Lap Timing System

STATUS:

ORDERED!! I got impatient and ordered it this evening.

Decoder
Bridge Sensors x 4 (should be good for a 5 foot wide bridge)
Cables
Transponders x 5
Software

Thanks to the raffle, we will be able to have some proper racing, and hopefully the GT-Mayhem will get a bit of a kickstart.

Now we need some of the 'Engineers' here to come up with some designs for a bridge setup thinking caps on please people. I know their are some talented designers here :face: :idea:

I have access to an old laptop so will need to get some way to power it from the car battery, I expect we will need to keep a car idling to have sufficient power....and hopefully not mine, the 5.3L V8 uses a lot of juice.

Alternatively, we hook up one of those light dynamo's to Jay's bike and we take turns pedalling LOL

thats good news man! we could use the pipes on lances project since the drift track isnt using it right now.. just one set for the start/finish line area.
im not sure what pipe parts are available.. will see when the transponders arrive

power the pc thru my bike is a good idea but i will give the job to you guys.. i need to save energy for my goin home travel lol

btw did we get enough people to do the raffle already?

i'm happy to do the design for the bridge, just tell me:

- how big it needs to be
- where the sensors need to sit
- dimensions of the sensors etc

then i'll bang out some ideas and we can discuss on saturday

i'm not an engineer but an architect - so i cant guarantee it will stand but it will definately look cool!

Good, other people are getting involved.....which means it will work.

@Jay, I think the pipe they are using will be too small, I think for this excercise we will need 2" PVC (the white hard stuff) not the poly-ethylene stuff.

Originally I thought just a simple T-piece for the stands with a foot of pipe either side and then 2ft for the vertical giving one stand. Put one of those each side, with about a 5ft span along the top as the main bridge. I am not sure 5ft will be wid enough, but with 5 cars on the track, it should be ok. The bridge has 4 pickup units each can pickup signal across 14.5", so 4 of those should cover 4.8 ft across.

I am pretty crap at visualising in feet/inches, but it is going to be a fairly narrow bridge, and that means we should place it at a slow/er section of the track to ensure we all pass under it without smashing into it.

Paul, I will get you some dimensions to go by, and really appreciate the effort. If you come up with a design, then we can plan the materials and I can do some costings.....

Now I need to get an old laptop to use...it will only need XP on it so I am going to acquire my GF's old one and re-install with NOTHING on it but the OS.....dont even need virus checker or anything....

this seems pretty serious, i hope there will be some competitions in which we can put this system into good use

now i just need to wait for that damn diff case that i was promised, without it i'll be leaving a trail of M-05 parts as i go around the track.........might even end up crossing the line with one of my wheelz bouncing like in the movies hahaha lol

Andy

can you send me a link about the lap timimg system so i can have a look at what we are dealing with?

http://www.rclapcounter.com/page2/page2.html

You will see that all the components are just normal circuit boards, that are covered in heavy shrinkwrap....I dont like this, I might build some boxes to make them a little more durable.
All the connections seem to be UTP cables with RJ-45 connectors. They supply velcro to fasten the bridge connctors, again, I dont like this....if one falls in a bridge strike, another car might ride over it and...sayonara...

The transponders will require power from the receiver, but since most people dont have aux power, a y-cable will be needed between the ESC power and the receiver...I will get a couple of y-cables before saturday, and we can run some experimentation....

But first....a bridge design is required. The main reason for building it out of PVC pipe is so that it is collapsible...the pipes and cables can be dismantled and then put into an old tent bag or something similar.

Great

Thanks for the info, agreed we need to design the bridge to protect the equipment as much as possible, especially after seeing the minis rolling 14-15 times last saturday! The bridge would become an easy target! hehehe

Anyway I will come up with some ideas and share with you.

so there are 5 bridge sensors which means its possible to divide the track into sections so you could see which area your slow at on a hot lap!

we could do qualifying for grid positions!
super pole qualify! out lap, hot lap, in lap

@Jay,

Nope, all 5 sensors have to go across the start line, each one can only pick up 14.5" of track so combined they cover 5 or 6 ft

I think the system can have multiple sections, but then you would need a bridge at each section start....I dont think we need that....yet :-)

I have been going over the saftware, and it looks pretty cool. I think they way we will start off is to have a staggered start, and everyone races against the clock. That way we can avoid the 1st corner pile-ups and people will be rewarded for a smooth, consistent drive instead of being 1st over the line. Lots of options there for us to play with until we find a fun way to run the races, once we have setlled in, we start COMPETITIONS.....with prizes etc etc

dream on jay lol
maybe on competitions we could qualify for grid position.. really helps avoid pile ups.
on the starting line we could put lines for each cars position on two's side by side.
anyway staggered will do for now

@Andy

Just a quick sketch of what I had in mind, we will be able to make it out of smaller diameter pipe (basic electrical conduit pvc pipe) the ladder frame design should give it the strenght and prevent saging. This will also keep the bridge light and compact when disassembled.

I have some ideas for mounting the sensors and cable but need to go passed ace hardware to see what supplies they have.

Yeah, now that looks the business....I fear that it is going to be too narrow, I should have ordered another bridge sensor....but let's see, can always get one later.
That looks to be pretty stable too....we could put some advertising banner accross it too...and charge people...LOL

Good work lad.

hope this materailse soon! cant wait to bash my TA03F

Bring your TA03F down this week on Saturday, we can start GT practice sessions. I doubt we will get a bridge built before Saturday, and the equipment is shipping tomorrow USPS express.

Paul? Have you built that bridge yet?

We will need to go to Area 1 though, last week I mapped out a really nice layout, but we need to clean it up a bit, remember to bring your broom so we can sweep, there are a lot of small stones there that could get stuck in your belts...my TB wont have that problem.

@cathurga, hello sir saw your lap timing system and we are also using this type of system here in abu dhabi for nitro off road and it is working perfect....

hi andy, nice lap timer ... kindly check this out.. I'm sharing my idea.. simple and easy to build lap timer bridge.. detachable and easy to set up....

Martin, looks good, but you going to have to carry the concrete bases around, ok?

Andy, you have lot of space at the back of your red truck .. another option instead of concrete base we use medium size traffic cone.. or plastic umbrella base that we can fill in sand. I'ts available in ACE Hardware or Carrefour.

Yep. also good ideas, but I am interested in Pauls creation for now, it was similar to what I had in mind, apart from the ladder frame. The best part is that it doesnt have to be glued, so it can be dismantled and stored in an old tent bag or umbrella bag.
Bear in mind that I live in an apartment with not a lot of storage space, so it needs to be compact...

Keep the ideas rolling in...

@Nitram Nice ideas great solution if we had a permanent track!

@ Andy agreed, if we could leave the concrete bases on site it would probably be a better solution, but for something we are gonna be taking apart each weekend it needs to light and easy to store.......space space space......apartment living i know your pain!

i will go price up the parts for the bridge this weekend and then we can discuss on saturday

Andy,

Can you check what the power supply for the laptop is?
Usually have a DC voltage written on the inverter, and maybe we can run it from a battery pack instead of from a car socket.
Also check the battery itself (I assume the battery is stuffed?).

My laptop has a 19.6V power supply, but the battery is a 3S Lipo, 11.1V.
For my laptop we could either use 18V power supply, 3 number of 6V lead acid cells, would work (I think) or maybe hook up a 3S lipo or 12V lead acid.

I know where we can get some sealed lead acid batteries that are quite small, not too expensive, and more capacity than a regular laptop battery.

Just thinking out loud. I will do some more research.

Personally not too keen on having a stinky V8 idling next to me during my leisure time :pale:

im a little concerned of smashing my kit into the concrete bases, we should have some kind of padding attached to the base so stop ourselves from stuffing our kits into the bases or did i miss something?

Greg...you're aliiiive!! good to know feller.

We can always use your car

I dont think anything less than a decent power supply will do. One concern I have is that the timing system takes it's power from the USB port, and this means that whatever battery we use...is going to get drained, pronto.
Therefore, I think we will need a power inverter connected either directly to the battery of a car that is charging it. Alternatively, find a power source nearby....and that is not going to be easy.

Ahmed, the way you drive, yep, good chance you will get acquainted with a pillar...lol

This is why I want to try and get the bridge on a slower part of the track...one where YOU NEED TO BE USING BRAKES!!!