New world, new obstacles...

[Matt]

Well, there we go. All done I hope. From nothing on my bars to lots!



Barbuttons - USB cable to dual USB socket in the cig lighter slot.
Quad Lock with vibration thing and wireless charger - using the smart cable thing into bike battery.
Insta360 X3 remote - I'll either use 2nd USB port or charge it when needed.
RAM mount for said camera (I've other mounting options too)

Oh and blue thing above screen is my bip&go holder. TomTom up top is wired to switched power.

[black-k1]

Looks a bit like my bars.



TPMS, Scott Oiler control, camera control, Tomtom, seat heater control (only just visible) and weatherproof phone case (phone is for music, Waze and Sat Nav data, as well as calls!).

[Matt]

Thought this deserved a bit of an update.

Through the entire Old Gits and my following 2 and a half weeks in the Balkans I failed to use the Barbuttons once and mostly relied on either TomTom import of MRA or offline maps.me when trying to get from a to b.

Then a couple of weeks ago Richard reminded me how to switch key map to the nav one and what does what and I've loved it ever since (ever since being the rest of the day as I haven't ridden since).

In use with MRA it allowed me to zoom in/out for context, switch to top down for similar, and skip way points during our ride out to get around... I don't know, a closed road or something. Super.

MRA in nav mode seems to have some weird zooming behaviour when switching perspective, but mostly I got along with it.

Anyway being senaible/bored I decided to see if the quadlock would mount on my 3d printed TomTom mount so it can sit above the screen instead of down low. Essentially I've screwed the captive screw in the vibration dampener directly into one of the four TomTom mount holes in my 3d printed holder. Unfortunately the screw isn't long enough for a nut to go on the back. Currently it's friction plus thread lock. We'll see how that does next week. Yay v-twin vibrations.

To fix this I opened a chat with quadlock and after a bit of clarification they're sending me a ten mm longer screw! No charge. They also clarified that the captive screw can be removed with a bit of brute force. I've yet to confirm this, but once the longer screw arrives I'll give it a go.

If it works fine I will then print a new mount specifically for the quadlock. And be a mobile boy.

[Phmode]

And that bit of clear screen just above all the other distractions, what do use that bit for?

[Matt]

And that bit of clear screen just above all the other distractions, what do use that bit for?

When the light is right I can admire my reflection 

[Matt]

BarButtons' aliiiive!

So after using this for almost a year I've decided to strip it down and rebuild. Mostly because my USB plug is getting rusty. Also because I built the box using PLA, and I've never been happy with my solder job of all the little wires.

Here's what it looked like


And a rubbish gap here, plus cracked retaining part (PLA K)


And on inspection, only a tiny bit of rusting on the washer that was beneath the nut. So not too bad.


Another thing that's been grinding my gears is that the thing would start to rotate on the bars. I want to resolve this too. In fact here's my list of objectives:

1. Change power supply to use permanent switched from the bike (I have the 12v to 5v board already)
2. Make a better solution for the pain in the bum captive-but-not nuts when mounting to the bars
3. Prevent rotation
4. Ensure waterproofness
5. Make the thing easier to assemble - mostly by reverting the LED to the front

To make all this easier I've reached out to Joost enquiring whether he will sell my the PCB separately. This would get rid of the rats nest and make things a lot easier. I'll then (either way) make the thing larger in some dimension so it can accept the voltage drop board. It shouldn't be too difficult to customise the mount for my bike/setup and prevent rotation. I might actually make a gasket for waterproofing at the top/base interface this time. Or just a better overlap plus drain.

Progress updates to come...

Edit: How is everyone else getting on with it? Now I have it on the right map (thanks Rich) I use it a heck of a lot.

[richtea]

BarButtons' aliiiive!

1. Change power supply to use permanent switched from the bike (I have the 12v to 5v board already)
2. Make a better solution for the pain in the bum captive-but-not nuts when mounting to the bars
3. Prevent rotation
4. Ensure waterproofness
5. Make the thing easier to assemble - mostly by reverting the LED to the front

Edit: How is everyone else getting on with it? Now I have it on the right map (thanks Rich) I use it a heck of a lot.

> 2. Make a better solution for the pain in the bum captive-but-not nuts when mounting to the bars and 3. Prevent rotation

I just put some ex-Grip Puppy foam underneath it and cable-tied it down (cable tie through the back mounting holes of the box). Yes it rocks very gently, but it doesn't rotate.

> 4. Ensure waterproofness

Mine seems to be waterproof enough (my USB is far more likely to get wet, and that's been OK so far - 1 year only), but then again I do try and minimise the amount of time I ride in the rain otherwise I dissolve like the baddie in Roger Rabbit.


(courtesy of screenmusings.org)

[Matt]

Ah bon! Well so far I've also gone down the cable tie route somewhat. But to add another point of attachment around a mirror vertical. Provided I can get my printer not to fill my hidden cable tie channels with support material. Good times!

Re waterproof yes, no real issues, but I've increased the height of the lip so far. I'll probably just silicone the edge before I out it together.

Only thing remaining is to determine where the power board will go. I'll wait until Joost says yay or nay before making any more changes though. With his pcb I'll have space. Without it I'll need to make space.

On taking mine apart I've also found the main body had started to deform slightly. I'm putting that down to PLA. I'm hoping the bought ones are PETG or better.

I was contemplating faffing with the source code but after seeing he only publishes v1 (I haven't done a github detective job yet mind) and we all are on v3 for the multi map ability... I've decided against that for now.

[Phmode]

I used a little black silicon sealant on the mating faces matey.

And yet another plug for Milliput ( or whatever it is called) black epoxy putty which I used to form the mounting on the bottom of the barbuttonbox to sit over the left switchgear mounting clamp and bolts which I covered with cling-film first so it set in the right shape but didn't stick to the bike.

Then I used a tie-wrap through a length of washer tubing moulded into the epoxy to hold it all in place. Pops off easily enough if I need to get the clamp bolts off (be the first time since fitting the HeliBars, but hey...).

I was a bit too keen to silence(?) the overly bright flashing led so fitted a switch to turn it off. Immediately after that Joost took our feedback on board and turned it off once it is connected 

[richtea]

I'll wait until Joost says yay or nay before making any more changes though.

He was a bit slow to reply last year, according to other potential NavButtons users on MRA, so don't be upset if he's a bit silent.

[Phmode]

...although he did take our comments about the led seriously enough to make changes and his comms about that were OK.

[Matt]

Ack, no response yet. I found the service he used to create the PCB, but somewhat as one would expect, the actual schematic isn't public on his profile.

If he's gone to ground I'll try and make my own based on his wiring instructions for the DIY version. Unless anybody took a photo of their PCB!

If so, just let me know and don't post any images here, as I don't want to be responsible for delaying his retirement, and I'll pay him appropriately after he resurfaces in any case.

[Matt]

Still no response, however I've just been perusing his Instagram/Faceface etc and now have 4 more images of the circuit board from various angles. As my FPV camera for the mini plane isn't working, and I'm waiting on more tiny tech to get the Tx and Rx to talk, I'll spend some time today working out how to PCB. I did a week or so work placement back when I was somewhere around 14 or 15 at a local business where I got to design PCBs (to keep me busy, but it was a fun early problem solving job) so i'm sure I'll remember eventually!

Edit: Damnit: https://forum.myrouteapp.com/topic/5665/motobuttons-lite-diy-project/8

Too...many...cereals...to...choose...from!

[Matt]

Spent a day reverse engineering the wiring diagrams and learning how to use pcb design tools. Then learning how to get a 2d slice of the BarButtons case to work out how the pcb should be cut to fit. Then submitted it to be lasered and cut by some PCB maker.

Relatively cheap at 20 euros for a minimum order of 3. If I cocked it up or determine there are improvements required it's not too upsetting.

Also the PCB people - Aisler - are Europe-based! Was relieved not to be pushed down the China route. Indeed the prices were very similar. (I await someone to tell me they outsource to China and I will then cry)

[Matt]

Well the boards arrived and with a tiny bit of pushing the button tabs about it fits!



Now I just need to start soldering. The only worry - apart from whether I completely cocked up the wiring - is the clearance with the LED is touch and go. But I can always just re-print. I'll probably do that in any case.

Next, I am finally moving on from TinkerCAD... CAD, to OnShape proper CAD. TinkerCAD is essentially plonking blocks of various shapes down and moving em all about to make stuff work. My First CAD. OnShape is fully featured 4 figures licence fee thing. It's available free with the could-be-worse limitation of all files are made public. I'm making a rough mock-up of my bars as below, and going to build a proper mount. I'll do the same for the CRF when I decide where to mount em. I doubt i'll be using it on-the-go so much.

The black ring is the mirror stalk attachment. I've got 15mm then before tapering and bendy stuff starts.