Vololights?

[dog]

Any opinions on this:

Vololights | Make Other Drivers Better Drivers

 

[bendobe]

I like the idea, any extra visibility is good from my perspective. Let's see if they keep the price reasonable when the kickstarter happens.

 

[James59]

I don't know, would have to see it in operation first. I used to avidly read Cycle in the 70's when I was a kid and remember reading about a device which 'blinked' when you braked, it attached to the rear brake light I think-anyway, I think it was only for use in the US-so that rules me out..

 

[happy]

Lights and more lights may look cool, but sometimes we need a bit of science and statistics to figure out if they are a godsend or a devil's trap.

I have seen quite some BMW tail lights (and also some new Ducatis) and think that they are way too "sharp blinding" to the streets here. Switzerland and Zurich is usually under a lot of fog and we do not get so much sunlight per year and most of us have "mole's" eyes (we correct this with skiiing and snow blindness).

So anyway, the correct setting and amount of light is important, because we don't wanna blind others.
I hate it when a big giant GS comes along with all 3 blinding fog halgon projector lights, which are wrongly adjusted (or purposely adjusted high) to blind other road users. Sometimes I get so angry, if I see that bike again, I will just topple it over with intention to break those lamps.

But no one here in Switzerland does that, they are usually visitors from afar. Nimcumpoops? spelling?
Oops, did I say something rude here?

 

[L.B.S.]

I don't know, would have to see it in operation first. I used to avidly read Cycle in the 70's when I was a kid and remember reading about a device which 'blinked' when you braked, it attached to the rear brake light I think-anyway, I think it was only for use in the US-so that rules me out..

Voevodsky Cyberlight

I remember those ads very well.

It had a (for the time) fairly sophisticated decelerometer gizmo in it and the harder you braked, the quicker the lights flashed. At a stop it flashed about once per second. At maximum deceleration it was about six times per second with five different rates depending on the g force.

 

[Jay Fridays]

I like it...The concept is cool. I often think about the people that may not realize how fast we slow down just by releasing the throttle....

I don't know if I'd put it on. ONLY because I am installing a tail tidy kit to eliminate the bulk of the stuff on the tail... And this would bulk it up a bit more..( i don't even want the License plate there) I have the "back-off" brake modulator that blinks when the brakes are applied, but it obviously does not detect general deceleration of the bike... I wonder if they could make one that just wires in series with the brakelight, and is not a license plate frame.....

 

[L.B.S.]

I like it...The concept is cool. I often think about the people that may not realize how fast we slow down just by releasing the throttle....

I don't know if I'd put it on. ONLY because I am installing a tail tidy kit to eliminate the bulk of the stuff on the tail... And this would bulk it up a bit more..( i don't even want the License plate there) I have the "back-off" brake modulator that blinks when the brakes are applied, but it obviously does not detect general deceleration of the bike... I wonder if they could make one that just wires in series with the brakelight, and is not a license plate frame.....

There's always ways around something, or a different place to put lights, or whatevah...

 

[Jay Fridays]

OOooooooh !! I see... I thought it was a license plate frame with integrated lights.... I like em alot !!

 

[L.B.S.]

OOooooooh !! I see... I thought it was a license plate frame with integrated lights.... I like em alot !!

Ack, lol no, the original topic posted Vololight thingies are just that, license plate frame doohickeys I believe.

I was just sayin that if you wanted mooooar lights for braking/turning/safety etc., you shouldn't feel you are restricted by a bulky plate frame unit, if you're going for a slim tail eliminator look. Think outside the box for other shapes or places to put lights if you want 'em.

 

[Jay Fridays]

Ooooooooh !! I don't like it again....lol
j/k

I do know about the other light accessories. But if they could be controlled with one of these Volo Modulators. Now that would be cool for me...

 

[James59]

I think Mr Voevodsky was ahead of his time.

 

[happy]

The design and the concept is good.
However, I am unconvinced the "automatic sensing" will be reliable. This may cause unwanted results instead.

 

[Beemerphile]

Voevodsky Cyberlight

I remember those ads very well.

It had a (for the time) fairly sophisticated decelerometer gizmo in it and the harder you braked, the quicker the lights flashed. At a stop it flashed about once per second. At maximum deceleration it was about six times per second with five different rates depending on the g force.

I had a Voevodsky Cyberlight in the 1970's (way cool, man). With five flash rates, it was more sophisticated in function than the two rate Vololight and it was done before accelerometers and ASIC's were small and cheap. The Voevodsky used an array of mercury switches at different inclinations to trigger the different rates. An advantage to the Vololight of using 3-axis accelerometers is that the unit does not have to be mounted in a particular orientation (vertical) in order to operate properly. Given the technology available at the time I thought it was cool beans.

I will buy one when they make the rate of change of flash continuously variable with rate of deceleration (within a set range of 2/sec for engine braking to about 6/sec for aggressive braking), and when it is packaged as a control unit to use with my choice of lights. Combine such an item with a Whelen TIR3 or its cheaper Strobes-n-more equivalent and it would be brake gadget nirvana.

The design and the concept is good.
However, I am unconvinced the "automatic sensing" will be reliable. This may cause unwanted results instead.

I imagine with a 3-axis accelerometer it could blip occasionally when the suspension compresses. A single axis accelerometer with an option for leveling it would eliminate that.