but


the shift lever won't nick up anymore

BTW I should thank Voltar for his circuit which prompted me to develop my own version also based on the PICAXE microcontrollers. I hadn't used them before but they make doing this sort of stuff much, much easier than using discrete circuitry or most other microcontrollers. I built a gear position indicator for my Ninja 250 using discrete logic and it was rather complex (especially since I had to also build magnetic sensors that sensed when the shift lever was moved up and down). Doing the same thing for the Wee using a PICAXE microcontroller was way easier, especially since the Wee comes with a (hidden) gear indication voltage.

I used my spare microcontroller pins to monitor the battery voltage rather than read the temperature. The MkII version which I'm working on now will add air temperature, speed and deceleration measurement which turns an an extra brake light when I'm slowing down at more than a given rate (currently >0.2G) or stopped (I have that one working). I'm also looking at a proximity sensor which will generate a warning to vehicles following me too closely. Kind of works on the bench but not yet ready for the bike. Might never be. That one's a winter project.

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Bob A.
Current bikes:
1990 Kawasaki Ninja 250 (Rebuilt)
2011 Suzuki DL650A

BobA:

Thanks for the comments.

Can you share the schematic that you are using to measure battery voltage?
Did you pull the signal off the ECM?

__________________
- Voltar

Build your own V-Strom GPI and save, save, save!

All this talk of microprocessors has my head spinning. Seems to be a great idea, but how does one get started building a gear shift indicator type thing. I have no experience with this type of electrical projects. How does a novice learn to do this?

__________________
Ride History
2005 DL 650
1989 TREK 850 Mountain Bike
1974 SCHWINN BANANA SEAT (probably worth more than the wee now, oh well)

Voltar

The battery voltage measurement is done with a simple resistor divider and one of the ADC pins of the PICAXE. With a 3:1 divider you can measure 0-20v since the PICAXE pin only sees 0-5v over that range.

You can measure the battery voltage by looking at any of the nominal "+12v" lines, the only caveat is that if you want the accurate battery voltage you have to run leads directly to the battery terminals, otherwise the voltage drop in the bike wiring factors into the equation. However, all you really need to know is if the battery voltage is less than about 12v (indicating that the alternator is faulty) or over about 15v (indicating the regulator is faulty) or in the normal operating range (around 14v with the bike at 2000 rpm or more). If you know the voltage drop on the leads you are connected to (and that drop doesn't change much), you can compensate for it in software.

You can then light one or more LEDs to show battery condition (depending on how many pins you have), or you can use one LED and flash it for high and low voltage conditions. Or you can use two LEDS connected to one output pin with opposite polarities, so that a high output gives you green (normal) and a low output gives you red (over or under voltage).

As for how you learn this stuff I guess it depend on if you've ever had any experience with electronics. What's 2nd nature to me by now might be a complete mystery to someone who has never used a soldering iron. Basically you learn by doing. There are "starter kits" available for most microcontroller systems. I think the PICAXE system is probably one of the easiest to learn, and it's used in schools over in the UK. Their website http://www.picaxe.com/ has all the info you could ever need to get started and they have "starter kits" for simple projects.

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Bob A.
Current bikes:
1990 Kawasaki Ninja 250 (Rebuilt)
2011 Suzuki DL650A

See Voltars thread here:
Your DIY Digital Gear Position Readout

I have a basic understanding of circuits through classes I had in college and just via work. I am a mechanical engineer by trade and have always been intrigued by sparky stuff.

I definitely won't say it was easy but I'm glad I did it... Voltar was a lot of help too... Read through his thread and check out his link to his blog that describes the project. I'm sure Voltar would also be willing to answer any questions too.

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DL650K7
XL1200N (Sold)

Voltar, after reading through this, I'm thinking it would be fun just to build another rig and leave my one intact... Let me know if this is something you would want to help me with... I already have a lot of the parts I need too.

BobA thank you for your input as well.

I'm envious of you guys and your knowledge of sparkiness and willingness to help people like me

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DL650K7
XL1200N (Sold)

Good point kiwi.... I just like cool gadgets that can do it too... And I hate looking for 7th gear

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DL650K7
XL1200N (Sold)

That is what I guessed. What did you see as an input impedance of the PICAXE on the 5V side of the voltage divider?

FYI, Check out the PICAXE command "calibadc". This command reads a reference voltage inside the PICAXE making it easier to compensate for fluctuations in your source V (bike battery), supply V (PICAXE Vcc), and lead/connection resistance compensation.

__________________
- Voltar

Build your own V-Strom GPI and save, save, save!

Sure. No problem. I will just add a few lines of code that make the presently connected LEG16 have a voltage on it that can power an LED whenever the bike in in 6th gear. Easy change. Also, if you elected to leave the 7 seg display completely off the new rig things would still work fine for the LEG16/6th gear thing.

Let me know if you are interested and I will fire up the candles in the lab.

__________________
- Voltar

Build your own V-Strom GPI and save, save, save!