My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer • Hacker News Board

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#141

Post by HeyLaughingBoy » Wed, May 07, 2025, 5:40 PM UTC

jajko wrote: post #86

mygnu wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

only flashes on heavy braking, normal use is not affected

I dont understand why exactly this isnt mandatory for past 2 decades in regulated markets like EU. Over easter I had the displeasure of driving cca 1500km road with family and we experienced quite a few 130kmh -> full stop without warning situations that one barely manages even when breaking full and heavily relies on all others doing the same. In one of the situations a car right in front of us didnt manage and hit…

US mandated automatic emergency braking starting in 2029.

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#142

Post by toast0 » Wed, May 07, 2025, 5:40 PM UTC

Muromec wrote: post #88

wolrah wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> my US mazda cx5 center brake light flashes when you press the brakes. That is not a factory feature, it's almost certainly a dealer-installed piece of junk like this ( https://pulseprotects.com/product-info/ ) which the dealer almost certainly charged a stupid amount of money for, and as noted it's not actually legal in the US. Around me the local Hyundai/Kia chain loves to install those, and I hate them.

Doesn't seem to be illegal enough if dealers are installing them

I've got a NHTSA letter bookmarked [1] that says

> According to a document by SafeLite of America, Inc., that you enclosed, its product Safe-T-Stop "will pulse [the center high mounted brake light] for approximately 6 seconds and reactivate if the brakes are reapplied." You read S5.5.10(d) of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 108 as requiring "that the third brake light must be wired to be steady-burning," and that you believe that Safe-T-Stop "contravenes this requirement of the standard by varying the brightness of the light."

> We confirm your interpretation. S5.5.10(a), (b), and (c) list the motor vehicle lamps that may flash when they are operated. No stop lamp is among the lamps listed. S5.5.10(d) requires all other lamps to be wired to be steady burning, thus including all stop lamps. Standard No. 108 does not allow a stop lamp that pulses, and a vehicle with a stop lamp that pulses does not meet Federal requirements.

It's clear that there's not much enforcement, since all the dealers I've visited near me install these things by default. If you commit to a car that's not yet delivered, you can negotiate to exclude these, or you can have them remove it (but they'll most likely have cut into the factory harness to install it, so the wiring harness has been modified, which is a negative IMHO).

Personally, I find these devices to be pretty terrible. I would be fine with flashing for high intensity braking, but the flashing is attention grabbing by design, and it's inappropriate in a lot of situations as it distracts from gathering awareness of the surroundings.

[1] https://www.nhtsa.gov/interpretations/20288ztv

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#143

Post by whalesalad » Wed, May 07, 2025, 5:42 PM UTC

yial wrote: post #103

whalesalad wrote: post #59

I actually think it is lame when engine braking activates the brake light. There are two distinct behaviors: slowing down gently, with engine braking, and slowing down intensely with physical brake application. When I am engine braking like going down a long hill I do not want to flag the drivers behind me that I am braking ... I just want to use the compression of the engine to regulate my speed. Anyone who lives in…

I’m trying to understand this comment - are you saying that there’s an advantage to drivers behind you not thinking you’re braking? As in - you don’t want them to think you’re coming to a complete stop when you’re regulating your speed? Or are you saying that you don’t want them to think you have a skill issue ? I live in a semi mountainous area, where people driving automatics ride their brakes most of the way down…

engine braking is not braking - is what I am trying to imply

holding your speed or decellerating mildly is not the same as braking. if i gear down into a higher rpm and hold my speed, or perhaps decel ever so slightly - its not worth alerting the driver behind you. most people over-react to brake lights and will see your brakes as "I should apply brakes too" when in this particularly case, they should not.

I can't think of a single circumstance where compression braking should cause a brake light to illuminate. the rate of decelleration is so small compared to even a gentle tap of the brakes, that it will merely confuse drivers behind you.

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#144

Post by Animats » Wed, May 07, 2025, 5:51 PM UTC

"Committed to empowering users, I developed a subsequent version incorporating a USB port. Currently, I’m finalizing user-friendly software utilities, enabling riders to easily update BrakeBright firmware, customize features, and personalize the system to match individual riding styles and preferences."

A brake light that requires system administration?

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#145

Post by toast0 » Wed, May 07, 2025, 5:51 PM UTC

bityard wrote: post #108

Glyptodon wrote: post #70

My motorcycle pet peeve is that if you ride bicycles routinely the control differences between bikes and motorcycles become potentially dangerous, especially while riding the motorcycle. I'm not sure how to align their controls more, but if your bike has a rotary handle shifter and one day on the motorcycle you "shift" with the throttle, it's not going to go well. There are a number of other possible control goofs yo…

I ride both regularly and I don't really have a problem switching between them. For me, the overall experience is so entirely different between the two, that my brain knows to treat them differently. Just like people who own riding lawn mowers don't really have difficulties driving their car afterward. (Blipping the throttle accidentally should never cause an emergency unless other things are already going wrong: for…

> Just like people who own riding lawn mowers don't really have difficulties driving their car afterward.

My riding mower is tank-steer (zero turn)... pretty hard to use those skills on a car. But steering wheels basically work the same on all the equipment I've got with those; some easier to turn than others depending on geometry and power assist. The pedals are more likely to be different --- the mower has a friction lever on a panel to set the throttle / engine speed and levers you hold to go forward and back on right and left (so this does steering too); the tractor has similar throttle level, and then a pedal that you rotate to go forward or back with both wheels (all wheels if you put it into 4x4) and it has a splitable brake pedal if you want to brake on one side or the other.

But yeah; none of that makes it hard to go back and drive a car. Other than sometimes it'd be nice to do some tight turns at the expense of my tires if I could control each side individually.

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#146

Post by K0balt » Wed, May 07, 2025, 5:54 PM UTC

0_____0 wrote: post #91

K0balt wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Genie soldering is not preferred for high vibration environments. Crimping is considered more reliable. Proper strain relief and anti corrosion treatment is key.

It's not preferred for inline connections, but context is important. In a field installation, you can do up a solder-type butt splice with a lighter if you really need to, whereas crimping requires specialized tools.

True enough, but I would take it one farther and say that a properly executed hand splice is arguably preferable to solder if vibration is a factor. Also, even less tools needed, though not everyone carries a little tube of conductive grease with their electrical tape. (But they should, it makes a decent splice immune to corrosion and a solid, “permanent” repair. )

I have had many, many soldered splices fail on generators, marine engines, other long running equipment.

They just break where the copper meets the solder joint. Copper generally has poor fatigue characteristics, depending on the alloy.

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#147

Post by asdsadasdasd123 » Wed, May 07, 2025, 5:56 PM UTC

_ea1k wrote: post #10

TBH, I'm surprised this isn't already common. It is very similar to what EVs do, due to the relatively high regenerative braking.

Im surprised new cars dont just go off of a gyro decel reading, don't modern cars already have a gyro?

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#148

Post by sgt » Wed, May 07, 2025, 5:59 PM UTC

83 wrote: post #116

sidewndr46 wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And also ads for unrelated products down at the bottom of the page in the app.

ads are amateur hour - gotta make it a subscription and really milk those users.

Also offer a lifetime subscription, then the API disappears after 6 months

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#149

Post by whalesalad » Wed, May 07, 2025, 5:59 PM UTC

mygnu wrote: post #128

whalesalad wrote: post #59

I actually think it is lame when engine braking activates the brake light. There are two distinct behaviors: slowing down gently, with engine braking, and slowing down intensely with physical brake application. When I am engine braking like going down a long hill I do not want to flag the drivers behind me that I am braking ... I just want to use the compression of the engine to regulate my speed. Anyone who lives in…

thanks for your comment, the device is self leveling, I live in a hilly Scotland, it keeps adjusting itself with the slopes and only reacts to sudden changes.

that is good. the rate of decel is more important than a strict boolean.

Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer

#150

Post by kjkjadksj » Wed, May 07, 2025, 6:10 PM UTC

beloch wrote: post #90

braunshedd wrote: post #71

When I was commuting daily in the SF fog, I discovered that putting on of these [1] on my helmet did wonders to keep cars further off my tail. It moves the brake light up to eye level for people in SUVs and also triggers on engine braking. Wish it were cheaper, but was a worthwhile investment for me. Also, consider looking into airbag vests if you ride regularly. Also expensive but (supposedly) make a huge difference…

Motorcycle fatality rates have been trending upwards, not downwards[1]. Brake lights on helmets may illuminate one of the culprits: An ever increasing number of American trucks with poor visibility. Sitting on a bike, you're even shorter than a pedestrian and more likely to be completely out of sight. Perhaps its time to start regulating for better visibility, as Europe has done. [1] https://www.iii.org/fact-statisti…

Some “militant” urban cycling commuters do things like attach a pool noodle horizontally and vertically to create space and visibility. I’d probably hazard a guess that avoiding highway miles also lowers your risk profile substantially.