[dead]
My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer
41–50 of 390 posts
Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
I am considering adding a watchdog logic in the microcontroller that holds a mosfet gate, if there is any signs of failure in logic it would pass through the normal light signal.
I have a second concern re: posi-tap as a connection method. Personally, I would not use a insulation displacement connector like that in a high-vibration environment, at least not without many many hours of accelerated lifetime testing under high vibration load. It's possible they're fine, but at the end of the day you're driving a couple of knives partway through a wire in a way that's non-inspectable. For field in…
I think the ideal here would be what good trailer brake adapters do in cars that are not factory equipped with a trailer light connector: they have an adapter for each car model that plugs directly in to the stock wiring harness at the taillight. No soldering, no stripping wires, no piercing insulation. However, this complicates the product because you need an adapter for each bike manufacturer and possibly each bike model or even model year.
Another advantage of this is it simplifies installation for the bike owner. Just mount the controller and connect the plugs.
Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer
#43> BMW’s dynamic brake light, for example, flashes during emergency braking to alert trailing drivers, greatly enhancing road safety.
Mind you, that this is not enabled in all countries. In the USA the rear fog lights turn on in addition to the brake lights under heavy braking, as flashing the lights weren't allowed.
They remain on until you no longer depress the brakes.
Unsure if they're allowed right now, or whether the ones you see are aftermarket mods.
For BMW you can change the coding (configuration) relatively easy.
There is also a difference in 3 flashes when you touch the brakes, constant flashing while pressing the brakes, or only flashing under having braking.
I can't imagine driving in stop&go traffic where all brake lights are constantly flashing.
Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer
#44> “Moreover, during intense braking scenarios, it flashes proportionately to the braking intensity.”
In Europe, a lot of modern cars have a similar feature. When braking particular hard (eg: a sudden emergency stop from highway speeds) the brake lights will flash rapidly to warn drivers behind you. It’s a very good safety feature, IMO. But not legal in North America?
Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer
#45> “Moreover, during intense braking scenarios, it flashes proportionately to the braking intensity.” In Europe, a lot of modern cars have a similar feature. When braking particular hard (eg: a sudden emergency stop from highway speeds) the brake lights will flash rapidly to warn drivers behind you. It’s a very good safety feature, IMO. But not legal in North America?
I agree, but the device has built in switch, if you mount it upside down, it won't flash
Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer
#46> BMW’s dynamic brake light, for example, flashes during emergency braking to alert trailing drivers, greatly enhancing road safety. Mind you, that this is not enabled in all countries. In the USA the rear fog lights turn on in addition to the brake lights under heavy braking, as flashing the lights weren't allowed. They remain on until you no longer depress the brakes. Unsure if they're allowed right now, or whether…
only flashes on heavy braking, normal use is not affected
Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer
#47Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer
#48The author did a great job actually building the project, doing a layout and custom design rather than just stitching together off the shelf modules. Good work. That being said, in 20 years of riding motorcycles and being an ATGATT (all the gear, all the time) kind of rider, I'm mixed on the need for this. It's something I have thought about doing with a direct hardwire to the throttle, but I can't come up with a sit…
You're making an assumption that someone tailgating you wants to pass. That isn't really true. A decent percentage of drivers just want to tailgate someone.
Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer
#49"BMW’s dynamic brake light, for example, flashes during emergency braking to alert trailing drivers, greatly enhancing road safety." This isn't obvious to someone who has no idea. I just assumed it's an aftermarket adjustment for people that like flashy vehicles.
I don't think that matters, isn't the point just that it's more eye-catching than a solid (and much smaller than a car's) light? Any driver should know what a brake light means, I don't think that it's an intentional flash feature is important to know.
I don't think you can have it both ways, either all lights are the same OR one is more important and drivers will all think first "is it this or that light? do I hit the brakes? maybe this means he is stopping slowly so I will risk my rear end for no reason?" before they act. I'm sure it isn't going to backfire
Re: My quest to make motorcycle riding that tad bit safer
#50Earlier quoted context omitted.
What is the general consensus on ABS braking in motorcycles? Really curious to hear from anyone who has rode a bike equipped with it. For some reason the idea of a bike interfering with brake controls seems like it could feel unsafe if the system isn't designed really well. Extremely low margin for error when it comes to braking on a 2 wheel vehicle especially in suboptimal conditions. I could see ABS braking being f…
Front brake is where it's most beneficial as the front wheel is what keeps the bike upright. If you lock the front wheel, especially in a turn, the bike falls over almost instantly. edit: Rear wheel locking gives a bit more time to react. Personally the main safety benefit is for emergency braking in wet conditions. ABS also allows to use full brakes in the wet without worrying so much about falling over. That's the…
Yes, as I understand it ABS catches the occasion where your braking overwhelms the wheel-road friction the wheel locks and starts to skid. If you're before that threshold then it doesn't activate and doesn't negatively affect anything, if you do lock then ABS activating is better than not having it and the remedy is the same as without ABS where you release the brake enough for the wheel to turn again. A skid is the least desirable in terms of control and stopping distance, having ABS lets a driver hit the brakes hard in an emergency with more confidence.