Senior Design 1EE 4382.502

The Design and Implementation of:

HELMIT (HUD Enhanced Lightweight Motorcycle

Interface Technology)

Submitted to: Dr. Marco Tacca, Phd

By:Kyu Kwon (EE)

Raymund Camenforte (CE)Thomas Le (EE)Yifan Zuo (EE)

Abstract:

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When traveling at high speeds on a motorcycle, being distracted even for a split second can result in a critical situation. Most production motorcycles of today have their dash displays set up in a way that the rider must glance downwards while in motion to visualize the speed or engine RPM, creating a distraction for the rider. In order to combat this, we will create a low-cost Heads-up display that will display the speed and the engine RPM of the motorcycle onto the helmet of the rider. This will not only lessen the distractions faced by the rider, but also enhance the motorcycling experience for enthusiasts at an affordable price.

ContentsIntroduction.................................................................................................................................................4

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Preliminary Design and Basic Solutions.......................................................................................................5

Project Implementation and Assessment....................................................................................................5

Final Scope of Work Statement...................................................................................................................6

Other Issues.................................................................................................................................................7

Cost Estimation............................................................................................................................................7

Project Management Summary...................................................................................................................7

Conclusion...................................................................................................................................................8

Introduction

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The purpose of this project is to create a display that will show speed and rpm of the motorcycle the user is riding, in order to minimize the time spent between looking at the data and the road.

The display will be mounted on the helmet visor and wired to a pi board that is attached to the back of the helmet. The board will have a blue tooth adapter that will pair with another blue tooth adapter that’s connected to the on board diagnostics port (OBD port) which enables the communication of data between the board and the engine control unit (ECU) of the motorcycle.

We only created the device that will display such data and the means to acquire the data from the ECU, not the helmet itself.

So far as of December 3, 2013 we have a functional display and the means to acquire the data. Next semester during Spring 2014, we will continue to research and develop the data acquisition by troubleshooting the Bluetooth communication and creating software that will interpret the data and display it.

Problems and Objective:

1. Allowing users to focus on other things besides the operation and viewing of the display unit

2. Low Cost3. Safety compliances4. Visual Design5. Ease of use

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Preliminary Design and Basic Solutions

Problem Analysis:

The problem we identified is the time spent between looking down at the dashboard where the RPM and Speed of the motorcycle are displayed and then looking back at the road. This problem could lead to a disaster because when the rider is traveling at high speeds or during traffic, the time window to adjust and maneuver safely becomes slim.

Decision Analysis:

The HELMIT reduces the time spent between looking at the gauges and looking at the road because a quick glance at the corner of the helmet visor and then back at the road takes less time.

Project Implementation and Assessment

With the implementation of the HELMIT, the time spent between data acquisition and looking at the road is reduced and creates a convenient way to acquire speed and RPM at a quick glance. Without this design, the motorcyclist would spend a lot of time between looking down and then back at on their trajectory. In addition this design could lead to several other possibilities and applications such as an integrated GPS display, blind side detection, or even military applications.

Figure 1: Project Overview

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Final Scope of Work Statement

Over the course of Senior Design 1 we have successfully acquired real time data from the motorcycles engine computer including speed, RPM, and engine temperature, and have a working display. The final scope will primarily focus on programming the PI board to interpret the data and display it on our OLED display.

Secondary objectives will be the focus of the image such that the user’s eye is not strained to look at the display, a mounting system for easy attachment and detachment, safety regulations, portable battery supply, and image compensation for bright sunny days and various weather conditions

Figure 2: Raspberry Pi Board used as a Data processing unit

Figure 3: OLED Display by 4D Systems

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Other Issues

Upon much consideration, we decided to use the ELM327 OBD2 Bluetooth adapter to acquire data from the motorcycle. It allows us to obtain information without tampering with the Engine Control Unit. The Raspberry Pi was selected as our data processing unit for its ease of use and programmability. The display unit we used is an OLED screen by 4D Systems (See figure 3).

We will look further into the safety issues related to attaching any hardware devices onto a motorcycle helmet in the near future, and create a prototype that will provide the wearer with maximum safety.

Cost Estimation

Item Cost Item Cost

4D Systems Display $200 Test Helmet $200

Raspberry Pi $35 Power Supply $15

OBD Interface/Bluetooth Adaptor

$50 Optics Supply $50

Total $550

Chart 1: Cost estimation

Project Management Summary

Graph 1: Project Management Summary

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Conclusion

Purpose:

The purpose of this project is to create a display that will show speed and rpm of the motorcycle the user is riding, in order to minimize the time spent between looking at the data and the road.

Future goals:

Create a program to process the raw data sent by the OBD2 Bluetooth adapter.

Research Optics to reduce eyestrain for the user Weight reduction Research ethical issues relating to the attachment of hardware devices

onto a motorcycle helmet for on-road use Research and develop a way to reduce glare on LED screen when facing

high intensity light.

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Appendix:

Figure 1: Project Overview……………………………………………………………………..5Figure 2: Raspberry Pi board used as data processing unit………………………………..6Figure 3: OLED Display by 4D Systems……………………………………………………...6Chart 1: Cost estimation………………………………………………………………………..7Graph 1: Project Management Summary…………………………………………………….7

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