
In F1 when the engine is at it's optimum RPM a light lights up on the dash to tell him to change.
Does anyone know how to do this in a locost withou buyin a digital speedo?
I think you can buy this equipment from http://www.raldes.co.uk or Demon Tweeks.
[Edited on 21/4/03 by bob]
I wish there wss a big market for summat like that - could be made in a couple hrs for less than a fiver and sold for at least 20 quid!
They charge more than that for that stuuuppiidd HQ speaker wire....
atb
steve
Gonna tel us how then, Big Shot??
Cheers
Chris
Ha! its dead easy
get one of those vibration sensor thingies (pence from a local alarm company), glue it to a pair of spectacles and wire it to a big bulb mounted on
the scuttle, when your vision becomes blurred, this will alert the sensor and the bulb will light, eureka... time to change gear . You may have to
modify the design for low revving CEC engines, and place the sensor directly on the rocker cover, when the valves bounce the bulb will light.
Simple fuckin pimple Mr Stack.
Wadders

i]Originally posted by chrisg
Gonna tel us how then, Big Shot??
Cheers
Chris [/quote
quote:
Originally posted by chrisg
Gonna tel us how then, Big Shot??![]()
Cheers
Chris
You can do me one if you like
be cool if it was adjustable as well. i am sure there is something you would like fabricating as an exchange (as you
know i work for a company that is a lot tight when it comes to wages
)
quote:
Originally posted by stephen_gusterson
quote:
Originally posted by chrisg
Gonna tel us how then, Big Shot??![]()
Cheers
Chris
Yep
and I bet David Jenkins will too.
quote:
Originally posted by Viper
You can do me one if you likebe cool if it was adjustable as well. i am sure there is something you would like fabricating as an exchange (as you know i work for a company that is a lot tight when it comes to wages
)
quote:
You use a Microchip 12C908 or similar microprocessor chip (same one thats used to crack playstation 1 game copies). You write a simple program that looks for a pulse frequency on an input pin and then set an output to light an led or relay when you meet those revs. You could also make a simple rev limiter that opened another relay should you go past the critical 'shes gonna blow capn' point, by simply disconnecting the power to the coil +ve terminal.
If you need a hand, I'm a firmware / hardware engineer, and write PIC programs all day. Also we have emulators and test equipment at work.
careful Northy, you will just confuse Chris even further! 
atb
steve
Huh?
I Don't get it
Cheers
Stupid
Surely a freq. to voltage converter and an op amp would be far easier? Much as I like doing weird and wonderful things with PICs (no jokes please mr
G) there is such as thing as overkill
Chris
[Edited on 23/4/03 by ChrisW]
You can get a free C compiler for the PIC on the internet. If you have a programmer it would be simpler to use the PIC than a LM2917 (if I remember?)
and more adjustable.
When I was first into electronics and bought the mags in early seventies, I noted how many bollox projects they carried. A rain alarm was a good one -
a couple transistors and a veroboard sensor - sticking your hand out the window would have worked as well.
Any comments of a sexula nature regarding PICs refrained from - co I couldnt think of any

atb
Steve
quote:
Much as I like doing weird and wonderful things with PICs
Personally I think Mr Hicost has hit the nail on the head. Go is much preferable to show!
I developed a simple PIC shiftlight for my Audi about two years ago. Used blue and red LED's mounted in a small pod on the pillar. Still running
to this day. Would have to agree about revving the nuts out of the engine to start with... Not sure it's wise anymore at 96k miles.
I'll see if I can find the code.
Cheers
but I always drive my 318i like that......its the only way I can get any frigging perfomance out of a 23k quid 118 horsepower overpriced underpowered
car.
Perfomance being a relative word in this case.
Worse still I have to keep it for a 4th year.
atb
Steve
[Edited on 23/4/03 by stephen_gusterson]
Hi all
I have a PIC 19F877 driven dash board that uses an LCD to display data e.g. RPM has flashing change lights.
I have even been working on an f1 stile gear shift and clutch menanisam although this would be much easer to implant on a bike engine car.
I have also played with the idea of traction control and launch control through a fly by wire throttle. There is also the possibility for active
damping
All though I have written most of the code and have the hard ware built I have only just started sourcing parts for my locost.
However if there is any one in Scotland (I live in Edinburgh) who is interested in this sort of thing I can either help them create there owe or fit
one of my devices to there car. If you are ferer a field I can help by phone or email if you are interested in this sort of thing.
PS sorry about the spelling
19F877?
I'd be interested in more details.
[Edited on 25/4/03 by Northy]
Hi ceebmoj
quote:
interested in this sort of thing I can either help them create there owe or fit one of my devices to there car. If you are ferer a field I can help by phone or email if you are interested in this sort of thing.
Hi basically if you think of an f1 car at the height of the driver aides / active control eara all of thows devices can be incorporated i.e. before
tiers with treds when ride height, suspension damping, wing angle, auto shifting, traction control, launch control, optimum shift warnings, grater
engine monitoring and if you really want to go for it you could replace your distributor and have a the ECY control the engine firing witch would
allow you to dynamically (while the engine is running) to switch from sport to economy modes by adjusting the firing times of the engine.
So basically what would be helpful would be if you guys who are interested could tell me what sort of features you are looking for and I can then tell
you how to implement them or build you a device and we can then fit it to your car and see what you think.
I hope that what I am about to tell you is not teacking any one to suck eggs but hear goes any way foe the type of application we are talking about
hear I woukld recommend the use of a microchip PIC (Programmable Integrated Circuit I thing but I am not good at remembering theas things) There are
many good features of picks they can be programmed in c i.e. any one who thinks logical can be taut the basic a of C in a day or 2 by any ½ reasonable
programmer all thow I do stress the basics and it will tack longer to master (think welding) but what is really good about PIC’s is that that have a
lot of devises on chip i.e. for a 16F877 witch costs £3 or there about you get a devise that has a com port (to connect to your PC) I2C 8 channel A to
D and other features. All of this comes in a device with a hier cock rate than the first pc I used (early 486). The dater form the system can be
displayed in real time on a LCD screen and also down loaded to a pc through the com port. Allowing feather analysis
So when I have seen what sort of things you are particular interested in I will talk more about specific implementation however pleas note auto
shifting will be much harder to implement on a non bike engine car but not impossible. Also replacing the distributor with an PIC controlled engine
firing system is another probmem that will be hard to implement and require a longer development time.
Blake
Hi Blake
Here are some ideas for shift lights triggered off the coil feed:
1. simple one - a red light that comes on at a chosen gear shift rpm and maybe strobes or comes on constant then strobes brightly at another limit
(selectable) Or possibly changes colour (green then orange then red at selected revs)
2. more complicated one - A sequence of green, green, orange and bright red lights that indicate the approaching shift point (selectable). Perhaps
strobing brightly at the end. Perhaps selectable brightness, selective light sequence pattern (cumulative, waterfall etc)
3. Even more complicated one - adding adjustable rev limiter for "soft cut" and "hard cut" at selectable limits.
4. Yet even more complicated one - modified soft cut rev limiter to provide "launch control" push button holds engine speed at required RPM
on start line to avoid excessive wheelspin or engine bogging down.
How's that? enough ideas?!
best regards
Dave
I received the following e-mail from Dave with some suggestions for a change lights for a car. The only changes I have made to this email are to
number the points so that is easer to talk about each point in isolation.
1. This would be very simple to implement and I would probably just go for one of the more complicated solutions because the hardware required would
be the same. However all though a changing colour led can be implemented with easy I would recommend say 6 leds that came on representing RMP and when
all 6 leds are on it is time to change gear. I would recommend this route because it is often difficult to judge the shade of a led where as if it is
on then you know it is on and have to do some thing.
2. as I mentioned above in 1 I would recommend going with this type of led arrangement but the colour and orientation is purely up to how you would
find it easiest to use. I would recommend however that if a more advances system is desired i.e. 3,4 or other features then a simple LCD screen say 2
* 20 character display could also be used to display other information.
3. I have contacted dave to get a second definition of soft cut and hard cut but I don’t see any problem in incorporating theas features with some
form of warning display if the feature cuts in. as for the selectable limits I would envision building in a system so that with youer home pc and a
COM cable you could set the RPM that eack of the LED’s came on at along with the cut out limits.
4. ok this is the hardest option to implement but not that hard however it would require tuning in to each car and a number of modification to the
car. First of all a fly by wire throttle would be needed along with separate weal speed sensors for both the front and rear weal of the car so that
the front weal tell you the true speed witch is compared to the rear weal to show how much weal spin there is this would then alow the fly by wire
throttle to be closed from the position that the driver is asking for reducing weal spin. This could be implemented with out a fly by wire clutch
(like an f1 car) but the system would be beter if the clutch was involved in the system.
If ther are any other suggestion or any one else is interested in this sort of thin then [pleas post any suggestion you have hear.
Blake
Ok I have finished the initial design of the system basic system. And it will allow the following features
1.A piece of pc software that will allow you using a com port to adjust the rpm at witch each of the indicator LEDs come on at and the rpm at witch
the engine cut out will come in at.
2. A number of LEDs to signal the rmp of the engine each led will be light at a pre configured rmp(witch can be changed using the above software). The
idea being that when they are all on, it is time to change gear.
3. A warning LED witch will come on a set rpm before the rev limiter cuts in again pre configured to but changeable with the supplied software.
4. A relay that will cut the feed to the coil when the rpm rise above a set value (hence not allowing the engine to fire and limiting the rpm of the
engine) the feed will be re connected to the coil once the engines RMPs have dropped below a differential below the engine cut out rpm.
5. Sounds obvious but it will all run from the cars 12v system.
6. On power up the LEDs will flash to show that the system is functioning and all the LEDs are working
If any body is interested in the launch control feature I mentioned previously could they pleas post and I will just build the added requirements in
to this circuit. Also if there are any other features any of you would like to see then pleas say.
I will post the circuit diagrams and possibly the sorce code. If not the code then at least the binaries hear for this device but will be building at
least one my self so if any one else is interested then shout and I will knock you one up for around £20 or there about.