HindSight

• 

  Building process

• 

  Arduino and Interior

• 

  Final Prototype

Inspiration?

Jason rides his bicycle nearly every day, and he often finds that a lot of cars come too close to him when he rides in the bike lane. Having a system of sensors that allow him to notice incoming objects from behind would let him avoid close encounters to accidents.

What it does?

Hindsight provides data and notification when something from behind comes too close. Since cyclists cannot see what's behind them, Hindsight looks for them and relays the information to the front of the bike, where the cyclist can interpret what is going on behind them.

How we built it?

3 ultrasonic sensors are placed at 3 different angles in a box, all connected to an Arduino. The distances read from each separate ultrasonic sensor is processed through the code saved on the Arduino, and different notifications are shown on the RGB LED ring separate from the box. The ring would be placed at the front of the bike, where the cyclist can easily see it. A 9V battery is connected to the system to allow it to work in isolation from a computer power source.

Challenges we ran into?

Displaying information through the RGB LED ring, creating variations of intensity for the notifications, having inaccurate ultrasonic sensor data, having a poor supply of hardware to use.

Accomplishments?

Creating something that may benefit many people, making the final product look appealing, making the product as efficient as possible.

What we learned?

How to use the RGB LED ring, interpret ultrasonic sensor data, how to efficiently display data through LEDs.

What's next for hindsight?

Has the potential to become smaller, more accurate, and have abilities to connect to a phone. Next step would be working on an app to vibrate in relation to the distance that an object is away from the sensor. The farther away that an object is, the longer the intervals between the vibrations would be. This would allow the biker to sense their cell-phone, say, in their pocket and alert them to approaching cars.

Built With

• arduino
• leds
• ultrasonic-sensors