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Toys Technology

Heads-Up Displays for Motorcyclists 608

Posted by CowboyNeal from the street-hawk-returns dept.
An anonymous reader writes "An NYT article describes a new invention by a former racing driver to incorporate displays in the visors of helmets used by motorcyclists. A GPS receiver in the helmet is used to calculate position and speed of the wearer, and presumably in displaying route guidance. I'll bet some horrifying data could be gathered on the speed with which riders' heads impact the pavement after an accident."
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Heads-Up Displays for Motorcyclists More

Heads-Up Displays for Motorcyclists

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  • Great (Score:2, Funny)

    by iamdrscience ( 541136 )
    As if riding a motorcycle wasn't dangerous enough, soon somebody's going to be watching a TV show in their helmet while riding around.

    • Re:Great (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      .. as opposed to yacking their head off on the mobile phone instead of concentrating on driving, checking mirrors and so such. Motorcycles would be a hell of a lot safer if they would just outlaw cagers ;)

    • Re:Great (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Hellasboy ( 120979 )
      most of the dangers to motorcycle riders isn't them getting distracted themselves but by people in cars not paying attention.

      • Comment removed (Score:5, Informative)

        by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @02:30AM (#7698433)
        Comment removed based on user account deletion

        • Re:Great (Score:3, Informative)

          by Shoten ( 260439 )
          From the Hurt Report [magpie.com]...


          Approximately three-fourths of these motorcycle accidents involved collision with another vehicle, which was most often a passenger automobile.

          Read the report yourself, before you start preaching, with the baseless expectation that it will support your own idiotic assumptions. BTW, that line is the first and foremost conclusion of the report, and the third sentence in the whole thing.

          But that only addresses your second statement, being "The majority of bike accidents do not in

    • Re:Great (Score:2, Funny)

      by Kilka ( 694154 )
      This will be fox networks newest reality tv show. I can just see it, vehicles mysteriously getting in joe motorbikers way!

      -Kilka

  • Google Link (Score:4, Informative)

    by Ryan Stortz ( 598060 ) * <ryan0rz&gmail,com> on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:27AM (#7698085)
    Article [nytimes.com]
    Brought to you by my sexy subscription! Get yours today at http://slashdot.org/subscribe.pl [slashdot.org]

  • Funny fact of the day (Score:2, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Hospitals call motorcycles, donorcycles.

    Only teenagers and lucky macho-idiots ride donorcycles.

    • Re:Funny fact of the day (Score:2, Insightful)

      by O ( 90420 )
      And poor-ass 20-somethings who like getting 50MPG, < $30/mo insurance, and much cheaper college campus parking permits.

    • Re:Funny fact of the day (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Anti_Climax ( 447121 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @03:38AM (#7698684)
      Hospitals call motorcycles, donorcycles
      When I had my motorcycle accident last week (last friday) I heard both Donorcycle and Murdercycle used by the ER staff.
      Only teenagers and lucky macho-idiots ride donorcycles

      As for people trashing the idea of riding a bike, while you have the possibility of getting in an accident because another driver is not paying attention (or in my case was too old to be on the road) if you drive within the law, stay off the damn sport bikes that have no business anywhere but a track, pay attention to what you're doing, and wear a helmet, you can ride with relative safety.

      I'm 21, drove nothing but motorcycles since I've been able to have a permit @ 15.5 years, and loved getting between 60 and 70 Mpg. Believe me, you don't ride a 250 nighthawk to try to look cool or race people, and if that's why you ride a motorcycle, you might as well give up your keys.

      For those interested, this was my first accident. I t-boned a chrysler at 40mph, with no helmet on. I was lucky and limped out of the ER 2 hours later with only some staples in my knee and an interesting circular wound to my abdomen from my handlebars. My head didn't touch anything until I came to a rest on the side of the road after getting bounced off her windshield. Had my head impacted anything a helmet would have been more than adaquate to prevent damage.
    • Ha-ha, not me!

      I declined the organ donation elective on my license!

      Sorry suckers, may as well resuscitate me cause you can't have my guts.

  • i always wanted that bike and helmet

  • Interesting.. (Score:2, Funny)

    by irokitt ( 663593 )
    Does it run Linux? And specifically, will it run Gentoo?;) Seriously though, wouldn't a HUD distract a motorcyclist? I know it probably would distract me if one were put in my truck...
    • You just have to look down a bit for your HUD...in which case, don't you consider that just as unsafe since your focus isn't on the road?

      • Re:You already have a HUD (Score:5, Insightful)

        by Galvatron ( 115029 ) * on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:51AM (#7698231)
        You just have to look down a bit for your HUD

        Isn't that what makes it a HUD, that you don't look down? Indeed, isn't that why the term "heads-up display" was coined, to contrast it to instrument panels that you had to look down to read?

        That being said, I agree with the sentiment expressed in your post. Having information displayed on a helmet overlay seems like a great idea, it means the motorcyclist won't have to look down to get information, and more space is available to display a greater variety of data.

        • Instrument panels technically are HDD's. Heads Down Displays. I could see the benefit of a HUD on a vehicle, it would make it much easier to target objects (and people)with your remote controlled roof-mounted machine gun. Dont have a remote controlled roof-mounted machine gun? That's not my problem.

  • Same speed? (Score:5, Funny)

    by iReflect ( 215501 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:34AM (#7698129) Homepage
    I'll bet some horrifying data could be gathered on the speed with which riders' heads impact the pavement after an accident.

    Umm... Wouldn't it be aproximately the same speed that the motercycle was going when it crashed?

    • Re:Same speed? (Score:3, Informative)

      by canavan ( 14778 )
      No, since the asphalt would be expected to be about parallel to the trajectory of the cyclist, so that would be an upper bound for the speed at which the had scaps along the road. Additionally, GPSRs are notoriously bad at calculating vertical speeds, and they sample only roughly every second, so there's not much to be learned in this regard. One would need acceleration sensors to gather any meaningful data.

  • vibration? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:34AM (#7698134)
    If this just attaches to the outside of a helmet, it probably won't catch on. No way I want more windnoise or extra vibration on my head. If it was integrated in a helmet it would be sorta nice. On the track it would be rather usefull to keep a eye on the rpms easier. A gear readout to go with that would cover most/all of my needs while riding.

  • SportVue link with images - Motion Research (Score:3, Informative)

    by Esterhaus_48 ( 634600 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:36AM (#7698145) Homepage
    Motion Research - SportVue [motionresearch.com]

  • HUD (Score:3, Informative)

    by Ty_Webb ( 729466 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:36AM (#7698146)
    Quite the morbid commentary posted beside the article there, but the Chevy Corvette Z06 already possesses HUD-capabilities - speed, current gear, etc. Helmets would be a nice next step, but incorporating it into more cars would be nicer.
    • Isn't there some SUV out there that has a little night vision display on it? AFAIK, that's the only other display like this.

    • Re:HUD (Score:3, Informative)

      by zero_offset ( 200586 )
      The reason more cars don't have HUDs is... yep, PATENTS. GM owns the patents on the most economical approach, a reflected LED. Many years ago I owned a Grand Prix GTP and I loved the HUD.

      I'm tempted to cut up the dash on my Viper and try to build one myself. It would be fantastic for road racing...

  • Distracting (Score:5, Insightful)

    by g-to-the-o-to-the-g ( 705721 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:38AM (#7698157) Homepage Journal
    I've had some experience with motorcycles, and it sounds to me like this would just be a distraction. It may be real neato and stuff, but in a practical sense it may be a safety concern. Putting the display in the driver's helmet reduces the field of peripheral vision available (when focusing on the display). How about designing a display mounted on the motorcycle instead? We're familiar and comfortable with gauges already. This would reduce distraction, and increase safety.
    • Perhaps they could build something into the windshields some bikes have. A little less distracting, since motorcyclists depend on their concentration (the only thing protecting them during a collision is their shirt).

      • Re:Distracting (Score:2, Insightful)

        by Methuseus ( 468642 )
        If the only thing protecting you is a shirt (no helmet, no ultra-durable jacket, no thick pants and heavy boots) then you deserve what you get if you happen to be in an accident.

    • Re:Distracting (Score:5, Informative)

      by Mark Imbriaco ( 133740 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:57AM (#7698262)
      Perhaps a button on the handlebars to toggle the HUD in the helmet would be appropriate. It would allow the rider to get the information when he wants it, but not be distracting all the time. It would definitely be an improvement over looking down at a gauge cluster, I would think.
    • We're familiar and comfortable with gauges already.

      Gauges, bah! - back in my day sonny we just listened to the hum of the engine and we knew approximately how fast we were going - some drivers increased the accuracy by having an experienced Harley Ho on the back telling the driver their exact speed - we also cooked our grub on the exhaust pipe!

      and...we liked it.

      PS. I'll bet your one of those sissy geeks that actually use the temperature gauge on your mobo instead of using the old finger lick test...

    • bad idea. (Score:3, Insightful)

      by El Camino SS ( 264212 )

      How about designing a display mounted on the motorcycle instead? We're familiar and comfortable with gauges already. This would reduce distraction, and increase safety.

      And that said super-duper motorcycle would be out on the street about .6 nanoseconds unattended before being promptly stolen.

      You can take your helmet in with you to dinner, or when shopping.

  • An Augmented World (Score:5, Interesting)

    by pbug ( 728232 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:42AM (#7698175) Homepage
    I am waiting for the prices to go down in the glasses version of this type of technology. That would allow me to not only added data wile I am riding but when I am walking down the street. Imagine you can pull up your date file an impress her with all the stuff you remember about her. Also you can have that poem there for you to recite that will rock.

    • Re:An Augmented World (Score:4, Funny)

      by ryanvm ( 247662 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @10:16AM (#7700165)
      Imagine you can pull up your date file an impress her with all the stuff you remember about her. Also you can have that poem there for you to recite that will rock.

      Greetings - I am from the future. I brought with me a picture of you [wichita.edu] on your first date using this technology. Unfortunately you can see that your date has left the table.
  • I use a motorcycle as my primary form of transportation and I have never had a problem checking my speed, odometer, RPMs, etc, simply by glancing down.

    Personally, I think I would find it MORE distracting to have all that information in the "periphery of one eye". I'm always looking as far ahead as I can at road conditions, intersections and a million other things. The last thing I want is my vision obstructed

    I really don't think this will be a boon to motorcycle safety...maybe if there were a switch on
    • The switch on the handlebars would be key. There are times when you *know* that you've got a safe few seconds to glance around. It would be nice if you could be looking forward at that point (instead of looking down at a map on your tankbag, for example) since during that time you *know* its safe to look down, Bambi over there *knows* its time to jump in front of you and cause $3k damage to your front end.

      Friggin Bambi.

  • Seriously (Score:5, Insightful)

    by dandelion_wine ( 625330 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:43AM (#7698186) Journal
    Motorcyclists already have to pay closer attention things on the road -- and the conditions of the road itself -- wet leaves, potholes, puddles -- than those on four wheels. Is putting more -- continually -- in their visual frame a good idea from the standpoint of safety? (and yes, all the cracks about why-are-you-on-a-motorcycle in the first place stand, but there's a difference between risking death and egging it on)

    You know the way an interior light in a car is distracting at night because the reflection of things within the car obscure your perception of those outside? I'd feel safer sparing a glance to an instrument on my bike than having it in my face at all times. The helmet already narrows my visual field as it is.

    • Re:Seriously (Score:4, Informative)

      by asb ( 1909 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @02:14AM (#7698347) Homepage

      Yes it is.

      If, for example the speedometer and engine warning lights were in the HUD then the rider wouldn't have to take her eyes off the road to check them. Think about it for a second. The fighter pilots use it succesfully and damn if they don't have more things in their mind than motorcyclists.

      The difference to the interior light reflection is that the reflection is on the wind screen but the HUD looks like it was outside the car closer to the objects the rider already looks at. It's "advanced enough" to me so someone else has to explain how exactly it is done.

      • Comment removed based on user account deletion
      • Ever hear of "big sky theory"? Not a lot to run into up there.

        Even if you could somehow fix the focus problem, as the poster below points out, you would still be obscuring what little visual field I have in a full-face helmet (and catch me wearing anything else). We're talking about a constantly shifting background. Wherever you put the HUD display, it's in front of what is empty space one second, and the nose of a deer the next, or a pedestrian not looking where they're going, the nose of a car or bicycle
    • Motorcyclists already have to pay closer attention things on the road -- and the conditions of the road itself -- wet leaves, potholes, puddles -- than those on four wheels. Is putting more -- continually -- in their visual frame a good idea from the standpoint of safety? (and yes, all the cracks about why-are-you-on-a-motorcycle in the first place stand, but there's a difference between risking death and egging it on)

      You've hit the nail right on the head. But the real problem with heads up displays is
      • I'm seriously sick and tired of the "this new technology is a dumb idea and here's my baseless argument to support that opinion" posts on /.

        Me too, but you have to admit sometimes the neighsayers are right and the new technology or idea is crap. Not in this particular case, imo. I'm still waiting for the cell phone fad to die.

    • Have you ever driven a bike? (Score:5, Insightful)

      by CrystalFalcon ( 233559 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @02:34AM (#7698449) Homepage
      You are absolutely correct in your underlying statements about bikers having a lot to pay attention to, yet you don't draw the conclusions. I take it from your comments about bikes being dangerous that you don't drive one yourself?

      I drive a Suzuki Hayabusa. For those of you who aren't familiar with it, it's a bike basically built for insane speeding. It starts to accelerate seriously around 80 mph, from where it kicks you up to 180-190 mph while leaving your guts behind.

      (As a side note here, speeding is not seen as a particularly serious crime where I live. It's regarded more like a sport. A friend of mine referred to speeding tickets as "fun tax".)

      Anyway. When you're cruising down the highway at 140-150 mph or so, there's just no looking down at the instrument panel. The concept of looking down does not exist on this planet. Your focus is ahead, on the road, on the traffic. And sharply so.

      Therefore, this is something that will actually make you READ the speedometer. Read the speedometer AT ALL. As it currently stands, the only speed indication you have as a sportbiker is the pitch of your engine, because you sure as hell aren't taking your eyes off the road.

      In these conditions, the "spare of your glance" which you are talking about, means you are unaware of the road and the traffic for a minimum of 100 yards travelled (about one second to look down, refocus, and interpret what you are seeing).

      So, bring on any and all information you can onto my visor. Anything that rests in my field of view is good, if it means I don't need to take the eyes off the road.

      • Re:Have you ever driven a bike? (Score:4, Informative)

        by dandelion_wine ( 625330 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @02:47AM (#7698496) Journal
        I take it from your post that you have never had a deer, or a pedestrian, let alone a car wander out into your peripheral vision, with obvious intention to wander some more.

        I've been on a Yahaha 650XS Heritage Special for the last 11 years; thanks for asking.

        I have been in situations where a glance down at my instruments is inopportune. It has never caused an accident because I do it quickly and my eyes are back on the road. FYI I also check my side mirrors when I change lanes or turn, and in that moment my eye is also not on the road ahead.

        Maybe you've been riding for 20 years. Don't know; don't care. This is not a pissing contest. In my view, having something extra in my field of view that has no relation to the background I'm constantly scanning does more harm than good. I know the approximate RPM of the bike from its feel and sound. I've never gotten so crazy on it that I'm surprised by my speed when I check it. What exactly could you put on that HUD that would offset the additional risk, pray tell?

        The cool factor does not cut it. Maybe on four wheels.

        • Hmm, you're right (Score:5, Insightful)

          by CrystalFalcon ( 233559 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @02:58AM (#7698546) Homepage
          You know what? A few minutes after I made the post I changed my mind completely and decided this was a bad idea, mostly for the reasons you now write about. :-)

          When going with the flow of traffic, looking at the speedometer is not important. When ignoring speed limits altogether, looking at the speedometer is not important, either. And like you say, you get the rpm info from the engine pitch, which is plenty.

          So I swiftly turn 180 degrees to "get that crap outta my eyesight, I don't need it".

          I guess what triggered my post was your reflection that it's much safer to look down. That I still don't agree with, but that's another story.

          You are right that I haven't had a deer wander into my peripheral vision, vectoring towards where I'm going to be driving in a split second. That's mostly because they're not so common here, though. Pedestrians happen. Cars definitely happen. The guy who taught me to ride always told me to drive like I was wearing fluorescent clothes, and the first car driver to hit me would win the $1 million jackpot. I still think he has a point.

          So, mea culpa, you're right, get this crap off my gear. :-) Like you say, the cool factor does not cut it.

          (and just for the record, I always wear protective gear: full helmet, bulletproof vest against sharp metal, impact protection jacket, and full-body sliding protection.)
          • ... ... WTF?

            First time for everything. Like to think I'd do the same. Cheers. :)

            Yeah, had the deer. My dad in the truck behind me says it looked like the doe jumped right over me, but what happened in fact was she bounded out and we eyeballed each other for just a moment before she decided to veer just behind me in a leap. Kind of slo-mo beautiful, in that I'm-about-to-die kinda way.

            I like the jackpot idea. I still wear all the gear (in 30-40 Celcius heat) and try to keep people guessing on the road, t

          • Re:Hmm, you're right (Score:4, Insightful)

            by theLOUDroom ( 556455 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @09:25AM (#7699811)
            I think it just means they need to be selective about what they put on your HUD.

            Would you really mind if a brake warning light popped up to tell you that you had just lost all your brake fluid?

            Also, it doesn't have to be on every second you're on your bike. It could pop up for half a second to indicate what gear you just shifted into. Warn you that redline is approaching, and otherwise only show up when you push an easy to reach button.

            There's no good reason this can't be configuable enough to give to only the information you want. It IS safer than looking down, and having it be off most of the time would let you spot those deer.

  • Awesome, peruse /. while.... (Score:5, Funny)

    by TheWart ( 700842 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:44AM (#7698190)
    You ride your bike! "Officer, I wasn't going over the speed limit, but I was reading a reply, and this guy linked me to the Goat man!!!"

  • Safety Angle? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Tensor ( 102132 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:46AM (#7698206)
    This would probably increase the usage of Helmets, if only for the coolness factor of a HUD.

    Other ideas:
    - The helmet should also play mp3 and display the song at the bottom or top each time it changes (tho this could be distracting, and the RIAA would oppose it ;)
    - 0 Lux camera to superpose picture at night to improve visibility on highways and blacktops. But with enough intelligence to supress the flaring of incoming vehicle
    - SMS !! So you can get localized spam from nearby stops and restaurants (joke)

    BTW: no bikers i know would even want to know/care the speed and deceleration of their heads hitting pavement. I believe the whole point of riding a bike is not to crash ;)

  • Having my bike's speed/performance information floating "in space" in my field of vision would be rather cool. Since the guages on a bike are inevitibly located low in the rider's field of view (practically 'down' on a sport bike in a tuck) this could be a real nice addition to the bike.

    The only questions I'd have about it (having read their site, but not the NYT article) would be how much does it weigh, and how does the off-center mounting of the display affect the helmet's aerodynamics? If it's designe

  • No 'murdercycle' reference? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by gmhowell ( 26755 ) <gmhowell@gmail.com> on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:52AM (#7698237) Homepage Journal
    With witty lines like that, I can't believe the poster refrained from making reference to 'murdercycles'. Helmets are largely a nonissue WRT motorcycle safety these days. They are 'safe enough', provided they are worn. (I'd like to ride in a state with helmet choice, but I'd always choose a lid.)

    There are three issues that overwhelmingly appear in motorcycle fatalities. The first is alcohol. Alcohol use BY THE MOTORCYCLIST is the number one rider controllable factor in fatalities. Eliminate alcohol, and you eliminate 25% or more of motorcycle fatalities and accidents. That is why Harley does its customers a disservice by providing beer tents at events. Because of the number of factors a rider must juggle, the effects of alcohol are more readily apparant on bikes than cars.

    The next issue is ignorance by other road users, primarily passenger vehicle operators. Nope, bikers aren't getting squashed by semis, they're getting squashed by SUVs and minivans. I've long been a proponent of tougher licensing standards in the US.

    And the final issue is rider skill. Riders who are self taught or taught by friends and family are over six times as likely to be involved in an accident. That's why the MSF [msf-usa.org] came into being. Yes, I'm an instructor, no, I don't speak on their behalf.

    The value of HUDs, particularly WRT driver/rider safety at highway speeds found in the US (where this inventor is located) is of questionable. Lack of access to engine and/or vehicle statistics doesn't even appear in any accident statistics. Sure, this is a neat toy, but judging by the writing by the AC submitter, I think he's just pissed at having been passed by even the most mundane of motorcycles [refundersrefuge.org].
    • That is why Harley does its customers a disservice by providing beer tents at events.

      I think the beer tents are there to lessen the sticker shock of Harley paraphenalia.

  • Depends on the bike/rider/situation (Score:4, Insightful)

    by DavittJPotter ( 160113 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:52AM (#7698241) Homepage Journal
    I know on my Intruder 1500LC, I'd like this on my windshield. My speedo is on the tank, and it's a good glance down to check speed & fuel level (no tach on my V-Twin yet). On my old FZR600, this would have been sweetness indeed in my helmet - mid-corner, close to apex, check RPM/gear/speed - without looking down. IF you could make it unobtrusive yet visible. IF, if, if. Motorcyclists don't need distractions - I'm using 100% of my senses to look ahead, beside, and behind to watch for cagers when I'm riding.

    If you've never ridden before, don't condemn or judge or pretend you know anything about motorcycling. Until you've tagged your favorite twisty road on two wheels, just ridden 150+ miles to have breakfast with your buds, or just ridden to be out... I can't explain it to you. You have to experience it.

    If you ride, keep the shiny side up! Winter won't last forever...

  • poor taste... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by llamaluvr ( 575102 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:55AM (#7698251) Journal
    "I'll bet some horrifying data could be gathered on the speed with which riders' heads impact the pavement after an accident."

    wish I could mod "-1: distasteful"...
  • I can't help but feel the paranoid thought that the GPS data will be used to hurt more than help. I would think it's more possible to start ticketing speeders and such this way. The distraction factor mentioned by other readers can't be ignored as well, UNLESS they could pipe in some rear camera data or such. The cops already harass motorcycle riders more than cagers. I would like to see a market of mapping software and such on dashbased LCD's. The large tourer bikes have them, but I would like to have some

  • No no no. (Score:4, Informative)

    by Malicious ( 567158 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @01:59AM (#7698270)
    If you've ever driven a car and instead of focusing on the road in front of you, tried looking at the windsheild, you'd realize just how hard it is to change focus quickly from the glass to the road. Now try driving with glasses on and focusing on the lenses of your glasses, while staying in your lane.
    Further, when I go riding I spend most of the time with my visor up, to feel the wind on my face and enjoy the ride. Why would I want to keep my visor down, just so that it can tell me I'm speeding when I already know?
  • ...other than in a car, and I know I pretty much have a +/-5mph idea of my speed (and +/-500 RPM), just by the car, the road, the feel of all the inputs, where my foot is on the gas, the sound of the engine, road-noise etc...I would think most people who ride regularly have an even more accurate 'feel' of their situation (the non-morons anyway) and the loss of peripheral vision and subconscious distraction of the read out would do more harm than good. For cars I think they should be standard safety equipme
  • Aircraft use HUD's principally because there is so much information the pilot needs to have. Especially flying IFR the pilot is *only* relying on the equipment for control of the aircraft. Current production commercial aircraft now use displays which give the pilot direct view of the controls he needs at any given time to improve reaction times and reduce stress.

    This is not even vaguely related to the conditions of riding a motorcycle (or bicycle), where the rider needs to be continuously evaluating what

  • I'll bet some horrifying data could be gathered on the speed...

    Or on the amount of heat generated by a pair of "ass brakes".

  • Two practical questions (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Babbster ( 107076 ) <aaronbabb&gmail,com> on Friday December 12, 2003 @02:05AM (#7698303) Homepage
    Would the speed indicated by GPS be more or less accurate than the speed indicated by a plain old speedometer?

    Related to the above, wouldn't it be better if the GPS receiver/electronics could be integrated into the motorcycle and then connected by wire (or perhaps by Bluetooth?) to a compatible helmet, saving some potential weight in the helmet? It would also make the helmet less steal-worthy.

    I'm not a motorcycle rider myself, but I'm the curious sort. :)

  • Neat, though I'm not much on the motorcycle thing after witnessing an acquaintance fatally crash. A HUD wouldn't have saved him, but perhaps a personal radar [wired.com] displayed on that HUD could give (motor and muscle) cyclists the information they need to avoid similar accidents. Combined with a wireless medical alert system [sun.com], drivers - heck, regular folks - will have a much better chance of surviving an accident.
    • After reading the responses of several riders after composing and posting, putting a radar in your field of vision seems more dangerous. The "feel" thing with radar and the spoken data others suggest would probably work better.

      OT, I'm curious about the appeal of riding. I understand having the sun shine on your face and the wind in your hair, but a convertible "cage" seems more enjoyable to me than a bike. I'm a careful, cool-headed driver so a motorcycle seems reckless. I've ridden a few times, but it n

  • Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @02:09AM (#7698322)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • ...will it help you make turns on city streets at 200mph? [blueyonder.co.uk]

    I really wanted a motorcycle helmet HUD like this when I was a kid.

  • Seems to me that the average motorcycle rider has to pay much more attention to his (rapidly upcoming) surroundings than the average Chevy Cavalier driver.

    Detracting from that experience would seem to be somewhat dangerous.

    How does the "power bike" experience differ from the "chopper ride"?

  • This will confuse more riders than it helps... (Score:3, Funny)

    by brogdon ( 65526 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @02:26AM (#7698419) Homepage
    This company needs to use something other than GPS to determine the speed of the bike. GPS's method is to collect a location point every few tenths of a second, then add the distance between each of the last twenty points or so and divide by total time. This means that your "speed" is an approximation at best (almost always to low because or curves in the road) and doesn't show double-zero until a few seconds after you've stopped.

    I did a fleet management project using GPS-able PDAs in trucks. We had to kill the big spedometer in our interface because the GPS delay caused it to fuck with peoples' heads.

    If they're serious about this, they need to either hang a Hall effect sensor on the output shaft of the engine, or tap into the bike's speed sensor line if it has an engine-control processor and then relay that info to the helmet with bluetooth or something. Otherwise it just won't work.

  • This is a distraction (Score:5, Interesting)

    by anonomouse ( 695568 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @02:43AM (#7698474) Homepage
    Speaking as a motorcyclist, I don't think this will be much use for me. When I am riding hard, the thing I might possibly be able to use in a head-up display would be a tachometer, not a speedometer. On straight roads, I can spare the glance down. If I cannot glance down because I am in traffic, or heading down streets with blind driveways, etcetera, I am going too fast for conditions, and my life expectancy will reflect that.

    If I am on a twisty road, and going very hard (I am thinking of the fabulous Duffy Lake road, a very remote and senic one, famous within the sport rider community in BC, on which I have never seen any scenery), there is no way I am going to use a speedometer at all. In that case, one doesn't use the tach either. Though it is true that a rider at the limit is not easily able to use gauges (a very athletic activity that invloves moving your body aggresively forward, back, and to the sides to change the weight distribution of the bike), the pace of events is too fast for them to be of any use anyway. Race bikes don't have speedometers, and the tack is usually oriented such that at redline the needle is pointing straight up. With experience, you do not need to look directly at it.

    An important skill for fast road riding (even more so than on the track) is a zen-like ability to scan your visual field without fixating on anything. Particularly when you 'see' something you must avoid. Looking at an obstacle will often result you riding right into it! Anything that adds distraction in that visual field is not useful. I hold that a rider at the edge needs less information (just the important stuff), not more.

    Spare me the head up display. I can see it now, mounted on the helmets of Gold Wing riders everywhere, helping them know the speed at which they are adjusting their radio pre-sets.

    That said, how about making that GPS provide you some route data? Arrows that flash left or right, according to a pre-planned route, with a heading? I think that might be more useful and safer than a tank bag map...

    Remember: always ride with two fingers over the front brake. Unless your hobby is rock climbing, and you are on a CBR 900. Then use one. DOH!
  • Self pimping, here's a really short write-up about an HUD I built [riot.com.au] for my car:

    • does it work during daylight hours too ?

      i have some fat LEDS mounted in the dash of my vw bus that reflect off the 'screen to remind me that my turn signals are on (the self cancel no longer works as i've swapped the steering wheel) but it doesn't work very well in daylight.

  • As yet another motorcyclist... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by SerialHistorian ( 565638 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @03:21AM (#7698633)

    Only those who haven't ridden call them 'donorcycles' or wonder about the speed at which a rider's helmet touches ground during a wreck. Seriously, that was the lamest comment I've seen yet at ./ ... and that's saying something. I wish I had mod points today. Do me a favor -- if you even thought about making a comment like that, go take a motorcycle class. The MSF (Motorcycle Safety Foundation) or your local equivalent (i.e. TeamOregon in, uh, Oregon) offers them in every state. Taking that class is guaranteed to make you a better cage driver, and you could walk out of it with a motorcycle endorsement and an appreciation for the lifestyle and risks that motorcyclists accept in exchange for being able to bomb down that perfect canyon.

    As for the HUD ... I don't need any other distractions. Riding a motorcycle, by itself, requires 3 times the concentration that driving a car does. Add in the fact that everybody else on the road is quite literally trying to kill us ... and then add in some serious distractions from a HUD, and you've got a recipe for disaster.

    HUDs in cars are a good idea, but motorcyclists are already at their information saturation limit.

  • As one more biker... (Score:4, Insightful)

    by NitroWolf ( 72977 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @03:30AM (#7698653)
    While it sounds cool and all... nifty gadgets and all that. There's no F'ing way I'd want something like that in my field of vision.

    I like my guages where they are, and putting something like that in my helmet is just a recipe for disaster as my eyes try to focus in and out between the display and the road and the horizon. It would lead to a lot of eye strain, which directly translates to extreme danger for a motorcycle.

    Thanks... but no. The only time a motorcyclist could safely view data like that is when he or she doesn't need it.

  • Easiest software ever (Score:5, Funny)

    by SheldonYoung ( 25077 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @03:32AM (#7698669)
    If I could get the job of writing this software for this thing it would be the sweetest deal ever. The software would be sooo easy:

    while(true) {

    if( isGoldWing() ) {
    print "Speed: Too slow";
    } else {
    print "Speed: TOO FAST!");
    }

    if( rider.age() < 23 ) {
    print "Reminder: You suck for wearing a tank top, shorts and sandals.";
    } else if( rider.age() > 50 ) {
    print "Reminder: You bought a Harley for the vibration, there are cheaper and more portable alternatives";
    }

    if( speed < mph(60) ) {
    waste_of_bike++;
    }

    excitement_factor += random() + radar(CONST_SUV, 42.0);

    if( stoppie_detected() ) {
    dumpRider( "You cocky fool" );
    }

    }

  • Nissan had this a while back (Score:3, Informative)

    by York the Mysterious ( 556824 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @03:50AM (#7698712) Homepage
    Nissan has this back in the 240SX (S13). It was one of those late 80s early 90s toys. I've never seen on work, but it basically had an LED on the dash and a semitransparent reflective coating in the bottom left corner of the windshield. They tended to burn out after a while.

  • WTF kind of comment is that? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Moderation abuser ( 184013 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @08:21AM (#7699494)
    "I'll bet some horrifying data could be gathered on the speed with which riders' heads impact the pavement after an accident."

    CowboyNeal, you are a fuckwit of the highest order.

    Motorcyclists are half as likely to be involved in an accident as other road users. You want to know why? Because we're fucking careful on the roads, we actually *observe* what's going on around us despite the fact that when you look up from doing the crossword, driking your latte and putting your fucking contacts in you think we're going too fast when we pass.

    So go on, you sit stationary in your cage in that traffic jam for 3 hours of your life every day.

  • the usual crap..... (Score:3, Interesting)

    by GuyFawkes ( 729054 ) on Friday December 12, 2003 @11:17AM (#7700787) Homepage Journal
    Yet another "invention" by some idiot who doesn't ride, like airbags for bikers etc etc etc.... A biker does not need ANY instruments to ride, you judge you speed to the road conditions, the actual mph doesn't matter, just "safe" and "smooth" and "controlled" is all that matters. You don't need a bloody revcounter, fuel gauge, selected gear indicator, tyre pressure indicator, inclinometer or any other crap, you can hear and feel everything you need to know, this is the WHOLE POINT of being a biker.... In the real world a speedo has one use and one use only, to make sure you don't get a ticket, particularly here in the UK where councils use speed cameras set at arbitrarily low speeds on good roads and revenue generators, for everything else your brain and your experience tell you everything you need to know about speed. Another thing about this thread, people writing about their local experience and making it sound as though that applies worldwide, it doesn't, alcohol certainly is NOT the major cause of death amongst motorcyclists in the UK... in my own opinion that would be "born again" bikers who sold a 500cc bike years ago when the kids came along and now in later years with increased purchasing powers buy a 1300cc 200mph penis extension, and only discover that they lack sufficient training and experience going into that 60 mph corner at 120..... Similarly helmets, ride here (UK) in winter on motorways and (full face) helmets are beautiful things, they stop your brain from being chilled down to the processing power of a chimpanzee on mogadon... ride in southern europe in summer and no helmet is the only sensible choice, assuming the law allows you to make a sensible choice, which it doesn't. Then we have riders who wear bulletproof kevlar everything and ride around like assholes thinking they are superman, and others who ride around wearing shorts and a tee shirt and sneakers... stupidity, no more and no less. Bikers do not need or want more crap getting on the bike with us, bikers need LESS crap, less distractions, less gizmos, and MORE bonding and feedback between rider and bike in the seat of your pants area. As for me, I'm mid 40's and I've ridden just about everything one time or another, in a lot of places around the world, currently running a 23 year old xs11 special that does everything I ask of it, don't own a car and don't posess a car licence, winter / summer, rain / shine, year in year out and more miles than I can shake a stick at. In all of that time and experience there is ONLY ONE THING that I can think of that is any use, and that is training, not the sort of training that you forget 2 minutes after you pass the exam, but the sort of training that sticks with you and changes how you do things... you just can't have too much of it, and it would be nice is some of the car drivers had some compulsory (2 wheel) training too... ride safe, and don't forget what makes biking fun. freedom. not reading instruments.

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