4chan on the XR would get me what I need. Lights, heated grips, rally tower controls. 8chan for the Goldwing would be the way there. Heated clothing, ext lights, car alarm, all charging acc, FM transmitter (85 GW)... well I couldn't quite fill one up immediately, but that won't stop me from trying later.
I could see a possible marketing segment for a 'cheaper' version. Leave out a few things like the PWM. But there are some installs where it just won't be needed or desired. Some folks have the wireless controllers already for their heated gear. Or like me and have multiple channels of heat controller in a permanent install already. Old school might prefer having a knob to twist for heat control vs using a touch screen or tapping buttons up/down. I know it won't really save you any money on the build side since it is all just software. But maybe drop a few channels to save the FET's and use a smaller copper bar for the bus, maybe also drop the load shedding capability. Basically make it an electronic relay box that is BT and hardwire controlled. Now.. how about an upscale model. Add on a 9th channel, a larger copper buss and some hefty lug posts. Design a weather-tite lighted LCD display screen. The 9th channel is dedicated to the main battery and the heavier buss will be to support the placement of this unit inline with the main battery wiring. Actually the 9th channel won't need to be FET controlled, just make it a shunt that you can measure and display the amperage flowing into the battery. Maybe two shunts really, one on each end of the buss, total power coming out of the alternator and the power flowing to the battery (+/-). The display unit will show the amperage amounts and the voltage of the system. Have the display unit change color if the power from the battery supporting the electric load, ie battery is not being charged. Okay... I'm not asking for the moon. Yet...
I recall its a pot in the app, but I think a rotary could be programmed in as well. But since I'm not in charge take it with a grain of salt.
Depending on which bike, I'd be at 4 channels (heated grips, heated gear, electronics, "other") or 8 (grips, jacket, lights, gps, passenger jacket, comms....) Six would probably be my sweet spot, but get a product off the ground; later I coud see 4, 8, and 12 channel (for RVs / boats with battery management built in) As for a display, it should just talk to your Skully helmet, what else do you need?
Pot for the analog input. Notice output 1's duty cycle tracks input 5's voltage. Flickering is an artifact caused during the video recording process. It is sort of cool to see the PWM duty cycle though. <iframe width="480" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/94Sz6zjtlOs?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Thought it was time to drop back in and congratulate you on your progress. I was the first comment here, and gave you the crappy kickstarter suggestion. Anyway, I'm really glad to see you've gone the distance with this, and I'm definitely in for an "8ter" when they hit the market. I have two fuse boxes sitting in a drawer, but yours is the only one that seems appropriate for attaching to the box of magic wires that is the Multistrada. Plus it's awfully geeky and that's great!
This looks like a great pot for pairing with the MotoBrain. IP67 rated and a 5/8" glove friendly knob. Only downside is price at $12/ea. http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail...=sGAEpiMZZMtC25l1F4XBU5I3Ctbk2GP1xFColnE8XlA=
It looks like I should have units in hand about the second week of September. This video also shows how you might setup an air horn (or other high current load) with Motobrain. <iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/pOfJiWyJYek?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Good news Crafty! Long journey and now coming to a big milestone. Can't wait to have one to play and learn with. 2nd week of September I'll be in the middle of a 8k trip to California and back. So please let me know how I can make sure I'm in line for a unit. Come home and re-wire the bike; sounds like just what I need to ward off the post-trip blues. On another note. The 15amp per channel. How solid/firm of a limit is that? Can it take a momentary surge higher? Specifically I ask for a pair of HID's. I do believe they pull just over 16~18amp on cold start. But then settle down to 6 amp continuous. Are you limiting (electronically) the channels to 15amps? So even if we try and draw more it won't let it?
There is an analog current limiting circuit hard set at 24A. Above that and the output shuts off for about 1.4ms and turns on again. This is an analog current limiting circuit. This is different from the digital current limiting circuit that you set via the user interface. This is designed to prevent you from blowing the output transistor. The below image shows an output shorted to ground and turned on. The voltage spikes until it hits 24A and then turns off and repeats until the digital current limiting circuit decides that it has tried hard enough. In real life, I've had no problem firing up HIDs. I have seen issues with igniting 10A halogens though (normal halogens are 55W or about 5A and present no problems). In order to fire up a 10A halogen you need about 70A to warm up the filament. This is more than Motobrain can accomplish without you doing something "special". You can use two outputs to ignite the lamp or you can use a "choke" in between the Motobrain and the lamp (shown below). This uses some magnetic field science stuff to reduce the current flow during the ignition sequence but then become low impedance once it is lit. If you use a choke, a diode also needs to be in parallel with the choke as a choke is really just an inductor and all inductors need a diode.
