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BikeBrain - PalmPilot Based Bike computer
Wirehead writes "VeloTrend
BikeBrain is a new class of bicycle computer that
incorporates graphical displays, route directions, dynamic logging
and smart features such as automatic wheel
size calibration into a multi-use,
hand-held and handlebar mounted computer.
It is designed for use with 3Com's Palm series of
personal organizers. " Cute. Although I suppose
you have to go outside to use it.
Cool idea, but how well is a PalmPilot going to stand up to rain, mud, bumps, wiping out, etc.?
$90 for the kit, not including the Pilot. I wish I had more money lying around for toys like this...
Link to either an onboard system, or link to cell phone and have yourself a nice turn by turn map for unfamiliar parts of the city. Have it log data on time taken vs. time of day and create smarter faster routes each time you use it.
Stupid idea. For $250 I can get a handheld
GPS unit that has large built-in LCD display
containing maps of the US, and can tell me
my speed, location etc. etc. and is weather-
proof, and you could actually walk
around with it or hike with it.
Looks pretty interesting.. Don't know how rugged (or how expensive, eesh) this would be, but if I had the money..
I think I'll just stick with my $20 Cateye Micro for now...
I hear you can get skin cancer if you go outside too much. Guess I won't have to worry about that.
10 PRINT CHR$(205.5+RND(1)); : GOTO 10
Posted by korto:
you mean we are supposed to put a palmtop on the bike?
what if we fall? is the palmtop supposed to wear a helmet? or is he going to be like erwin when his palmtop became smashed?
Posted by jonrx:
Well, it depends if your sensor is hooked on the front wheel or the back wheel. The back wheel will *always* travel shorter distance. (Hmmm maybe I should move my sensor to the back wheel, it should give more accurate readings. (in theory))
jonr
Posted by Zyca:
GPS have direction finding ability... so you CAN do without compass... (make sure you get the GPS that's fully ruggized to take the beating)...
And what happens if you do an endo? Or if it rains? I hope they have ruggedization options, as a "skin tight case" doesn't say much... :)
I have a bike computer on my bike, 7 functions, 2 buttons. And you know anything more complex would be bad. At 20-30 MPH down major city roads you just *CANT* have the distraction. I'm much to busy not getting hit by a bus.
--Zachary Kessin
Erlang Developer and podcaster
Can I take the Pilot out of the splash/shock cover thingy and use it for its normal use when I'm not on my bike?
The next Cmdr Taco duplicate will be ready soon, but subscribers can beat the rush and see it early!
I can think of a *very* good reason they didn't put an MP3 decoder on it: People who listen to stereo headphones while riding tend to end up being washed out of the treads of dumptrucks with a garden hose.
The next Cmdr Taco duplicate will be ready soon, but subscribers can beat the rush and see it early!
There's a Pilot app named Bikini which is dated June '97, IIRC. I have demo somewhere on my harddisk. BikeBrain is not a very novel idea.
--Martin
And I think we killed the site. Wish my site was killed for once
-- The unsig...
You won't experience the /.-effect unless you have something cool on your site.
-bjl
Anybody who's worked with mobile robots will tell you that wheel rotation counting tends to accumulate huge errors. When you start biking, you will probably be off by a few feet (since you can hardly start at the very same point every time), and every time you swerve to avoid a pothole, or take a wider/tighter turn, you will be accumulating more errors. Eventually, your measurments will be totally off.
(will you swerve around 50 potholes during your ride? Easily. At 2ft error per pothole, you're looking at total 100ft error. That's considerable).
What I would like to see is syncronizing odometry data with GPS. This way the odometry will fill in when you can't get GPS signal, and GPS will correct odometry errors.
A dream gadget? How about a cellphone with a helmet-mounted headset and voice activated dialing? I have never done anything more dangerous than biking in traffic while talking on the phone.
Me and my friends have this bike capture-the-flag game that is played over a large area (about 20x20 city blocks and a large park), and cellphones are my team's secret weapon!
MaxZ
--> Any fool can criticize - and many do --
Unless you're Hans Rey, you mainly bike on weekends
Doesn't anyone else use a bike for commuting? Sheesh, it's not difficult, it's inexpensive, as quick as a car (often quicker) and sets you up for the day.
Don't know why anyone would want all that gadgetry on a bike, though. All it could to is add weight, rattle, fall off, get damaged in the rain, or get stolen. And eyes should be kept on the surroundings -- you'll run into them otherwise...
Totally cool would be if you cycle past another person with a 'Bike Brain' and it flashes the route they are taking to yours, or sends you a message or something. Saves you having to wave and exchange pleasantries with fellow passing cyclists!
GPS does work well in heavily forested areas. I was in the Superior National forest in Northern Minnessota with my GPS, a Magellan 4000XL that I spent 300 dollars on, and I was recieving signals frojm 8-10 satellites the whole time I was up there. BTW I still have a waypoint stored in my GPS of a nice lil clifftop in the Boundary Waters Canoe area.
Food: It's whats for dinner
Mountain bikes: I have no idea, I snub them.
Hah! I have a track bike (no derailleurs, no brakes, no freewheel). Not only do I snub road bikes, but I snub most track bikes, because mine has inch pitch gears. So there. I love the looks of you modern day wonders when I say I ride a 7 in the back.
--
Infuriate left and right
How can you patent a route directions finder? Isn't this just software or are they patenting the display? The automatic wheel calibration should be wheel diameter database included. I don't see anything automatic about selecting your wheel size.
If I biked and had the money, this could be cool.
~afniv
"Man könnte froh sein, wenn die Luft so rein wäre wie das Bier"
"We could be happy if the air was as pure as the beer"
~afniv
"Man könnte froh sein, wenn die Luft so rein wäre wie das Bier"
Richard von Weizs
That site is apparently limited in their hits/bandwidth.... I'm curious how long it took them to reach the 50K hit limit after being /.ed.... This is the URL to their hosting page for those of you interested in a low traffic site :)
http://www.best.com/services/hosting/
Zanthor
This is intended for serious sport bikers who need to know, for example, how well they did on this route compared to last time, not to mention up-to-the-minute info on how well they are DOING, so they can speed up or slack off as necessary. Also, this is the kind of info that is routinely available on gym exercise equipment, so anyone who prefers getting outside on their bike to sitting in a ho-hum gym should be interested.
....)
I know I am!
(What a bunch of Luddites
lake effect weblog
{Network engineer in Chicago--looking for work!}
It's called "GPS receiver plus optional serial cable".
I don't know the PalmPilot, but if it's worth its salt, it will have a serial port and can be programmed. The lingo that you should use to talk to your GPS is fairly well documented.
Voila!
--B
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