A learning project

Thread Starter

Printz

Joined Oct 2, 2010
31
So are the classic Ford Thunderbirds and a few other cars.

It's all about they don't want people to think you're driving a police car.
The bike won't be mistaken for a police car or bike. The scooter has blue underglow, which is actually legal unless it blinks.
 

wayneh

Joined Sep 9, 2010
17,496
...I'm going to make another more polished version and try it on my 50cc scooter which they really hate, since it doesn't have or need plates and it'll still do 50mph
Where do you live where you don't need a plate on your scooter? Don't try riding it in Illinois! They may look the other way regarding turn signals and such, but they're pretty sure about wanting the registration fee.
 

marshallf3

Joined Jul 26, 2010
2,358
State and city laws vary on this, but in most cases anything with any sort of engine or motor on it is considered to be a motorized vehicle - even if you put an old Cox 0.049 model airplane engine on it.

Around here it's up to the policeman. If you're a kid just riding a small scooter around a quiet neighborhood most don't care but some might as it's in the statutes.

If you look up your state laws chances are anything motorized requires a plate but again - it's always subjective to the policeman at hand.
 

Thread Starter

Printz

Joined Oct 2, 2010
31
Where do you live where you don't need a plate on your scooter? Don't try riding it in Illinois! They may look the other way regarding turn signals and such, but they're pretty sure about wanting the registration fee.
State and city laws vary on this, but in most cases anything with any sort of engine or motor on it is considered to be a motorized vehicle - even if you put an old Cox 0.049 model airplane engine on it.

Around here it's up to the policeman. If you're a kid just riding a small scooter around a quiet neighborhood most don't care but some might as it's in the statutes.

If you look up your state laws chances are anything motorized requires a plate but again - it's always subjective to the policeman at hand.

I live in TN, and the city laws and state laws only require registration of motorcycles above 50cc's. Road worthy is above 49cc's, motorcycle endorsement on the license is required at 125cc. My scooter, when stock was only 49.5cc, it's not stock anymore though. Still no plate required though because it's labeled as a 49.5cc.
 

Artfldgr

Joined Aug 15, 2008
44
in my thread on the LM317, the end project is similar to what printz says he wants..
this circuit uses a 74hc164. the pattern you get out depends on how and where you put the inverter to act on condition...

to have one light up and pass through then appear again, you can use the outs of all the pins after the leds and transistors, so that when all are low (off), the inverter goes high, and puts a high on the input for the clock cycle. the high appears, and the inverter stays off for the whole time until they are all off again... then it goes high while the clock is low, repeating the series.

if you connect the last out to the inverter, then the inverter will stay high until the last pin goes high, then will stay low until the last pin goes low.

this i think is the pattern you say you want..

each one going on one at a time, then each one going off one at a time...

i will be putting up the circuit tonight when i get home and work on it..
i am hopeing it passes sarges muster...
and i dont have to hear "what is your major malfunction!"
 

Thread Starter

Printz

Joined Oct 2, 2010
31
each one going on one at a time, then each one going off one at a time...

i will be putting up the circuit tonight when i get home and work on it..
i am hopeing it passes sarges muster...
and i dont have to hear "what is your major malfunction!"
Thats close, the cycle is on one at a time, to fill the section. Then all off to repeat.
 
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Thread Starter

Printz

Joined Oct 2, 2010
31
I should be getting the board and LED's this week to start laying them out and getting the board trimmed to fit in the housing I'm going to use.
 

Thread Starter

Printz

Joined Oct 2, 2010
31
So what did we decide to controll this thing with? I had to put this off a bit so now I'm getting ready to order 60 red LEDs and a board that I'll cut to fit in the housing I'm using. I found a 74hc164 and I can order it when I order the lights and board. But I have no idea how to set this circuit up and what other parts I need.
 

Thread Starter

Printz

Joined Oct 2, 2010
31
In my limited experience, the white LEDs are SO much brighter that I think white LEDs behind a red plastic cover would be brighter than red LEDs. Just a thought.
I got a hold of some LEDs that are used for OEM tailights. Plus red is typically cheaper than white.
 

SgtWookie

Joined Jul 17, 2007
22,230
This snippet from the previously linked-to Wiki article is also relevant:
As with all vehicle lighting and signalling devices, turn signal lights must comply with technical standards that stipulate minimum and maximum permissible intensity levels, minimum horizontal and vertical angles of visibility, and minimum illuminated surface area to ensure that they are visible at all relevant angles, do not dazzle those who view them, and are suitably conspicuous in conditions ranging from full darkness to full direct sunlight.
I have some Phillips Superflux LEDs that are nearly identical to the BG Micro LEDs. And they aren't kidding; those suckers are BRIGHT!! So much so, that if you are not careful, you will dazzle drivers behind you, which will get you in trouble.

What were these "old radars" that you worked on? I've worked on some of those myself...

Power dissipation in the LEDs needs to be considered. If you pack 'em in tightly, you may very well wind up with a molten blob of plastic.

At full intensity, figuring on a typical Vf of 2.8v @ 70mA, each LED will be consuming ~200mW power. If you have 30 in an array, that's ~6 Watts of power to dissipate. Just keep that in mind.

You need to figure out if your electrical system can support the extra load. You could try using a 12 Ohm 20W resistor across your supply, and see if it'll support the extra drain. If it drops below 13.5v, you'll need to think about reducing the size of the array.

Getting a stable supply of current on a bike is going to be a bit of a challenge. You have to plan for transients up to 60v or so.

Do you have Linear Technology's LTSpice installed on your computer? It's a free download. Google is your friend.

Cadsoft's Eagle is a good schematic capture and board layout tool that will lay out boards up to 3"x4" in size in freeware mode. Sparkfun.com has a good tutorial on learning Eagle.

You might try sketching up a concept of what you want the eventual project result to look like, even MS Paint is a good enough tool for raw ideas. Bill Marsden has MS Paint down to something of an art form. ;) Make sure you save your graphics in .PNG format; as it's very compact, not "lossy" like .JPEG, and you don't need any special software to view them.

Since you're a fellow Veteran, I'll give you more priority.
 

Thread Starter

Printz

Joined Oct 2, 2010
31
I was going to qoute that but it would be to big. I worked on the radar equipment for the B-1, mainly the defensive LRU's.

The array for the bike won't be that big with these ultra bright lights. I plan on an array of up to 60 on my scooter after I get the small one to work. The scooters factory taillight draws way to much current. So much that my girlfriends won't start with the taillight hooked up. Unhook it and it'll crank right up. With a voltmeter hooked to the battery terminals the voltage drop from idle to brake light on is ridiculous. I don't remember what it was though. In the mean time I'm replacing hers with a stock base led "bulb".
 

SgtWookie

Joined Jul 17, 2007
22,230
OK brohamski, start drawing up your concept of what you want it to look like.

Try a load test like I mentioned. A standard old 1157 tail lamp will run around 37 Watts.

It will help if you post the bulbs that are currently in use on the bikes, and which work OK and which don't. We can look up the specifications and get a better idea where to go with it.

Cool on the B-1. Most of the stuff I did was on fighters, from the F-4 to the F-22 proto. And a few other fun things.
 

Thread Starter

Printz

Joined Oct 2, 2010
31
Ha the F-4, my roommates favorite, and the F-22 is my favorite.

I downloaded LTSpice and started playing with it a little bit.
I have a feeling that her tail light has a bigger problem than just high bulb draw. I'm going to check the wiring tomorrow after work and see what I find. As for dazzling drivers behind me with the lights, I currently have the tail light cover tinted a little and can add more if I need to diffuse the lgith more. I'll post some pictures of the scooter tonight just to show it off mainly but I'll show whats getting reworked.
 

SgtWookie

Joined Jul 17, 2007
22,230
Nice lil' scooter. :)

Are you planning on fitting the new light into the existing enclosure, making something new, or perhaps adapting a lens from a different tail/brake light?

It'll have to be waterproof, the right color of red (actually, a red-orange), and the correct diffusion.

[eta]
If you haven't done so yet, get on Yahoo! Groups and join the LTSpice Users' Group. It's free, and a great resource for help and models/symbols for LTSpice.

Your roomie might like the attached photo; it's from early 1976 just before we went on the USS Forrestal (CV-59)
 

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Thread Starter

Printz

Joined Oct 2, 2010
31
Nice lil' scooter. :)

Are you planning on fitting the new light into the existing enclosure, making something new, or perhaps adapting a lens from a different tail/brake light?

It'll have to be waterproof, the right color of red (actually, a red-orange), and the correct diffusion.

[eta]
If you haven't done so yet, get on Yahoo! Groups and join the LTSpice Users' Group. It's free, and a great resource for help and models/symbols for LTSpice.

Your roomie might like the attached photo; it's from early 1976 just before we went on the USS Forrestal (CV-59)
I was planning on reusing the housing on the scooter, it's already mostly water proof, but I don't really ride in the rain much so it shouldn't really hurt anything. The light color you see fro the tail light is just the cover color, the bulb under it is clear.

That picture is pretty awesome, he says he like the f-4 because it just looks funny for a plane.


P.S. the LED's I'm buying have 4 contacts, 2 for cathode, 2 for anode. I've never dealt with one like this so do Iuse bot contacts or what? Can I use them so I could wire it like 2 different circuits, blinkers use one set and the brake light/ running light use the other. Make sense?
 
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