Home brew electronic lean gauge

[randomwalk101]

What does the atMega8 do?
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[ninja250]

Originally Posted by alex.s

you could simplify it by using a 4029 counter IC and feed the 4 least significant binary lines into a 7 segment decoder IC and on into the 7-segment display... wouldn't cost more than a buck to mass produce

What are you waiting for?

The 7 segment LED displays are like $3 each themselves.. on a level of 1-100qty
Let alone one bright enough to operate during the daytime visibly.

[ninja250]

Originally Posted by randomwalk101

What does the atMega8 do?
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The new tiny brains.
They make the project much smarter and much easier than lower logic level components for many reasons.
They cost $4 each.. and I can even get samples of them free sometimes.

[Timm3h]

Originally Posted by ninja250

The new tiny brains.
They make the project much smarter and much easier than lower logic level components for many reasons.
They cost $4 each.. and I can even get samples of them free sometimes.

You can even get clones for cheap http://www.moderndevice.com/products/rbbb-kit

[ninja250]

She's alive and talking!
I already had some ATmega8 breakout boards here that I designed in my last PCB run.
Working straight from chip level now since I will draw the PCB for it. It will be 95% surface mount.
I can then spray on conformal coating chemicals and waterproof the PCB from the core of the gauge.

Looks like I can get code in it. Now to wire up some test components and play with transferring the program.





Look how small the new chip is. It will literally fit ON the 7segment display. lol
The breakout board I used for the chip is the ones I designed for the M&M sorting robot that stacks together. Man I made some crazy stuff before.

[randomwalk101]

That looks cool man. You can incorp a shift light in the design? But instead of the led lights up at certain rpm, the gear digit blinks letting a rider knows to shift?
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[rockNroll]

Imna man-up here and admit that this thread makes me feel really dumb

[ninja250]

Originally Posted by randomwalk101

That looks cool man. You can incorp a shift light in the design? But instead of the led lights up at certain rpm, the gear digit blinks letting a rider knows to shift?
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Now that we have 8kb of programmable flash memory onboard, we have plenty of programming room for all kinds of fancy stuff.
These chips have their own little flash memory imbeded.

Originally Posted by rockNroll

Imna man-up here and admit that this thread makes me feel really dumb

Eh, you just had different interests than I did while growing up. If you had spent the time with this stuff I have, you'd understand it all no problem. You aren't dumb, this is just a subject in which you lack experience. Stick around it'll make ya smarter. lol
Microcontrollers are seriously like one of the most confusing things I've ever come across. That and the ladies. Hehe

[ninja250]

Gained control of the interrupts. (Led blinks and pauses on for a half second when I hit the button)

Link to original page on YouTube.

[Momaru]

Most impressive KC. Thanks again for showing us all of the how-to and work you've gone thru. That said, sign me up for a slot on the 'finished product purchaser' list if/when you decide to go that far.

[randomwalk101]

Is that dust on the chip??

[ninja250]

Yes.
It was sitting on my shelf for a few years now.. collecting dust.

I've been playing with these microcomputer things for about 10-12 years, of various shapes and sizes.

You guys shoulda seen how confused I was when I bought my first one.

[ninja250]

OK so I figured out how to program the chip and control the pins.
So far I have a button representing up shift, one for down shift and one button representing the neutral sensor.
You'll notice the program doesn't advance until the buttons are depressed. Akin to the last program routine.

Also got a new 7 segment display hooked up to the chip.
Still don't think this one will be bright enough but I might try and use a driver chip to see if it gets any brighter.

I've also been looking at a 14 segment LED display that would let the gauge "talk". Some other nice LED matrix displays too. See links below.
http://www.futurlec.com/LEDDisp.shtml

http://www.futurlec.com/LEDMatrix.shtml

That's pretty much the next thing I need to do. Find a display that you can see in the sun that I am happy with, then source enough of them to prevent design changes. After that is the funnest part of this whole process. Finding a housing for the gauge and drawing up the PCB!

I found an old piezoelectric gyro sensor I had laying around that would have probably worked better for the lean gauge too. Next time!

And of course video of my progress. Filling up the breadboard quickly.

Link to original page on YouTube.

Here's a sample of some of my code written in C.
Can't post it all though or I'd give away the design.

void clear_digit (void)
{
digit_bottom = 0;
digit_bottom_left = 0;
digit_top_left = 0;
digit_middle = 0;
digit_top = 0;
digit_top_right = 0;
digit_bottom_right = 0;
}

void dark1 (void)
{
LED = 0;
delay_ms(50);
if (!PIND.2)
{
dark1();
}
}

void dark2 (void)
{
LED = 0;
delay_ms(50);
if (!PIND.3)
{
dark2();
}
}

void neutral (void)
{
LED = 0;
clear_digit();
delay_ms(50);
if (!PIND.4)
{
neutral();
}

[randomwalk101]

Originally Posted by ninja250

Here's a sample of some of my code written in C.
Can't post it all though or I'd give away the design.

HEHE..sounds like the cooking TV show..we can't show you the what's in this recipe but....hehehe...

Keep up the good work.

[austexjg]

Can't wait to see the final product of all this hard work. Shift gauge would be the best option for this bike - I always look for 7th.

[randomwalk101]

This homeboy can program
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[ninja250]

We're displaying numbers.
Also got the neutral button to stick in neutral when activated.
You can see I started on the shifter buttons too. The separate LED illuminates when up or downshift is pressed. This is when a variable will be added or subtracted to, to change the gear.

When neutral is selected the gear variable will be reset to hit either first or second depending on up or downshift interrupts.

Time to go out and ride for a bit. Finally Saturday!
Hopefully the roads aren't too wet.

Link to original page on YouTube.

[Timm3h]

Originally Posted by ninja250

I've also been looking at a 14 segment LED display that would let the gauge "talk". Some other nice LED matrix displays too. See links below.
http://www.futurlec.com/LEDDisp.shtml

http://www.futurlec.com/LEDMatrix.shtml

Wow Futurelec definitely has some good prices.. too bad some of the items aren't in stock.

You could even get the 10LED multi colour bar graph too

[ninja250]

I actually had a multi color bar graph display before but I don't know what I did with it. I was looking for one for the leaning gauge but couldn't find one. Hence the multi color LED display I had going. lol
Those things can be hard to come by.

I think I have to drive the LED display in this project with a smt transistor. So it can have more/full power while being driven from the i/o pins of the microcontroller. I think they only source like 35mah or something like that. Problem is, I am unaware of the current requirement of the display I am using now. I have no data sheet for it. I do know it will kill a 9v battery within a few hours though so I'm almost certain it can draw more juice than I'm giving it.

Well,
Had some major breakthroughs and some major setbacks in my programming tonight but learned some amazingly helpful stuff.

Frustrating and rewarding all at once!

On the verge of breaking through the program the next time I mess with it.
Stuck up on a little tangle of words again in C this time on how to make a "advancement prevention routine"
so the display does not advance in gears if you hold the shifter down again. Then the program should be done and I can work more on the display brightness and the final unit housing and PCB.

So much to do.. so little time.
I've put so many hours into this now though that I have to finish something worth the time. If anything, at least one of them. But once one is done it will be cake to make more!

[Timm3h]

Originally Posted by ninja250

Stuck up on a little tangle of words again in C this time on how to make a "advancement prevention routine"
so the display does not advance in gears if you hold the shifter down again. Then the program should be done and I can work more on the display brightness and the final unit housing and PCB.

You could easily fix this with a boolean variable flag that resets where shiftUp is a reading of a microswitch

boolean flag = false; //make sure this isn't in the loop


if(shiftUp && !flag){
    flag = true; //set the flag
    //...code to increase display here....
   
}
if(!shiftUp && flag){
    flag = false; // reset the flag
}

P.S. Where did you get that tiny atmel board?

[ninja250]

Originally Posted by Timm3h

You could easily fix this with a boolean variable flag that resets where shiftUp is a reading of a microswitch

boolean flag = false; //make sure this isn't in the loop


if(shiftUp && !flag){
    flag = true; //set the flag
    //...code to increase display here....
   
}
if(!shiftUp && flag){
    flag = false; // rest the flag
}

P.S. Where did you get that tiny atmel board?

Thanks, will give it a shot. Progress is a bit slow this week but will keep on it as soon as I have time. I don't even know half of those instructions, but I can slap them in my compiler (codevision AVR free version) and see what is says. It will usually help me figure out a way to use unknown code too since it has a syntax checker. (I'm not so good with programming these AVRs at all. lol)
However, code examples usually do wonders for me with enough trial and error.

I made the atmel board BTW. In my last circuit board run. I can draw and make professional circuit boards cheap, and can solder SMT components here at home. My specialty..

[ninja250]

Couldn't figure out the boolean thing but was able to find the bug in my program. Just had to add another simple delay and re arrange my subroutines to wait for the button depress.

It sticks in the gear until depressed an then pressed again, and will hit neutral no matter what if the neutral line is either high or low. That I adjust to the bike neutral sensor output, whatever that may be.

The hard part of the program is done.
Now I need to decide on a tiny display that works at any light level.. and a waterproof housing for it.

Here's video showing the program working. A complex set of "sticky If/thens" was able to do the trick like on the basic stamp controller.

Link to original page on YouTube.

[ninja250]

Definitely have to go with an LCD or just a row of 7 super bright LED's. These segment displays are no good in the sun. Can't see them at all in daylight in my testing today.


I have to find a tiny LCD otherwise it will compromise the size of my project.
If anyone knows of a small LCD let me know! Until then I'll be looking.
I only need a single line and not many characters. Serial would be ideal.

I also added a potentiometer to the program via the ADC inputs last night and have it adjusting the blink of the digit. This will be good for telling the gauge what type of blink style you want when it's time to shift or programming or whatever. At least I got the routines working.

I'll get some video next week. Hopefully I can get a new display just as quick..

[Timm3h]

Take a look at

robotshop.com
sparkfun.com

you could even get a 1" OLED screen

have you looked into brighter 7segment LED's?

[ninja250]

hmm, maybe I'll try that OLED screen. Those look pretty spiffy. Probably bright enough in full sun. A bit on the expensive side for mass production though. (On the bonus side you could put your own pictures as a desktop background to the shift gauge. lol)
A nice cheap single line LED display with like 10 characters would be nice too.
This will be a tough decision. I will have to research super bright seven segment displays.

I just wish I had something as small as the LED segment. I could pretty much build the rest of the circuitry on to the back of the seven segment LED display with a PCB and the thing would come out tiny. I want to make it very small so you can just stick it on with double sided tape or velcro right under the windscreen and it wont go flying away.

Oh yeah my second shifter linkage clamp showed up too from cheap cycle parts.. I bought one to modify for the shift gauge. I'll see about some super reliable switches.

[randomwalk101]

Engear, digitools, accugear all use segment LEDs and looks fine under full sunlight. Red is best under the sun. I have one on my cbr right now. No need for fancy LCD. I think LCD looks not to visible in the sun actually.
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[ninja250]

I really want to stick with the seven segment LEDs.
I guess I'll have to try to order some driver chips and see if they get any brighter. The ones I have don't work in the sun currently and I have no data on their power usage.
It could take quite a few 7 segment LED's to find one that will be bright enough..
Go take yours apart and read me off any part numbers on the display. lol j/k

The rest should be pretty easy from here on out once I chose a viable display.
The only programming left is adjusting the values of the program once I attach it to the bike.
I'll get back to this on Monday..
I also added more buttons and a potentiometer for you to adjust what the gauge does since we have tons of room to play with that too in the program.

[randomwalk101]

not sure how bright the 60,000 ucd is...but it said superbright?

http://www.lc-led.com/View/itemNumber/210

http://www.lc-led.com/Catalog/department/36/category/49

[ninja250]

They still draw relatively low power though.
I suppose I could try one but I'd have to buy ten at a time.
I could also go to the local shop and ask for one of each different type they have as an alternative.

Here's a short clip showing the potentiometer addition (for now it just makes neutral either blink or not) and the max brightness I was able to achieve with the LED displays I have on hand. This using the same amount of current as the LED displays on that data sheet, though I have no idea of their luminosity.

Link to original page on YouTube.

You'll notice it's quite a bit brighter, but still not enough to see in the sun.

[randomwalk101]

If it's place under the windshield and facing you on the bike instead of facing upward, it should be bright enough to see right? Other aftermarket gear indicator is placed this way. I think the led intensity is all the same.
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[ninja250]

I was thinking of maybe making a "hood" over the digit in the housing of the gauge to prevent sunlight from coming in but why don't other gauges require this? Somewhere out there is a digit that glows in full daylight.
Does the one on your other bike work in full sunlight?

Also I think if you have a smoked windscreen it shouldn't be a problem either.

[randomwalk101]

Yeah I think if the gauge face upwards against the sun then there might be a prob. With engear on the cbr, I ride in full sunlight without issues. Now that I think about it, I think it has a little sensor to dim or increase light according to daylight or night. I'll have to check again tommorrow to be sure.
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[ninja250]

A "photocell"? (light level detection)
I have some of those. If necessary we can implement them.
If it's too crappy out to ride today I'll go see about some LED displays.

[randomwalk101]

Looking at the video again, it looks bright. Don't think that kind of LCD get brighter than that
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[ninja250]

Yeah that's what I'm thinking.
I don't know that they get much brighter than that.
That's why I was thinking of going to the LCD.. but still not happy with the size of those. (too big)

I might just use a row of some super bright LEDs so you can see them in full sun AND the display digit for any other time. That way you should be able to see it at all times.

Basically the first test gauge was this way. I can see the leaning LEDs in the sun but not the gear indicator display. Unless of course it's a low light level condition like the video of the gauge on my bike working that I posted.

I'll stop off at the electronics store anyways on my way home this morning to see what I can stir up. They have to have something that will stand out in the sun. I noticed the neutral LED in the bike can even be hard to see in the sun sometimes and it's fairly bright! I'll ask them for the smallest brightest thing they have.

edit:
Well it was so nice out yesterday I decided to hit GMR on my ride home and then got tired out from riding aggressively. I'll look at the electronic shop today instead. lol

[randomwalk101]

Checked. Engear has photocell to adjust day/night brightness.
Its placed parallel to ground, directly to rider so not hit by direct sunlight. Yours is 45 degree so sun hits it more?
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[ninja250]

Cool, will keep that in mind when I design the final housing and PCB.
Thanks for all your helpful input dude.

Bit busy lately but should be able to hit the electronics store today.
I'm gonna look for a new housing to use so I can design the PCB for this thing soon. I'll just use a row of ultra bright LEDs you can see in the sun and the 7 segment digit. I'll make it as small as I possibly can too. I'll get started on it here pretty soon. Now the only hold up is finding a housing and purchasing stock of them so they don't change later down the road after I make the PCB.

I'll just try the first one with stock gauge brightness. I think the final outcome will have a lot to do with how you mount it as you say John.

[ninja250]

Picked up a few new cases to try but still think they're all to big for my liking.
I'm going to make this thing tiny. lol

Also, came up with an idea for the final display.
I'm going to try and order some of those crazy high MCD digits.
then surround them with 6 super bright LEDs. One additional LED lights up per gear. Like a drag tree kinda. You WILL be able to tell what gear you are in, in full sun weather you can see the digit or not.

I asked them to see all the different digits they had and the guy was different this time. Total moron too, he had no idea what I was talking about. I told him he has boxes full of the digits in the back and he couldn't figure it out. Looks like I'll either have to find a new electronics shop or do all online ordering from here on out. As well as making a custom tiny cause for this gauge.

If you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself!

all of these are too big for my liking


I could put this thing on that quarter if I wanted to. I think it needs to be between the size of the quarter and the case. lol


Quick paint sketch of my display idea for any angle and light level viewing.
each number represents a super bright LED that lights up in that gear and the 8 represents the 7 segment digit.

[randomwalk101]

Lil too big.. and the LED should be pointing at you, not upwards??

[ninja250]

I don't see any logical reason for the CDS cell.
It's there to dim the gauge in darkness? Is it really that bright at night? I have some right here but don't think it's necessary. It looks cool at night


I wish I had one of those gauges to play with.
I'm willing to bet you can't see one of those in the sun either.

I suppose I could just make it exactly like that, but you'd probably want to stick it in your fairing or something.. in the shade... so you can see it. Or use a smoked windscreen and angle the gauge so light won't hit it?