Radio Communication...Interest?

[Glenn]

i have the same thoughts as you AL. listen only is i good thing. we are not pro's and we dont have to crew chief to talk to us about track conditions. it would be nice to have a single voice on the look-out and announce "red flag!", "car off in turn 2" , "oil down in turn 300". i'm considering B-mans set-up too. since NASA TX will not provide a "voice" to talk w/ us, i'll have to start trainning the wife!

[Al F.]

Agreed...it shouldnt be that hard to nominate a CMC/AI related person to serve as that voice for the entire run group during your sessions though.

[Glenn]

agreed. but i would hate to put the burden on someone who already has their hands full. its one thing to recognize a bad situation, its another to relay it. it should be someone who isnt driving @ the time.

[NickS]

I'll volunteer to be the voice for the interted race..

 

 

"MOVE OVER!"

 

[GT4Point6]

I'll volunteer to be the voice for the interted race..

 

 

"MOVE OVER!"

 

 

Nick really wants to say "GIVE ME YOUR AXLE, GOD COMMANDS IT!"

[Boudy1548534717]

First, thanks for helping test my units. I appreciate the feedback, it's incredibly helpful. The throat mics work really well for some, others not. It's a voice tone issue that I'm working with engineering to resolve. The other units were not noise canceling mics so I didn't expect much to begin with. Due to quantity commitments required to even build prototypes, these test mics were basically "off the shelf" units. I'm trying to test all component options prior to commissioning the production run on custom mics and cables.

 

My system is designed to be entry level but upgradable so 2-way or receive only communications is a simple matter of purchasing the less expensive receive only kit. Some classes prohibit 2-way communications so the receive only kit can be used by those classes. NASA may or may not eventually provide a Safety Broadcast. At this point, they reconise the safety aspect so it's a pretty safe assumption that they will. Many other organizations/tracks currently use a Safety Broadcast. I've offered the equipment to NASA to make it happen but I haven't heard anything.

 

Here's the cable design. It may help to answer some questions.

 

Boudy

 

[Al F.]

What about radio placement / remote antena? Ed Varon noted that he couldn't hear Tony anywhere near as well as I could. I had my radio up high on the main hoop, essentially pointing out the window. He had his on one of the nascar bars inside the door structure. He could reach the volume, I couldnt... I think a best of both worlds is to enable mounting the radio within easy reach but still mount an antenna outside the vehicle. This would make a nice option.

 

Last but not least question...what voltage do these radios require? You might consider putting together another option: a voltage regulator setup in order to not require batteries. I did that for my camcorder and not only saved a few ounces (hear that Glenn?? ) but also ensure I never run out of juice.

 

And speaking of camcorders...you might add to your to do list a noise canceling adjustable gain mike for connecting to camcorders, for folks that want to use bullet cams.

 

Damn...I am just full of good business ideas huh? Or maybe just full of it.

(had to beat Brad to the punch )

[NickS]

I did not have any problems hearing Caitlin on Sat & Sun. On Saturday she was down in the hot pit wall about 20 yards before the left hand kink where the corner worker sat. I could hear her fine going over T3 into T4. I do not have a seperate antenna (yet). The radio was mounted on the horizontal crossbar of the main hoop.

 

Its not an ideal spot, but I can reach the volume and channel knobs if I reach behind me. Once I have a remote antenna on the roof, I'll relocate the radio box to somewhere I can reach withou thaving to twist around, most likely the left or right of the gauges.

 

- Nick

[Boudy1548534717]

First Al, what did Ed have for breakfast? Nah, seriously, the location could have provided signal loss but who knows without carefully checking into specifics. To most guys, "Can't hear well," means, "Can't hear well." To a radio guy, "Can't hear well," is the beginning of an interogation. My radios are spec'd with an SMA connection which allows an external antenna to screw right into it. Roof mounted antennas are recommended with any radio.

 

The car harness is desinged with a 3' run from the helmet disconnect to the radio. This is from the driver's shoulder so the door bars, center console area, and main rails are all options. The dash area would require a 4' extention cable. Once a driver uses his radio a few times, he learns where the volume needs to be set and never touches it.

 

A battery elimination cable with a DC/DC converter to get down to 7.5V would not be a problem. However, I think that an external mic for camcorders is readily available. I'll check around.

 

Boudy

[Al F.]

You're right, I think once you use it a few times you'll know where the volume needs to go. I know there are a bunch of mikes out there, but I havent found one that actually works well. Most camcorders require a line level mike when you hook up an external video feed, and all of the inexpensive amped mikes I've found dont adjust for gain so they clip like mad inside a race car. Just a thought since this is your area of expertise.