Project 002 – Creating a more robust and versatile product

Robust Motorcycle Datalogger with Shift-Light

This robust datalogger was developed back in 2003 to give feedback on the performance of racing motorbikes.

The client had experience with automotive (car) dataloggers but was not satisfied. He could not find a datalogger which could measure all the sensors he wanted and lot of dataloggers broke down because of the heavy vibrations of some motorbikes.

As a solution, this robust datalogger was specifically built for the client.

This datalogger not only measured the requested sensors, but also had more functionality than the other products.

The datalogger measured engine rpm, motorcycle speed, throttle angle and sensors for temperature, voltage and acceleration. A shift-light would flash when the engine rpm exceeded the pre-set limit, so the driver knew when to shift gears. The data was automatically stored in EEPROM devices and could be downloaded to a PC through RS-232. It could be operated without connection to the motorcycle battery when using a 9 Volt internal battery and had an internal realtime clock for timestamps. To start and stop logging, it had a single large knob that could be operated with thick motorcycle gloves on. An extensive manual was included.

The Microcontroller was a Microchip PIC16F877 and the embedded software was programmed in assembly language for optimal performance. The PC-software was written in Delphi Object Pascal.

The client was very satisfied with the product and has used it extensively.

You can find the sourcecode of this datalogger under the button below, or on the excellent PICList website.

Footnote: I had almost forgotten about this datalogger until the client called me a fews years back. He told me they had spilled gasoline over the manual and they couldn't read it anymore. If I could please supply them with a fresh copy. For a moment I didn't know what to say. This meant they were still using the datalogger after so many years!