wiz@xroads.UUCP (Mike Carter) (07/17/89)
Well, in the interest of sanity, let me tell you that I'm a terminal gadget FREAK. I've been scouring the paperbacks and rags for quite some time looking for genuinely interesting and innovative projects to make the drive less boring and interesting. I have a small collection of good projects that are indeed quite good so far. Yet I still hunger for new ideas or gadgets to add. If you have any or operate some in your vehicle, I'd like to hear about them. Perhaps a compiled list would make a good future post for those like-minded. SO far, I have working in my vehicle: 2Meter Mobile w/ 160 watt amp Inside / outside temp monitor (usefull when you live out here in AZ) Typical driving light set-up ELectronic COmpass T-STorm level monitor (Sferic Level monitor as seen in Pop Elect.) Freq Scanner ( a **REAL** cheapie..looking for a better one) Remote burgular alarm Projects in the stove: CHarging circuit monitor (Watches start, idle and charging voltages) RDF (Radio Direction Finder..for locating sources) Looking for information on: The satellite navigation / street map / location displays Gadgets, projects and miscellaneous all welcomed -- ============================================================================= = Mike Carter N7GYX, Phoenix AZ| Q: Why did the Chicken cross the road ? = = hplabs!hp-sdd!crash!xroads!wiz| A: To ESCape the Main Menu . = =============================================================================
mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) (07/18/89)
How about a switch on the dashboard which turns on your brake lights when being tailgated? Easy to install, because the standard switch is located on the brake master cylinder, a few inches away from your foot. Just for laughs, you might want to put another switch in parallel with the backup lights. Sometimes the switch for this is located in the mechanism directly underneath your gearshift lever; on other cars it may be located in the transmission.
kencr@haddock.ima.isc.com (Kenny Crudup) (07/18/89)
In article <20556@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) says: >How about a switch on the dashboard which turns on your brake lights when >being tailgated? Naah. I gotta 400K CP Q-beam for when I feel adverse to that (I ain't no slowpoke, so if you're tailgating me, you must have to go REAL bad). A better idea, one I keep saying Real Soon Now to is a momentary switch placed on the steering wheel that *disables* your brake lights, say for the times your radar detector goes off on a full instant-on blast and full braking power is required (80-55 in under 2 sec oughta fool the gun :-), actually works, ya know), without triggering the lights, which gives the cop a little more drive in his quest for revenue enhancement. -- Kenneth R. Crudup, Contractor, Interactive Systems, Cambridge MA "... most of my heroes don't appear on no stamp." - Public Enemy E-Mail, (which tends not to be delivered :-( ) Phone (617) 661 7474 x238 {encore, harvard, spdcc, think}!ima!haddock!kencr kencr@haddock.ima.isc.com
jack@csccat.UUCP (Jack Hudler) (07/19/89)
In article <14053@haddock.ima.isc.com> kencr@haddock.ima.isc.com (Kenny Crudup) writes: >In article <20556@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) says: >>How about a switch on the dashboard which turns on your brake lights when >>being tailgated? > >Naah. I gotta 400K CP Q-beam for when I feel adverse to that (I ain't no >slowpoke, so if you're tailgating me, you must have to go REAL bad). >A better idea, one I keep saying Real Soon Now to is a momentary switch >placed on the steering wheel that *disables* your brake lights, say for >the times your radar detector goes off on a full instant-on blast and >full braking power is required (80-55 in under 2 sec oughta fool the >gun :-), actually works, ya know), without triggering the lights, which >gives the cop a little more drive in his quest for revenue enhancement. DO NOT DO THIS!!!! If you modifiy your brake lights, either to turn them on or off, if you do this and someone gets hurt, and if this is mod is discovered then you would be criminally liable. Worst yet, if someone was killed you could be facing man slaughter or murder charges. You could face thoses charges anyway, but it would be made worse by the discovery of this mod, even if you didn't use it. I had a friend that use the Q beam trick, he spent a night in jail after he flashed a cop. -- Jack Computer Support Corportion Dallas,Texas Hudler UUCP: {texsun,texbell,attctc}!csccat!jack
greg@bilbo (Greg Wageman) (07/20/89)
In article <20556@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes: >How about a switch on the dashboard which turns on your brake lights when >being tailgated? Easy to install, because the standard switch is located >on the brake master cylinder, a few inches away from your foot. Actually, the standard switch is a plunger-type switch located below the pivot of the brake pedal. (The master cylinder is on the firewall in the engine compartment, slightly more than "a few inches" from your foot. The electrical connection you see on the proportioning valve near the master cylinder lights the brake warning light in the event of grossly uneven pressure in the two separate hydraulic systems.) The important thing is to make this a momentary switch, so you don't accidentally switch your brake lights on and leave them that way. >Just for laughs, you might want to put another switch in parallel with the >backup lights. Sometimes the switch for this is located in the mechanism >directly underneath your gearshift lever; on other cars it may be located >in the transmission. It is illegal in most jurisdictions to have white light shining rearwards while the car is moving forwards, no matter how appropriate it may sometimes seem. :-) Have you ever wished, like I have, that you had some paper and a marker to make signs to tell nearby drivers something too complex for simple signals (or to get through to dimwits)? Here's one answer I've thought about building: a scrolling LED character display (like those advertising displays in the woodgrain box you see in some stores) which takes voice input from the driver and displays messages out the rear window. The display would fit into the rear shelf, and face upwards. A piece of optically clear glass at a 45-degree angle reflects the messages out to the rear. (This is to avoid obstructing your rear view.) Of course, you'd need some computer hardware to do this, and the vocabulary would be limited, but you could preprogram some common phrases like "Dim your lights", "Back Off!", "Your Turn Signal Is On", "You Turkey (or other appropriate epithet)". The other approach would be to limit your voice recognizer to the 26 letters of the alphabet, space, and perhaps some punctuation, and then spell out your messages. A combination of the two approaches would be ideal. If anyone actually wants to build one of these, I want credit for the idea and royalties. 8-) Longish .signature follows. Skip now. Greg Wageman DOMAIN: greg@sj.ate.slb.com Schlumberger Technologies UUCP: ...!uunet!sjsca4!greg 1601 Technology Drive BIX: gwage San Jose, CA 95110-1397 CIS: 74016,352 (408) 437-5198 GEnie: G.WAGEMAN ------------------ "Live Free; Die Anyway." ------------------ Opinions expressed herein are solely the responsibility of the author.
brian@ucsd.EDU (Brian Kantor) (07/20/89)
For a bit of both mechanical and electrical exercise, replace the rear bumper on your car with a piece of railroad rail, or a small I-beam girder. Attach it with explosive-parting bolts. Rig a safety switch and firing button. This is especially effective on tailgators who have red lights and sirens on their cars; for some reason they always seem to be closer to your bumper than the run-of-the-mill asshole.
wte@ncrcae.Columbia.NCR.COM (Bill Eason) (07/20/89)
In article <1170@snjsn1.SJ.ATE.SLB.COM> greg@sj.ate.slb.com (Greg Wageman) writes: > >Here's one answer I've thought about building: a scrolling LED >character display (like those advertising displays in the woodgrain >box you see in some stores) which takes voice input from the driver >and displays messages out the rear window. > >If anyone actually wants to build one of these, I want credit for the >idea and royalties. 8-) Two problems here: 1) It's already been done. I saw one in a magazine ad within the last couple of months. No voice recognition, but preprogrammed messages. 2) According to either Ann Landers or "Dear Abby" (now there's a good source!), it is illegal in most or many states to have ANY flashing lights on a car except as a distress signal, a turn signal, or on an emergency vehicle. This includes the little LEDs flashing in rotation around your license plate or in neat patterns on your cyclops brake light. Just my $0.02 worth - - wte -- Bill Eason (803) 791-6419 ...!ucbvax!sdcsvax!ncr-sd!ncrcae!sauron!wte NCR Corporation ....!rutgers!mcnc!ece-csc!ncrcae!sauron!wte E & M Columbia 3325 Platt Springs Rd. West Columbia, SC 29169
gene@cooper.cooper.EDU (Gene (the Spook) ) (07/21/89)
in article <20556@cup.portal.com>, mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) says: > > How about a switch on the dashboard which turns on your brake lights when > being tailgated? Easy to install, because the standard switch is located > on the brake master cylinder, a few inches away from your foot. I never really had the need to do this, but you can just turn on your parking lights for a second or two. Believe it or not, most drivers aren't alert enough to notice that the "third light" (if you have one) doesn't come on. Of course, if it's an obnoxious sumbitch behind you, just slam on the brakes for real! As far as insurance companies are concerned, the clown behind you is to blame no matter what the cause of any collision that might result. Spookfully yours, Gene cat flames >/dev/null I really don't need people telling me that I'm a crazy driver, please!!!
gene@cooper.cooper.EDU (Gene (the Spook) ) (07/21/89)
in article <14053@haddock.ima.isc.com>, kencr@haddock.ima.isc.com (Kenny Crudup) says: > > In article <20556@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) says: > A better idea, one I keep saying Real Soon Now to is a momentary switch > placed on the steering wheel that *disables* your brake lights, say for > the times your radar detector goes off on a full instant-on blast and > full braking power is required (80-55 in under 2 sec oughta fool the > gun :-), actually works, ya know), without triggering the lights, which > gives the cop a little more drive in his quest for revenue enhancement. YEAH!!! Especially in a state like (?West) Virginia or Connecticut, where radar detectors are illegal. If you're driving along at an "accelerated pace" and suddenly you find that Smokey has missile-lock on your car, and he sees you slam on the brakes, then he's got "probable cause" to search you and/or your car for a radar detector (in the above-mentioned states). What's worse than getting a ticket (maybe) is losing your $300 detector! A change of roughly 3miles_per_hour_per_second or more, and the gun won't lock on to you. What I have wanted to do for quite a while is to make a microwave generator that sweeps a few kHz on a 3MHz/24MHz carrier. Active ECM! (This, technically, is NOT a radar detector, but you might get in trouble with the FCC if your transmit power is too high!) Any ideas? Spookfully yours, Gene gene@cooper.cooper.edu gene%cooper.cooper.edu@CMCL2.NYU.EDU philabs!phri!cooper!gene
ries@arcturus (Marc Ries) (07/21/89)
[...] ->box you see in some stores) which takes voice input from the driver ->and displays messages out the rear window. The display would fit into ->the rear shelf, and face upwards. A piece of optically clear glass at ->a 45-degree angle reflects the messages out to the rear. (This is to ->avoid obstructing your rear view.) -> ->Of course, you'd need some computer hardware to do this, and the ->vocabulary would be limited, but you could preprogram some common ->phrases like "Dim your lights", "Back Off!", "Your Turn Signal Is On", ->"You Turkey (or other appropriate epithet)". -> ->The other approach would be to limit your voice recognizer to the 26 ->letters of the alphabet, space, and perhaps some punctuation, and then ->spell out your messages. A combination of the two approaches would be ->ideal. -> ->If anyone actually wants to build one of these, I want credit for the ->idea and royalties. 8-) You are too late. They already sell such a device (there is an mini keyboard near the dash) that feeds a rear-self message displayer. Unfortunately (for you), I don't remember where I saw the ad and how much (it wasn't that cheap). Oh, well.
kluksdah@enuxha.eas.asu.edu (Norman C. Kluksdahl) (07/21/89)
In article <1594@cooper.cooper.EDU>, gene@cooper.cooper.EDU (Gene (the Spook) ) writes: > > A change of roughly 3miles_per_hour_per_second or more, and the gun > won't lock on to you. What I have wanted to do for quite a while is > to make a microwave generator that sweeps a few kHz on a 3MHz/24MHz > carrier. Active ECM! > > (This, technically, is NOT a radar detector, but you might get in trouble > with the FCC if your transmit power is too high!) > One fellow I went to school with decided that simple radar detection wasn't good enough. He decided to do something about those nasty radars. Being an engineer-to-be, he decided it'd make a dandy senior design project. First came the experimentation phase. He carefully monitored the power he'd receive from a radar in all sorts of situations, then decided on an order of magnitude higher power to jam with. Some more playing gave him a damn fast circuit to deduce the speed of the transmitter, based on the frequency shift and his own speed. Another little circuit gave him an adjustable speed shift for the output signal. Then came the transmitter. Sort of archaic, fit in his trunk, not pretty, but it really worked nicely. He found that he could drive at 85 or 90 right past the cops, who might have been suspicious, but their radar said he was doing 55.... Last I heard, he wanted to boost the output power to see if he couldn't actually fry the cop's detectors. (BTW, he got a c- on the project. imaginative and well done, but frowned upon for its obvious illegality) ********************************************************************** Norman Kluksdahl Arizona State University ..ncar!noao!asuvax!enuxha!kluksdah alternate: kluksdah@enuxc1.eas.asu.edu standard disclaimer implied
todd@ivucsb.sba.ca.us (Todd Day) (07/21/89)
greg@bilbo (Greg Wageman) writes:
~Here's one answer I've thought about building: a scrolling LED
~character display (like those advertising displays in the woodgrain
~box you see in some stores) which takes voice input from the driver
~and displays messages out the rear window. The display would fit into
~the rear shelf, and face upwards. A piece of optically clear glass at
~a 45-degree angle reflects the messages out to the rear.
I saw something like this at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las
Vegas last January. They put it behind the red plastic that is often
between the brake lights of new cars. I think Phillips made it.
No voice input, though.
--
Todd Day | todd@ivucsb.sba.ca.us | ivucsb!todd@anise.acc.com
"It's not the heat, it's the stupidity" -- Angry Poodle B-B-Qrlf@mtgzy.att.com (r.l.fletcher) (07/21/89)
In article <1170@snjsn1.SJ.ATE.SLB.COM>, greg@bilbo (Greg Wageman) writes: > > Here's one answer I've thought about building: a scrolling LED > character display (like those advertising displays in the woodgrain > box you see in some stores) which takes voice input from the driver > and displays messages out the rear window. The display would fit into > the rear shelf, and face upwards. A piece of optically clear glass at > a 45-degree angle reflects the messages out to the rear. (This is to > avoid obstructing your rear view.) > > Of course, you'd need some computer hardware to do this, and the > vocabulary would be limited, but you could preprogram some common > phrases like "Dim your lights", "Back Off!", "Your Turn Signal Is On", > "You Turkey (or other appropriate epithet)". > > The other approach would be to limit your voice recognizer to the 26 > letters of the alphabet, space, and perhaps some punctuation, and then > spell out your messages. A combination of the two approaches would be > ideal. > This one has long been a pet idea of mine also, but I would actually replace my tail-lights and permanently mount the display in place of them. In normal use they would handle the stop and turn signals with some appropriate characters, say << and >> for turning and WHOA!! for stopping. A small console mounted keyboard would handle programming of messages (voice rec nice but expensive) and several "canned" messages would be available at the touch of a single button. Any braking or signal activity would over-ride the messages. I think it would be great for all cars to have this but there are likely some safety related issues (distractions). You would probably have a dozen young studs cutting across 6 lanes of traffic to see what the display on the red Mustang convertible with the pretty young lass is scrolling :-). It is actually not hard to build, we built a huge one in college on a wall in the electrical building. It was 12 feet long and 8 feet high. We had quite a bit of fun with it until it was shutdown. It seems someone slipped in there after hours and wrote some lewd messages about the Dean, and the wall faced the Deans office. There was hell to pay the next morning. (No, I had nothing to do with it) > If anyone actually wants to build one of these, I want credit for the > idea and royalties. 8-) I used to think it was my own original idea until I saw it on an old (late sixties) Matt Helm (Dean Martin) movie. I'm sure I saw an ad in the back of an electronics rag for plans/kit to build one. > > Longish .signature follows. Skip now. Ok. I'll skip it. Ron Fletcher att!mtgzy!rlf
briann@tekigm2.MEN.TEK.COM (Brian Nakata) (07/21/89)
In article <1593@cooper.cooper.EDU> gene@cooper.cooper.EDU (Gene (the Spook) ) writes: >Of course, if it's an obnoxious sumbitch behind you, just slam on the >brakes for real! As far as insurance companies are concerned, the clown >behind you is to blame no matter what the cause of any collision that >might result. Providing, of course, that you don't care too much about your car. Brian
henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer) (07/22/89)
In article <205@enuxha.eas.asu.edu> kluksdah@enuxha.eas.asu.edu (Norman C. Kluksdahl) writes: >(BTW, he got a c- on the project. imaginative and well done, but frowned >upon for its obvious illegality) You can avoid the problem of transmitting in the police bands -- which is definitely a no-no -- by being a licensed ham and transmitting in one of the nearby ham microwave bands. Most police radars are not very selective, and will probably take the ham-band signal as a valid radar return. Unfortunately, it's probably still illegal, under "interfering with police officers doing their duty" laws. -- 1961-1969: 8 years of Apollo. | Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology 1969-1989: 20 years of nothing.| uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry henry@zoo.toronto.edu
greg@bilbo (Greg Wageman) (07/22/89)
In article <4764@ncrcae.Columbia.NCR.COM> wte@ncrcae.Columbia.NCR.COM (Bill Eason) writes: >I wrote: >> >>Here's one answer I've thought about building: a scrolling LED >>character display (like those advertising displays in the woodgrain >>box you see in some stores) which takes voice input from the driver >>and displays messages out the rear window. >> >>If anyone actually wants to build one of these, I want credit for the >>idea and royalties. 8-) > >Two problems here: > > 1) It's already been done. I saw one in a magazine ad within the last > couple of months. No voice recognition, but preprogrammed messages. Personally I feel the voice recognition input would be a sufficient value-added feature to distinguish these two products. > 2) According to either Ann Landers or "Dear Abby" (now there's a good > source!), it is illegal in most or many states to have ANY flashing > lights on a car except as a distress signal, a turn signal, or on an > emergency vehicle. This includes the little LEDs flashing in rotation > around your license plate or in neat patterns on your cyclops brake light. I would have to check the Vehicle Code for CA., but there's a good chance that this is true. An Auto Club I belonged to back east pointed out in their magazine that people were once written tickets for having aftermarket high-mounted stop lights; now, they're federally mandated! It's amazing how many things we can think of to do that are illegal. :-( Of course, I understand the reasons: rather than have to deal with each item on a case-by-case basis to assess safety, most states have simply written blanket laws that say if it isn't required, it's forbidden. Longish .signature follows. Skip now. Greg Wageman DOMAIN: greg@sj.ate.slb.com Schlumberger Technologies UUCP: ...!uunet!sjsca4!greg 1601 Technology Drive BIX: gwage San Jose, CA 95110-1397 CIS: 74016,352 (408) 437-5198 GEnie: G.WAGEMAN ------------------ "Live Free; Die Anyway." ------------------ Opinions expressed herein are solely the responsibility of the author.
tomb@hplsla.HP.COM (Tom Bruhns) (07/22/89)
mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes: >How about a switch on the dashboard which turns on your brake lights when >being tailgated? Easy to install, because the standard switch is located >on the brake master cylinder, a few inches away from your foot. >---------- Gee, I already have this switch on all my cars. It doesn't turn the lights on constantly, but flashes them. It's the emergency flasher. I've used this on occasion when being tailgated, and it generally is effective. If the animals really want to tailgate, they ignore it but it doesn't hack them off too badly. (What's worse than a tailgater? A mad tailgater.) If they were just absent-mindedly following too closely, it gets their attention and they back off.
cook@stout.ucar.edu (Forrest Cook) (07/22/89)
In article <5367@tekigm2.MEN.TEK.COM> briann@tekigm2.MEN.TEK.COM.UUCP (Brian Nakata) writes: >In article <1593@cooper.cooper.EDU> gene@cooper.cooper.EDU (Gene (the Spook) ) writes: >>Of course, if it's an obnoxious sumbitch behind you, just slam on the >>brakes for real! As far as insurance companies are concerned, the clown >Providing, of course, that you don't care too much about your car. Or YOUR NECK and possibly other body parts should you go out of control. Auto accidents are best avoided no matter how much of a jerk the other guy (gal) is being. You end up spending much time dealing with the police, the insurance companies, and you usually have to get several repair estimates for your insurance company. Wouldn't you rather spend that time reading about mercury plates speaker wires on the net? ^ ^ Forrest Cook - Beware of programmers who carry screwdrivers - LB /|\ /|\ cook@stout.ucar.edu (The preceeding was all my OPINION) /|\ /|\ {husc6|rutgers|ames|gatech}!ncar!stout!cook /|\ /|\ {uunet|ucbvax|allegra|cbosgd}!nbires!ncar!stout!cook
mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) (07/22/89)
gene@cooper.cooper.edu makes this quote, attributing it to me: > > In article <20556@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) says: > > A better idea, one I keep saying Real Soon Now to is a momentary switch > > placed on the steering wheel that *disables* your brake lights, say for > > the times your radar detector goes off on a full instant-on blast and > > full braking power is required (80-55 in under 2 sec oughta fool the > > gun :-), actually works, ya know), without triggering the lights, which > > gives the cop a little more drive in his quest for revenue enhancement. Somebody else wrote that stuff in response to what I said. Please keep your authors clear. I didn't suggest cutting into the existing brake system. That would be considerably more dangerous than putting a switch in parallel with the one which already activates the brake lights. The consequence of a failure of a parallel switch or your wiring technique would be A) brake lights are on all the time or B) magic switch doesn't work. The consequence of a failure of a switch in series with the brake light switch is no brake lights. This could occur an unpredictable amount of hours after installing the mod.
mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) (07/22/89)
In article <1170@snjsn1.SJ.ATE.SLB.COM> greg@sj.ate.slb.com (Greg Wageman) writes: > >Here's one answer I've thought about building: a scrolling LED >character display (like those advertising displays in the woodgrain >box you see in some stores) which takes voice input from the driver >and displays messages out the rear window. How about an FM transmitter for those occasions when some is blasting music out their windows at outrageous sound levels. I used this once against an obnoxious neighbor when I lived in an apartment. You just sweep across the band until you hear sort of a thud. That means you've crossed the frequency of the receiver. Then you back up, thudding a few more times, until you home in on the frequency. If you just sit on that frequency, the sound goes dead. If you use an FM wireless mike, you can say things. (I never said things, my unit only transmitted an unmodulated signal.)
admin@mvac23.UUCP (Thomas Lapp) (07/24/89)
> > gun :-), actually works, ya know), without triggering the lights, which > > gives the cop a little more drive in his quest for revenue enhancement. > > YEAH!!! Especially in a state like (?West) Virginia or Connecticut, ^^^^^^^ - Virginia, yes. West Virginia, no. > where radar detectors are illegal. Thomas Lapp mvac23!admin@udel.edu Site administrater mvac23%admin@udel.edu mvac23 uunet!udel!mvac23!admin
acs60222@zach.fit.edu ( ENRIQUEZ) (07/24/89)
In article <1594@cooper.cooper.EDU> gene@cooper.cooper.EDU (Gene (the Spook) ) writes: > >A change of roughly 3miles_per_hour_per_second or more, and the gun >won't lock on to you. What I have wanted to do for quite a while is >to make a microwave generator that sweeps a few kHz on a 3MHz/24MHz >carrier. Active ECM! > About two years ago I saw a project that was labeled as a "microwave calibrator" that could actually generate the appropriate waves to force radar to 55mph, 35mph, or 25mph at a flick a switch. It was designed to be used with 12vdc and was small enough to let the transmitter fit behind the grill of your car. I must say the there were disclamers all over the article claiming the illegality of using this to trick police rader. However, the box had a switch clearly labled 55,35, and 25 mph. Now, there a subtle design for you!! regards mark enriquez
jeffw@midas.STS.TEK.COM (Jeff Winslow) (07/25/89)
In article <5374@mtgzy.att.com> rlf@mtgzy.att.com (r.l.fletcher) writes: >This one has long been a pet idea of mine also, but I would actually >replace my tail-lights and permanently mount the display in place >of them. In normal use they would handle the stop and turn signals >with some appropriate characters, say << and >> for turning and >WHOA!! for stopping. Cute idea, but I can react a lot faster to just a couple of bright red lights going on than I can react trying to distinguish one set of red characters from another. I suspect a lot of other people are the same way. We must have all seen the same movie, or something. I thought of the car- display idea too - but figured somebody had already done it. I was right about that, anyway. Jeff Winslow
ingoldsb@ctycal.COM (Terry Ingoldsby) (07/25/89)
While we're on the subject of automotive electronics, my curiosity
was whetted by an article in the paper the other night. There was
a picture of a device used by the Ontario Highway Police (Provincial
Police) of a gadget said to detect radar detectors in passing cars.
How do these work? I presume that they attempt to detect the
oscillator in superhet receivers. How do they know that all the
oscillators run at the same frequency? Would not the metal cage
of the car shield out virtually all of the radiation emitted from
radar detector (I realize that windows are large holes at microwave
frequencies, but still, the signal emitted from the detector must
be quite small).
I don't have a detector, neither do I intend to buy one, but I am
still curious as to how reliable the radar detector detector is.
--
Terry Ingoldsby ctycal!ingoldsb@calgary.UUCP
Land Information Systems or
The City of Calgary ...{alberta,ubc-cs,utai}!calgary!ctycal!ingoldsbjmasters@pcocd2.intel.com (Justin Masters ) (07/26/89)
In article <20679@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes: +In article <1170@snjsn1.SJ.ATE.SLB.COM> greg@sj.ate.slb.com (Greg Wageman) writes: +> +>Here's one answer I've thought about building: a scrolling LED +>character display (like those advertising displays in the woodgrain +>box you see in some stores) which takes voice input from the driver +>and displays messages out the rear window. + +How about an FM transmitter for those occasions when some is blasting music +out their windows at outrageous sound levels. I used this once against an +obnoxious neighbor when I lived in an apartment. + +You just sweep across the band until you hear sort of a thud. That means +you've crossed the frequency of the receiver. Then you back up, thudding +a few more times, until you home in on the frequency. If you just sit on +that frequency, the sound goes dead. If you use an FM wireless mike, you +can say things. (I never said things, my unit only transmitted an unmodulated +signal.) Hey, when those funky boys be a blastin' down the street, they usually be playin' a tape. Aint that right, son? THUMP THUMP thump THUMP THUMP (rotten english and lousy beat is added for no reason. Same reason they play it, right?) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "This is the United States calling. Are we reaching you?" - Pink Floyd Justin Masters - jmasters@pcocd2.intel.com -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
commgrp@silver.bacs.indiana.edu (07/27/89)
>...my curiosity was whetted by an article in the paper the other >night. There was a picture of a device used by the Ontario Highway >Police (Provincial Police) of a gadget said to detect radar detectors >in passing cars. >How do these work? I presume that they attempt to detect the >oscillator in superhet receivers. How do they know that all the >oscillators run at the same frequency? Would not the metal cage >of the car shield out virtually all of the radiation emitted from >radar detector (I realize that windows are large holes at microwave >frequencies, but still, the signal emitted from the detector must >be quite small)... >-- > Terry Ingoldsby ctycal!ingoldsb@calgary.UUCP The Canadian radar-detector detectors are probably for real, and almost surely work by detecting local oscillators. The same principle was used in WW2 when the Germans installed radar detectors on U-boats to warn of approaching radar-equipped antisubmarine aircraft. (Nazi "experts" had previously assured their leaders that airborne radar was impossible. Sound familiar?) But the ASW people got wise: They turned off the radars and looked instead for the local oscillators of the detectors. A ham who works for Cincinatti Microwave, manufacturer of _Escort_ brand radar detectors, told me how they work: The Escort is a little spectrum-analyser; its local oscillator runs at about 11.5 GHz and is swept over a few hundred MHz by a varactor diode. The first i.f. is 1 GHz, followed by a second conversion (to 100 MHz I think). The remaining circuitry analyses the "video" signal for valid alarm conditions. K-band is detected via a harmonic of the local oscillator. The spectrum analyser method allows the receiver to be extremely sensitive with very narrow i.f. bandwidth, yet still able to detect radar signals over a considerable frequency range. The microwave section of the Escort contains Gunn oscillator, varactor and detector diodes. Other superhet radar detectors probably use the same principle, though may use different frequency-conversion schemes. Some brands of radar detectors mutually interfere because of radiated local-oscillator signals. The local oscillators emit several milliwatts, roughly equivalent to radar burglar-alarms and door openers (which will trigger an automotive radar detector a block away, conveniently letting you know that a liquor store is nearby :-). The Escort's waveguide assembly has three screws protruding into the horn which act as a trap to limit local-oscillator radiation; I don't know how effective they are at doing so. The Canadian ECCM device is probably a microwave spectrum-analyser, or some specialized and relatively inexpensive variant thereof. It might even be a modified Escort. The detector detector was discussed on rec.autos last year; someone claimed that it works even on detectors which are turned off. That could be done, at least theoretically, by using the microwave equivalent of a grid-dip meter and searching for resonant cavities in the frequency range of interest. Another method would be the principle used to locate passive bugging devices: The target area is bombarded by microwaves and a receiver looks for harmonics generated of the exciting signal, generated by semiconductor junctions. In the latter two cases, range would probably be only a few feet. -- Frank Reid W9MKV reid@gold.bacs.indiana.edu
neal@lynx.uucp (Neal Woodall) (07/29/89)
In article <7200037@silver> commgrp@silver.bacs.indiana.edu writes: >Another method would be the >principle used to locate passive bugging devices: The target area is >bombarded by microwaves and a receiver looks for harmonics generated >of the exciting signal, generated by semiconductor junctions. In the >latter two cases, range would probably be only a few feet. Good point. These kinds of devices (ie, look for semiconductors by looking for harmonics of a driving signal produced by the non-linear junctions) would probably react to ANY semiconductors, and cars are FULL of semi- conductors these days. Remember how the Soviets "sabotaged" the US embassy they were building in Moscow: they filled the poured concrete structure with diodes and transistors! The idea was to put so many semiconductor junctions in the structure of the building as to render the detection of any specific junctions (the bugging devices) impossible. The device that looks for the radar detector's local oscillator signal is probably the more practical of the two. Neal
todd@ivucsb.sba.ca.us (Todd Day) (07/29/89)
commgrp@silver.bacs.indiana.edu writes:
~The Canadian radar-detector detectors are probably for real, and
~almost surely work by detecting local oscillators.
~The Escort is a little spectrum-analyser; its local oscillator runs at
~about 11.5 GHz and is swept over a few hundred MHz by a varactor
~diode.
Just for kicks, it'd be fun to get a group of friends together and make
up some boxes that emitted the characteristics of radar detectors, then
take the cops to court for false arrest.
--
Todd Day | todd@ivucsb.sba.ca.us | ivucsb!todd@anise.acc.com
"It's not the heat, it's the stupidity" --- Angry Poodle B-B-Qkelly@uts.amdahl.com (Kelly Goen) (07/29/89)
In article <543@winnie.fit.edu>, acs60222@zach.fit.edu ( ENRIQUEZ) writes: > In article <1594@cooper.cooper.EDU> gene@cooper.cooper.EDU (Gene (the Spook) ) writes: > > > >A change of roughly 3miles_per_hour_per_second or more, and the gun > >won't lock on to you. What I have wanted to do for quite a while is > >to make a microwave generator that sweeps a few kHz on a 3MHz/24MHz > >carrier. Active ECM! > > > > About two years ago I saw a project that was labeled as a "microwave > calibrator" that could actually generate the appropriate waves to > force radar to 55mph, 35mph, or 25mph at a flick a switch. It > was designed to be used with 12vdc and was small enough to let the > transmitter fit behind the grill of your car. > > I must say the there were disclamers all over the article claiming > the illegality of using this to trick police rader. However, the box > had a switch clearly labled 55,35, and 25 mph. Now, there a subtle > design for you!! > > regards mark enriquez There was also a calibrator available from the remote escort people for a while and additionally a board set from benton harbor instruments I believe... all could be used with a dual output gunnplexer to ah "calibate" both x&k band whatever... since ham band are so close there was an article in car&driver a few years ago decribing baseband jamming... in any case the point I am getting at here is that for this approach on toggles the power supplied to the gunnplexer at a given rate...hmm a little intelligen ce tells one that the source of said pulses could easily be a 1 chip cheap basic micro with a piggy back rom containing the requisite timing program... the pulses could either be loop constrained or more portability tied to CTC's on some of the new micros such as the MC68HC11A4 some of these newer faster microcontrollers offer more interesting possibilities such as being used to generate digital proportional signals for a completely controlled digital servo model airplane... cheers kelly p.s. if one ties in a hall effect sensor mounted near ones drive wheel along with a magnet epoxy glued to the wheels edge programmable speed offsets, brake lite cutouts and other fancy features become possible
mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) (08/04/89)
Another idea for the well-heeled hobbyist is the mounting of a cheap video camera pointing forward for documentation of any traffic accidents which aren't your fault. A Fisher-Price camcorder would be ideal for this, if they were still available.
jad@dayton.UUCP (J. Deters) (08/08/89)
In article <21012@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes: >Another idea for the well-heeled hobbyist is the mounting of a cheap video >camera pointing forward for documentation of any traffic accidents which >aren't your fault. A Fisher-Price camcorder would be ideal for this, if they >were still available. One of my pet ideas for the last x years has been to build my own 'black box' a la flight recorder. Maybe an endless loop 60 min. cassette tape (I understand that these are finicky!), or an auto-reverse recorder. Possibly encode one channel with the cab audio, and the other with a synthesized-speech-chip-generated readout of current time, date, speed and braking information. Useful in an accident situation, and also for those few instances when you get one of the redneck state troopers calling you names. :) -j DISCLAIMER: Minnesota actually has very nice Highway Patrol officers, (I've never been stopped by anyone who was less than courteous,) but I can't say the same for some of the neighboring states. -- J. Deters - jad@dayton.DHDSC.MN.ORG "I'll tell you what kind of guy I was. If you ordered a boxcar full of sons-of-bitches and opened the door and only found me inside, you could consider the order filled." -- Robert Mitchum
kencr@haddock.ima.isc.com (Kenny Crudup) (08/08/89)
In article <6698@dayton.UUCP> jad@dayton.UUCP (J. Deters) says: >One of my pet ideas for the last x years has been to build my own >'black box' a la flight recorder. Useful in an accident situation, and >also for those few instances when you get one of the redneck state troopers >calling you names. :) >J. Deters - jad@dayton.DHDSC.MN.ORG Yeah, but I bet it would only help *you* feel better that you *alone* knew that the other guy was responsible for destroying your 3-day old new car. If you tried to use it as evidence, the lawyers would throw it so far out of court it would go into orbit. Certification, and all that jazz. -- Kenneth R. Crudup, Contractor, Interactive Systems, Cambridge MA "... most of my heroes don't appear on no stamp." - Public Enemy E-Mail, (which tends not to be delivered :-( ) Phone (617) 661 7474 x238 {encore, harvard, spdcc, think}!ima!haddock!kencr kencr@haddock.ima.isc.com