Remember those bicycle rides, in those early mornings or late evenings, where all you could hear was the birds, the light breeze coming from the trees and the pedal noise? Riding your bike on an empty road, you must have felt ecstatic. Pondering about various thoughts, you must have given a try to guess how fast your bike is or how cold it is. But, with just a simple bike, you don’t want technology coming up with you for ride except that favorite watch of yours. Ordinary would probably think about adding something extra to the watch (making it smart), and the extra-ordinary would rather prefer a smarter bike. Seeking the scope for the tech enthusiast and DIY lover, we have an obvious choice here.
Showcased is Nikodem Bartnik’s Arduino based tachometer which, in addition to show the current speed of your bike, also details with the average speed, ambient temperature, total trip time and distance covered. Yes, not a single stone unturned here and one can gather as much data as they want.
For this purpose, the Arduino Leonardo, gets assistance from a thermometer, an LCD display, a servo and usual everyday electronic components. The whole machinery, encased in a plastic box (moisture-resistant hopefully), can be easily mounted on the bicycle’s handle and the whole accessorizing doesn’t add anything to clutter the cyclist. While the tachometer is analog, other reads such as temperature, travel time etc. can be seen on a LCD screen.
The gadget, even though being essentially useful, does not put any significant weight to the bike, thus the ride is as smooth as one expects it to be. Is it then just the perfect DIY? Well, the innovator is in his teens and would definitely make it better in the coming years, we hope so. How far can you take this? Make one and tell us.
Filed Under: Reviews
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