist bike electronics? I
> would be very pleased to know if you have any additional ideas to make my
> trips more enjoyable and safer.
>
> Thank you to all who read and response my posting.
> Gökhan SEVER.
> --
> http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive
> View/change your membership options at
> http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist

_________________________________________________________________
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[Vitaliy-2]

LadyAda sells a kit for $37.50:

http://tinyurl.com/44cxza
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[Martin Klingensmith]

Hello Gökhan,
I am interested in building my own cycle computer. I have a small 2x8
LCD that might be good for the purpose. I think I'll build a circuit
with a PIC 18F, 2 AA batteries, in a clear plastic enclosure. That's my
plan thus far!
-
Martin

Gökhan SEVER wrote:

> I have seen some cool cycle-computers on the web. Unfortunately many of them
> is more expensive than my bike (By the way, I got it with a great discount -
> it is just about $120). Probably I will use my Atmel AVR Butterfly kit which
> has an LCD built on it. The kits fits very well on the handle bars of the
> bike.
>

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[Gökhan SEVER]

Thanks for the advices so far. The forum link is very good indeed. It is the
kind of place that I have been looking for. I have found another good link
mainly for bicycle lighting design (http://www.audax.uk.net/lights/) It has
more information than I need :)

Circuit Cellar 184 November 2005 issue has an article titled as
"Multifunctional Bicycle Design" A design that was made by MAXQ2000 MCU.
This set up contains a speedometer, clock, thermometer, humidity sensor,
heart rate monitor, and a stopwatch. Probably I will follow this article to
build my own system.

Here are a few other professional designs that I have seen while browsing
about the subject to get some design ideas. There are some wireless devices
as well.

http://ecom1.planetbike.com/8002.html

http://www.polarusa.com/Products/cs/cs600.asp?cat=consumer

http://bikeworld.com/itemdetails.cfm?catalogId=39&id=868

This POV thing is cool, too. After I built a convenient cyclo computer, I
will sure integrate it to my system.
http://www.ianpaterson.org/projects/spokepov20070731/index.htm





2008/5/6 Martin <martin@...>:

> Hello Gökhan,
> I am interested in building my own cycle computer. I have a small 2x8
> LCD that might be good for the purpose. I think I'll build a circuit
> with a PIC 18F, 2 AA batteries, in a clear plastic enclosure. That's my
> plan thus far!
> -
> Martin
>
> Gökhan SEVER wrote:
>
> > I have seen some cool cycle-computers on the web. Unfortunately many of
> them
> > is more expensive than my bike (By the way, I got it with a great
> discount -
> > it is just about $120). Probably I will use my Atmel AVR Butterfly kit
> which
> > has an LCD built on it. The kits fits very well on the handle bars of
> the
> > bike.
> >
>
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> http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist
>

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[Gökhan SEVER]

Here are a few other projects and professional products that I have found on
the web:

The MAXQ Microcontroller in Action: Designing a Bicycle Computer with the
MAXQ2000 (Same article in CC 184)
http://www.maxim-ic.com/appnotes.cfm/an_pk/3845


GoConn Bicycle Computer (A bulky design)
http://ltc.cit.cornell.edu/courses/ee476/FinalProjects/s2006/jtg28rbc24/jtg28rbc24/goconn.html

VeloAce (PalmOS powered cyclocomputer)
http://www.engbedded.com/veloace/

Cerevellum Bicycle Computer (It even has a camera integrated on it)
http://www.redferret.net/?p=9815

The Qranium (The most advanced and expensive design)
http://www.quarq.us/Computers/Qranium.html




2008/5/6 Gökhan SEVER <gstr2005@...>:

> Thanks for the advices so far. The forum link is very good indeed. It is
> the kind of place that I have been looking for. I have found another good
> link mainly for bicycle lighting design (http://www.audax.uk.net/lights/)
> It has more information than I need :)
>
> Circuit Cellar 184 November 2005 issue has an article titled as
> "Multifunctional Bicycle Design" A design that was made by MAXQ2000 MCU.
> This set up contains a speedometer, clock, thermometer, humidity sensor,
> heart rate monitor, and a stopwatch. Probably I will follow this article to
> build my own system.
>
> Here are a few other professional designs that I have seen while browsing
> about the subject to get some design ideas. There are some wireless devices
> as well.
>
> http://ecom1.planetbike.com/8002.html
>
> http://www.polarusa.com/Products/cs/cs600.asp?cat=consumer
>
> http://bikeworld.com/itemdetails.cfm?catalogId=39&id=868
>
> This POV thing is cool, too. After I built a convenient cyclo computer, I
> will sure integrate it to my system.
> http://www.ianpaterson.org/projects/spokepov20070731/index.htm
>
>
>
>
>
> 2008/5/6 Martin <martin@...>:
>
> Hello Gökhan,
> > I am interested in building my own cycle computer. I have a small 2x8
> > LCD that might be good for the purpose. I think I'll build a circuit
> > with a PIC 18F, 2 AA batteries, in a clear plastic enclosure. That's my
> > plan thus far!
> > -
> > Martin
> >
> > Gökhan SEVER wrote:
> >
> > > I have seen some cool cycle-computers on the web. Unfortunately many
> > of them
> > > is more expensive than my bike (By the way, I got it with a great
> > discount -
> > > it is just about $120). Probably I will use my Atmel AVR Butterfly kit
> > which
> > > has an LCD built on it. The kits fits very well on the handle bars of
> > the
> > > bike.
> > >
> >
> > --
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> > View/change your membership options at
> > http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist
> >
>
>

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[Jinx-4]

> The Qranium (The most advanced and expensive design)
> http://www.quarq.us/Computers/Qranium.html

AT US$995, for the real enthusiast I think. Seems to me that
is intended for velodrome racers. You know the ones - yellow
spandex, chiselled good looks, buns you could crack walnuts
with

I haven't looked at all the links, busy week, but if I were to
make a computer for myself, over and above the usual trip
and time, I'd include pressure sensors on the pedals, an
inclinometer, gear suggestions, anemometer etc. All kinds
of things the computers I've seen don't have. Heck, even a
true automatic gearbox one day (weight notwithstanding)

And three extra seats, two more wheels, a 2 litre V10, roof
and chassis perhaps. With a bike rack on the back ;-0)

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[Mark Rages]

On Thu, May 8, 2008 at 4:19 AM, Jinx <joecolquitt@...> wrote:
> > The Qranium (The most advanced and expensive design)
>  > http://www.quarq.us/Computers/Qranium.html
>
>  AT US$995, for the real enthusiast I think. Seems to me that
>  is intended for velodrome racers. You know the ones - yellow
>  spandex, chiselled good looks, buns you could crack walnuts
>  with

I am doing work for Quarq, including writing software for the Qranium.
 I was at the huge Interbike trade show demonstrating it, and there is
a suprising overlap between "cycling fanatics" and "software nerds".
(The Qranium is actually a decent deal compared to other high-end
bicycle parts.)

It is true that serious cyclists and coaches are the most interested
in the Qranium. But the application software will be open source.  For
example, I am running (part of) the software on a jailbroken iPod
Touch.  We don't have the Qranium developer website up yet because we
are focusing on shipping the CinQo, the power sensor part.

Regards,
Mark
markrages@gmail
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[Marcel Duchamp]

Ok, how many PICs in a Qranium?


Mark Rages wrote:

> On Thu, May 8, 2008 at 4:19 AM, Jinx <joecolquitt@...> wrote:
>>> The Qranium (The most advanced and expensive design)
>>  > http://www.quarq.us/Computers/Qranium.html
>>
>>  AT US$995, for the real enthusiast I think. Seems to me that
>>  is intended for velodrome racers. You know the ones - yellow
>>  spandex, chiselled good looks, buns you could crack walnuts
>>  with
>
> I am doing work for Quarq, including writing software for the Qranium.
>  I was at the huge Interbike trade show demonstrating it, and there is
> a suprising overlap between "cycling fanatics" and "software nerds".
> (The Qranium is actually a decent deal compared to other high-end
> bicycle parts.)
>
> It is true that serious cyclists and coaches are the most interested
> in the Qranium. But the application software will be open source.  For
> example, I am running (part of) the software on a jailbroken iPod
> Touch.  We don't have the Qranium developer website up yet because we
> are focusing on shipping the CinQo, the power sensor part.
>
> Regards,
> Mark
> markrages@gmail

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[Gökhan SEVER]

And could you please mention some about the inner workings of this cool
device :)

You said that the app soft will be open, what about the hardware and
firmware ?

2008/5/8 Marcel <marcel.duchamp@...>:

> Ok, how many PICs in a Qranium?
>
>
> Mark Rages wrote:
> > On Thu, May 8, 2008 at 4:19 AM, Jinx <joecolquitt@...> wrote:
> >>> The Qranium (The most advanced and expensive design)
> >>  > http://www.quarq.us/Computers/Qranium.html
> >>
> >>  AT US$995, for the real enthusiast I think. Seems to me that
> >>  is intended for velodrome racers. You know the ones - yellow
> >>  spandex, chiselled good looks, buns you could crack walnuts
> >>  with
> >
> > I am doing work for Quarq, including writing software for the Qranium.
> >  I was at the huge Interbike trade show demonstrating it, and there is
> > a suprising overlap between "cycling fanatics" and "software nerds".
> > (The Qranium is actually a decent deal compared to other high-end
> > bicycle parts.)
> >
> > It is true that serious cyclists and coaches are the most interested
> > in the Qranium. But the application software will be open source.  For
> > example, I am running (part of) the software on a jailbroken iPod
> > Touch.  We don't have the Qranium developer website up yet because we
> > are focusing on shipping the CinQo, the power sensor part.
> >
> > Regards,
> > Mark
> > markrages@gmail
>
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[Mark Rages]

On Thu, May 8, 2008 at 2:29 PM, Marcel <marcel.duchamp@...> wrote:
> Ok, how many PICs in a Qranium?
>
>

The Qranium is PIC-free.

Regards,
Mark
markrages@gmail
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[Mark Rages]

On Thu, May 8, 2008 at 2:53 PM, Gökhan SEVER <gstr2005@...> wrote:
> And could you please mention some about the inner workings of this cool
> device :)
>
> You said that the app soft will be open, what about the hardware and
> firmware ?
>

The hardware is a Marvell processor running Linux.  I don't think the
hardware will be open, but the software could probably be made to run
on a Linux (or other UNIX-like) PDA or smartphone without major
changes.

The major peripherals are a GPS receiver, barometric altitude sensor,
and the ANT radio.  None of these require firmware.  They are
connected by normal serial ports.   We are not allowed to open-source
the ANT communications protocol, so there is a little closed-source
daemon that talks to the ANT radio and presents data in an XML format
on an IP socket.  It would be within the capabilities of many on this
list to replace this closed-source daemon with a reverse-engineered
one, but Quarq will not be helping with that.

Regards,
Mark
markrages@gmail
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Midwest Telecine LLC
markrages@...

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[Alan B. Pearce]

>jailbroken

Huh? Term I have not seen before. What does it mean?

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[Mark Rages]

On Fri, May 9, 2008 at 3:25 AM, Alan B. Pearce <A.B.Pearce@...> wrote:
>>jailbroken
>
> Huh? Term I have not seen before. What does it mean?
>

It refers to a device that has been hacked to give the owner full
control.  There are a few well-known exploits for gaining root access
on an iPhone /  iPod Touch.  Google "iPhone jailbreak" for more.

Regards,
Mark
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[Alan B. Pearce]

>It refers to a device that has been hacked to give the owner full
>control.  There are a few well-known exploits for gaining root access
>on an iPhone /  iPod Touch.  Google "iPhone jailbreak" for more.

Ah, OK thanks.
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[Neil Cherry-3]

Mark Rages wrote:
> On Thu, May 8, 2008 at 4:19 AM, Jinx <joecolquitt@...> wrote:
>>> The Qranium (The most advanced and expensive design)
>>  > http://www.quarq.us/Computers/Qranium.html
>>
>>  AT US$995, for the real enthusiast I think. Seems to me that
>>  is intended for velodrome racers. You know the ones - yellow
>>  spandex, chiselled good looks, buns you could crack walnuts
>>  with

I don't race and I'm chiseled until you get to my belly (I could
probably crack walnuts with that ;-) and yellow is out of the
question (not loud enough).

Actually a friend of mine has a similar device by Mavic on
his Brevet bicycle. He uses it to keep a steady drain on his
resources while doing 200 - 600 km rides. I'm interested in
such a device but I'll have to build a wheel around it.

> I am doing work for Quarq, including writing software for the Qranium.
> I was at the huge Interbike trade show demonstrating it, and there is
> a suprising overlap between "cycling fanatics" and "software nerds".
> (The Qranium is actually a decent deal compared to other high-end
> bicycle parts.)

Software nerds? A software nerds has no clue what hardware is. ;-)

> It is true that serious cyclists and coaches are the most interested
> in the Qranium. But the application software will be open source.  For
> example, I am running (part of) the software on a jailbroken iPod
> Touch.  We don't have the Qranium developer website up yet because we
> are focusing on shipping the CinQo, the power sensor part.

Interesting, sounds like it has a Java port! That would run on my
phone (Pantech C810). The price is out of my range (it's the same for
the Mavic unit). That kind of money could buy a lot of other toys.


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[Gökhan SEVER]

Unfortunately, for now end of the bicycle tale for me, since my bike was
stolen even without riding it for two weeks :(

2008/5/9 Neil Cherry <ncherry@...>:

> Mark Rages wrote:
> > On Thu, May 8, 2008 at 4:19 AM, Jinx <joecolquitt@...> wrote:
> >>> The Qranium (The most advanced and expensive design)
> >>  > http://www.quarq.us/Computers/Qranium.html
> >>
> >>  AT US$995, for the real enthusiast I think. Seems to me that
> >>  is intended for velodrome racers. You know the ones - yellow
> >>  spandex, chiselled good looks, buns you could crack walnuts
> >>  with
>
> I don't race and I'm chiseled until you get to my belly (I could
> probably crack walnuts with that ;-) and yellow is out of the
> question (not loud enough).
>
> Actually a friend of mine has a similar device by Mavic on
> his Brevet bicycle. He uses it to keep a steady drain on his
> resources while doing 200 - 600 km rides. I'm interested in
> such a device but I'll have to build a wheel around it.
>
> > I am doing work for Quarq, including writing software for the Qranium.
> > I was at the huge Interbike trade show demonstrating it, and there is
> > a suprising overlap between "cycling fanatics" and "software nerds".
> > (The Qranium is actually a decent deal compared to other high-end
> > bicycle parts.)
>
> Software nerds? A software nerds has no clue what hardware is. ;-)
>
> > It is true that serious cyclists and coaches are the most interested
> > in the Qranium. But the application software will be open source.  For
> > example, I am running (part of) the software on a jailbroken iPod
> &