Date   : Sun, 21 Nov 2010 21:42:09 +0100
From   : rick@... (Rick Murray)
Subject: Using a Beeb for engine monitoring

On 21/11/2010 21:15, Alex Taylor wrote:

> and possibly even black ice warning (however that works).

I would imagine spectroscopy. Bounce a light (LASER, powerful IR beam?) 
onto the road surface and measure what is reflected, because ice 
crystals are frequently like a mirror, while a dry road isn't. You'd 
need to run this in conjunction with a temperature sensor so first 
Autumn rain on a greasy road doesn't flag up black ice (but, then, maybe 
the skid risk is similar, so...?).

I though of doing it this way because basic temperature sensing won't 
work. It can easily be -20C and dry. That said, you'd need to take 
readings on the actual road surface to calibrate the results to provide 
meaningful data (i.e. dry/wet/snow/ice).


> that an MPG readout on the dash might make me drive more economically.

This, of course, depends upon the accuracy of the software. ;-) At least 
with software you write yourself, there's the opportunity to look back 
over estimates vs petrol input, and fine-tune the algorithms. You could 
be really fancy and input current fuel prices so you'll know:
      How far you went
      Your top and average speeds
      Your car's MPG
and  How much it cost you

The last one is the figure we don't like to look at.


Best wishes,

Rick.

-- 
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