| Author | Message | ||
     Corporatemonkey |
So I have been working on this project for a while, and finally this evening it has come together. I would first like to thank all those who provide assistance, publicly and privately. So what is this project exactly. Well it is a home brew GPS navigation solution. Late last year I was seriously close to purchasing a Garmin Zumo 550. It had most of the features I wanted, but I thought its price was too steep. I figured there had to be a better, more economical way. Well here it is  Parts used. Since I already own a MS smartphone I decided to find a navigation software suite. After much research I came across Garmin's just released GarminXT. It has some cool features that make it stand out from the others currently available, more on that later. See it here http://www.garmin.com/products/garminmobile10/ Its street price is ~$160. The package includes a really nice bluetooth GPS receiver (Garmin mobile 10). This little receiver is one of the first Sirf star III GPS receiver that have BT, and GPS on the same chip. The benefit is ~24hrs of battery life, with the sensitivity to receive gps signal indoors. Very cool stuff. Also included is a DVD with Navteq's latest North American maps. The smartphone I used is a Tmobile Dash (also known as an HTC Excalibur). http://tinyurl.com/kpo2o It has a 200mhz omap processor, which is plenty fast for this software. You will need need to add a micro SD storage card to add maps. The entire NAmerica set is slightly over 1GB. A 2gb card is needed for all maps. Any modern smartphone such as the Moto Q, Samsung blackjack, etc... would work just as well. These are available from many wireless providers for ~$99-299 w/ contract. I needed someway to mount my device on my bike, I choose a really cool touratech PDA case. It is actually made by Kahedo, but touratech sells it as a kit with a really cool aluminum mount. I found the mount to be MASSIVELY over built. It was designed for world traveling BWM dual sports. A little much (size, $) for my needs. The case I wanted. After much prodding of touratech germany they finally agreed to just sell me the case ($45). It took me nearly 2 months to acquire the case. As much as I like touratech's stuff, they are certainly lacking in customer support.  I used a RAM radar detector platform with a 3 in. arm to mount it to my handle bar. The case uses industrial velcro to secure it. I am using a simple lobster clip on a short line as an additional safety measure.   For power I need to add a mini USB power source. My first attempt failed magnificently (smoke, sparks and all). The second attempt was a much simpler affair. I cannibalized a USB car charger for parts. I needed a stable 5v @ 500ma, with motorola support*. I carry a secondary motorola phone with me when on the bike, and thought it would be nice to be able to charge that if necessary. My Dash can accept up to 1amp, but few other devices can, I wanted this to be able to charge the other toys like the BT gps receiver, or my camera, so I kept it as universal as possible. *motorola has started to verify whether a charger is an OEM charger or not. They say they do this to keep warrantee issues low, but most (including myself) view it as a revenue protection scheme. They accomplish this by shorting one of the usb pins out with a resistor. The crafty chinese have figured out how to get around this, but be mindful when purchasing not all have this. I really hated the idea of cutting up an expensive OEM charger, so I luckily I found a well built charger at office depot for cheap (~$12) http://tinyurl.com/2q4drx This charger has a nice rubberized finished that really helped with weatherizing it. I had to solder two leads, and then coat it with liquid electrical tape. Finally I wrapped it with a layer of electrical tape. I left the blue LED exposed to verify it is working. I tapped into the front "city light" wire for power. Since this is switched with the parking light it made perfect sense to me. I can leave the power active and remove my key if I so desire.   Coiled USB cord   Parking light on. Notice the blue LED behind the flyscreen, that is the usb charge powered up. For audio prompts I am going to use a Cardo Scala Rider Bluetooth helmet headset. Mine is currently on back order with Amazon (great deal a few weeks ago). I played with one and it seems to work very well. I will have a full review when the headset finally arrives. http://www.cardowireless.com/scala_rider/ In the mean time I have been testing with another one of my BT headsets (moto h3). To get the audio prompts to the headset you need to use an audio redirector. I worked with a talented developer (David Mays) to improve an existing software piece he had written. Normal BT headset only connect when actively in a call. This software maintains that connection and allow the voice prompts wirelessly into my headset. David has a few versions. Most are free except my version. For a reasonable donation, he will send you the latest version. The free version will disconnect if you receive a phone call, but will not reconnect. The last thing you want to do while riding is messing with menus to re enable your headset. When a phone call come in my version will automatically release the connection for the phone call, after done it will auto reconnect to resume your audio prompts. Very cool stuff. You can find this software here http://www.davidmays.com/BTAudio/index.html (site down as I write this) If you use his software please reward his hard work with a small donation.  BTAudio So now that you have seen what it is, you might ask how does it work. Well very, very well... GarminXT is actually a version of the software used in Garmin's high-end nuvi navigation systems. It has a few features that make it truly unique. They call it Garmin Online. Basically the software accesses your device's data connection to add features. Real time fuel prices, real time hotel prices (via hotel.com), weather data, peer location (more on that later), and best of all traffic data. All of this is offered free, but it is ad supported. The ads are small and tasteful. When I took my screen shots Exxon was the sponsor of the week. Click the ad and you are shown the nearest exxon station, along with the current price. You can filter via fuel type, or grade. Traffic avoidance is a neat feature that is available on some of Garmin's high end systems. They use an expensive XM radio receiver, along with a monthly XM radio fee for the service. Mine is free, except for any carrier data charges. I have found traffic avoidance a hit and miss feature here in Seattle. It is correct about 90% about where traffic is, but because we always have traffic it is unavoidable, so the system tried to route you around it, but it it fails because it can't avoid it. I used it last week down in Tucson, it worked beautifully. It notified me that an upcomming exit was closed that day due to road-works. It automatically routed me around it to my destination. Not once did I have to interact with the system. While heading to my destination, the system found me cheap fuel, and a decent hotel rate, then added those stops to the itinerary. No other system I have ever used could do that. Very Pimp. Now if I am using the navigation system I an receive a phone call. The app moves to the background, but continues to maintain running, after the call the app is brought forward again, all with out touching anything. My first priority when designing this system is I didn't want to push any buttons while riding the bike. It had to be a set and forget system. And for that is works great. If needed I can use voice dialing to initiate a call. I do not plan to use this for phone call while moving, but it saves me the headache of removing my helmet to call a someone when I stop. Final feature is Peer Location. I have not used this yet myself, but how it works if you and a buddy both have this system your physical location is reported back to Garmin's servers. You are able to connect to find your buddies real time location, and route directly to him/her. Great if you happen to get separated. Another cool aspect to this app is how you can set it up for different vehicles. You can tell it that you are in a truck/bus/etc... and it will abide by height restrictions. I have used it in pedestrian mode. It will route you via pedestrian routes. I used this recently on a trip with my bt headset. The phone and gps receiver were in my coat quietly feeding me audio directions discretely. All the while other people just thought as me as a business jerk with a BT headset. Helps keep a low profile when you are in a strange city. No more tourist maps to give you away. Below are some screen shots of the application  Look familiar to you Garmin users?  Main map screen zoomed fairly out  Where do you want to go today?  GPS data screen (notice the signal. I am downtown indoors below a 4ft thick roof)  Dashboard screen  Garmin online menu  Traffic screen (also viewable as a map)  Weather  Hotel.com info (sortable by price, or distance)  Fuel type  Fuel stations (also sortable)  Finished project So far I have estimated I have spent around ~$380 (minus the smartphone since I already had it). Quite a bit less than a new Zumo550. Already I have shown this to a few people, I now am helping them duplicate my system. | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
I forgot one thing. Why did I make this secret? Frankly I do projects like this all the time, they don't always work. This one works, works well. | ||
| Stack |
Very cool stack | ||
| Jackbequick |
Very neat project Jamie, nice Work! Jack | ||
| Liquorbox |
Yes, but is it vibration & water proof? It seems the biggest problem with non MC GPS is vibration resistance, and the V-Twin is not known for it's smoothness! | ||
| Liquorbox |
"So far I have estimated I have spent around ~$380 (minus the smartphone since I already had it). Quite a bit less than a new Zumo550." So, if you ADD the cost of the phone, you're right in the range of a new Zumo. I paid $699. delivered, for mine, they're even cheaper now. I saved myself a lot of work & hassle. And, i have a touch screen that is UV & UL resistant, water & vibration proof and comes complete with mounts for both bike AND car, software, everything! I don't really see where there's any advantage to your set-up?? | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
The case is 99% waterproof. It has water resistant zippers. I held it under a running faucet for several minutes the inside stayed bone dry. I figure if rain hard enough to soak the case, I don't need to be riding. As for vibration, my smart phone is solid state. Not really much to go wrong. Between the velcro, and the case it is quite insulated. (Message edited by CorporateMonkey on February 25, 2007) | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
So, if you ADD the cost of the phone, you're right in the range of a new Zumo. I paid $699. delivered, for mine, they're even cheaper now. I saved myself a lot of work & hassle. And, i have a touch screen that is UV & UL resistant, water & vibration proof and comes complete with mounts for both bike AND car, software, everything! I don't really see where there's any advantage to your set-up?? There still is a big price difference. First off you have to add a BT headset to your price (~$140) so we are up $840, then add in the XM kit (~$200) for traffic info and you are over a grand. Not counting xm subscription. I agree not every one wants to piece together a project, but for me it is part of the fun. And of course I don't have to carry another gadget. This one is always with me | ||
| Tripper |
...is solid state. Not really much to go wrong. Put that baby on a random vibe table for 30 seconds (akin to a buell) and we'll see. Nice project. | ||
| Mortarmanmike120 |
Very cool man! Neat project. Nice write up. I'm glad to see somebody's winter downtime was productive. | ||
| Cityxslicker |
I was looking at the New Tom Tom for motorcycles to put in my Tank bag and move to my car as it is portable.... Hmmm Looks like GeoCache-ing will be on my trips to do this season. Nice project, Plug in our addy and come see us in Silverdale for a ride or two sometime  | ||
| Kcfirebolt |
Great job! Thank you for sharing! | ||
| Hellonwheels |
WOW good job, I really like your setup... I like this idea alot... I have tomtom gps on my pda and Im planing on putting it on the bike... This BT that your getting are you using it on a full face helmet? if so let me know how that works and if you could post some pics of how its mounted to the full face... great job again... | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
I don't have my own cardo scala rider yet, but soon it will be here. It uses a easily removable clip to secure it to your helmet (full, or 1/2) The scooter scoop did a nice video review of it, you can find it here http://thescooterscoop.blogspot.com/2006/12/tsstv- s2e1-scala-rider-fm-review.html I think I saw another review of it in the KV. If you search I bet you will find your answers. | ||
| Cruisin |
Probably my review - I used it all last summer and LOVED IT! Up to 50mph you can talk to people and they can hear you without a problem (I do wear a full face helmet and have a special ops muffler, so I'm not that quiet). Beyond that the mic is attempting to do too much noise cancellation with the wind and it starts cutting your voice out too. The mount slides between the padding and shell and two allen screws tighten it down - the electronic unit itself slides onto the mount. I wear custom silicone earplugs and I can still use it with no problems. I would definitely recomment them to anybody else. As a side note - the customer service is great too. I had my mic quit - they send a replacement mount right away. As it turns out they re-engineered the mic mounting point for more support. Not bad considering I bought it off e-bay. I just got a Motorola Q, so this is a neat possibility for me. I currently run a StreetPilot 2610 and love it, but could move that to the wife's bike and use my Q for mine. | ||
| Xbbeebob |
I found some brackets you guys might be interested in. They are at myradiostore.com They are for xmradios. Go to site click on mounts and brackets, manufact is brackettron | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
Well I finally got my headset (cardo scala rider). My first supplier fell through, but I found it on ebay for about 50% of retail. I installed it last night on my 2006 Arai Profile. It fits very nicely, and the earpiece wire slides underneath my cheek pad. I took the whole system for a spin late last night. It worked better than I thought it would. I had my smartphone navigating, while I had a buddy call me. He said he could hear the bike rumble, but I was very audible, even when I wicked up the speed. Today I have been bench testing the headsets battery life. It is rated at 7 hours of talk time, but I needed to know how long of connection time I have (using BTaudio app). So far I am past 12 hours of run time. Much longer than I would ever spend on the bike. When if finally dies later tonight, I will post the final run time. | ||
| Jackbequick |
I see they have model with a FM receiver built into it too. http://cardowireless.com/riderproducts.php I guess monoaural radio radio be better than no radio, right? The speaker is a small flat speaker that stays with the helmet right? And is located by your ear? And is the speaker plugged into the housing or is it permanently wired to it? I'm sort of wondering if can be unplugged and then plugged back in to help with getting it routed. Jack | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
Jack, I looked at the FM model (also the teamset model). I did not think the FM portion was of much value. First off it is mono, and there is only one ear piece, so it is disconcerting to listen to music only on the left ear. I could see using it to listen to talk radio, or a game, but locally here most of that style of programming is on AM radio. I have inquired why they only used on ear piece on the basic, and FM model, yet used dual ear pieces on the teamset. The answer I got was because California law prohibits blocking both ears, except for when used as an intercom. I have heard a few people have brought the teamset unit just to get dual speakers. I considered it, but the cost was roughly double. The speaker is quite small, about the size of a quarter, and could be compared to the size/thickness of a helmet strap D ring. The cable is fixed, but I just removed my helmet lining, and slid it underneath. It really was a 5 min install. If you have a helmet with fixed padding, I still think it would be an easy install. Last night the low battery light finally came on, I didn't let it fully die, but It had been running it ~19hours. Much longer than I anticipated. Any other questions? | ||
| Jackbequick |
Thanks for the details Jamie. I've really become addicted to having either ear plugs, my muted hearing aids, or my Shure E2c earphones in when I ride. The wind noise just wipes me out, I can't stand it. If were going to look for something for GPS prompts and cell phone use I'd probably look at something like the Autocomm where all the inputs are combined further downstream and I could use the E2c's. Jack | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
Jack, I use earplugs all the time. Even when I wear my Howard Leight Max's (33dba reduction). I can hear the headset just fine. The auto volume feature works very well. I haven't yet had to adjust the volume. Whether I am at a stop or doing excess freeway speed (honest officer I was just performing a test  ) | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
Update: I just upgraded my smartphone to Windows mobile 6. I just wanted to let everyone know that everything works just peachy with the new OS. |
