DIY - Vtec Indicator/Shift Light Indicator

[paiseh]

Hi all,

 

I know super 4 has this vtec indicator. when Vtec kicks in, the indicator will light up. may I know how to DIY it? would appreciate if anyone could help.

 

P/S: I am tinking of using the same principle and do a shift light for other bikes. tat it after a certain rpm, the shift indicator will light up, indicating u to shift up gear

[zod]

[paiseh]

yes its still possible.

 

making use of the RPM meter and some resistors. just tat im not sure how.

 

i read some car forums regarding this shift light indicator.

 

http://forums.clubrsx.com/showthread.php?t...DIY+shift+light

[paiseh]

shift light: ppl do it on their cars, they even use a potentiometer so tat they can control the light to light up at which ever rpm.

 

for eg, today i happy, i set it to light up at 6k rpm which corresponds to probably 5 ohm

 

or light up at 3k rpm, maybe 2ohm.

[lindavw]

bro vtec indicator is diff...

the indicator light is tapped to light up from the vtec valve itself not from the RPM.

[zod]

Originally posted by lindavw@January 25, 2007 05:22 pm

bro vtec indicator is diff...

the indicator light is tapped to light up from the vtec valve itself not from the RPM.

It is actually the VTEC solenoid.

[Axo_vampire]

anyone knows if fazer600 can fix one? interested in doin it myself but doesnt know where to make it go to.. anyone can help ?

[zod]

It is possible to a high degree of difficulty.

For a digital dashboard like the one shown below, there are 2 methods.

 

http://www.zangelz.com/misc/sb/Speedo-front-e.jpg

 

First method

 

Before we begin, lets look at how the RPM meter works.

This RPM meter is digital with analog display. By comparison, the speedometer is digital with digital display. RPM information is sent digitally to the dashboard which then uses actuators to turn them into the analog display you see.

 

There is a wire leading to the RPM analog display. This wire carries current/voltage which is then converted into an analog movement of your RPM needle. It works very similar to an analog ammeter/voltmeter you have used in secondary schools.

 

How to do it?

We open up the dashboard and locate the RPM wire. Strip and tap this wire. An ammeter/voltmeter is then used to measure the current/voltage at different RPM values. The relationship between current/voltage and RPM value should be linear.

 

We then construct an electric circuit to take the wire as input and an LED bulb as output for your shift light. This circuit consists of a transistor, a potentialmeter and various resistors. The potentialmeter is what you adjust to vary the amount of base current going into the transistor. As you increase the current, depending on which transistor you use, there will be a point where the transistor is saturated. At this saturation point, a LED bulb is lit by the collector current.

 

Your adjustable shift light is now useable.

 

The hard part.

• Opening up your dashboard. If you break any connection inside, be prepared to spend hundreds of dollars to get a replacement.
  
• Locating the RPM wire. The dashboard unit is very compact. Successfully locating, stripping and tapping out the wire is not as easy as you might think.
  
• Building the circuit. This includes the selection of various types of transistors. There are also a lot of values that you need to calculate to make this circuit work, eg. base current, collector current, forward voltage drop and various resistor values.
  
• Building and waterproof the user interface. From the connection of potential meter to a knob you can easily turn to location of the LED. All parts need to be waterproofed.
  

 

 

Second method

 

Instead of tapping information inside the dashboard, we tap it from outside. The dashboard is digitally connected.

 

http://www.zangelz.com/misc/sb/speeddo2-back-e.jpg

 

In the above example, there are 16 pins. Information like speed, RPM, temperature, amount of fuel remaining as well as various indicators like turn signal, reserve fuel, neutral light, high-beam, engine oil are passed through these 16 pins.

 

What we need to do is to tap these 16 pins to extract the RPM information.

 

The hard part.

It is not as simple as tapping a single pin to obtain the RPM information. In this case, date is sent digitally and what you wound extract from each pin is either no voltage or positive voltage.

 

How data is encoded and sent to the dashboard is roughly as follows.

• Analog signal from a sensor is passed through an ADC to obtain a digital signal. A/D conversion consists of 3 processes: sampling, quantization, binarization.
  
• This signal is then encoded into binary format and passes through 2 processes: source encoding and channel encoding.
  
• This signal(from one sensor) is then multiplexed with other signals(from other sensors) and sent through 16 pins to the dashboard
  

We will then decode this signal by going bottom-up. However as only manufacturers' engineers will know the various types of encodings used, we need to use reverse engineering to decode this signal.

 

Reverse engineering is difficult. Very would be an understatement. It is beyond the scope of normal people like you and me. Bottom line is, this method is close to impossible.

[sky_vinz]

Check tis out.

 

http://sg.auctions.yahoo.com/sg/i:Honda%20...0Four:102450695

[Guest nE0]

Building a variable RPM indicator light is not that difficult, with alittle electronics knowhow.

 

As for the Vtec shift light, if anyone can send me a copy of the wiring layout for the bike, it should be very easy from there on.

[paiseh]

Originally posted by zod@January 25, 2007 06:32 pm

It is possible to a high degree of difficulty.

For a digital dashboard like the one shown below, there are 2 methods.

 

http://www.zangelz.com/misc/sb/Speedo-front-e.jpg

 

First method

 

Before we begin, lets look at how the RPM meter works.

This RPM meter is digital with analog display. By comparison, the speedometer is digital with digital display. RPM information is sent digitally to the dashboard which then uses actuators to turn them into the analog display you see.

 

There is a wire leading to the RPM analog display. This wire carries current/voltage which is then converted into an analog movement of your RPM needle. It works very similar to an analog ammeter/voltmeter you have used in secondary schools.

 

How to do it?

We open up the dashboard and locate the RPM wire. Strip and tap this wire. An ammeter/voltmeter is then used to measure the current/voltage at different RPM values. The relationship between current/voltage and RPM value should be linear.

 

We then construct an electric circuit to take the wire as input and an LED bulb as output for your shift light. This circuit consists of a transistor, a potentialmeter and various resistors. The potentialmeter is what you adjust to vary the amount of base current going into the transistor. As you increase the current, depending on which transistor you use, there will be a point where the transistor is saturated. At this saturation point, a LED bulb is lit by the collector current.

 

Your adjustable shift light is now useable.

 

The hard part.

• Opening up your dashboard. If you break any connection inside, be prepared to spend hundreds of dollars to get a replacement.
  
• Locating the RPM wire. The dashboard unit is very compact. Successfully locating, stripping and tapping out the wire is not as easy as you might think.
  
• Building the circuit. This includes the selection of various types of transistors. There are also a lot of values that you need to calculate to make this circuit work, eg. base current, collector current, forward voltage drop and various resistor values.
  
• Building and waterproof the user interface. From the connection of potential meter to a knob you can easily turn to location of the LED. All parts need to be waterproofed.
  

I can understand fully how difficult the 2nd method is.

 

I would go for the 1st method though i dun-quite-know-how-to-do-it.

 

Zod, can i use your k4 600 meter on my bike n test it out first? is it possible? afterwhich, i use my own meter and try it out. at least i have something to practise on haha since ur k4 scrapped liao.

[paiseh]

Originally posted by nE0@January 26, 2007 12:30 am

Building a variable RPM indicator light is not that difficult, with alittle electronics knowhow.

 

May I ask if the tapping of wires as simple as tapping to the rpm wires?

 

I know for single cylinder bikes with 1 plug can be done quite easily. But i have no idea for 4 cylinders. any directions to offer?

[Guest nE0]

For bikes with electronic tachometers, just tap the tach wire will do.

[paiseh]

I will try out this weekend.

[pyro13]

the auction is rom a forumer.. S4VTEC

[Guest quizesilver]

hmm idea idea

[paiseh]

wa seriously, this project is difficult.. not easy man..

 

say easy, do difficult.. need to practise first

[Guest quizesilver]

Originally posted by paiseh@January 29, 2007 11:42 am

wa seriously, this project is difficult.. not easy man..

 

say easy, do difficult.. need to practise first

i look for info on this...

ya it is quite hard

the best is to use a variable resistance to do it. then u can really customise it.

[paiseh]

ok decided. project scarpped. its not easy at all.

 

next line up would be getting an external rpm meter with shift light. stay tuned.