Bike LED Turn Signals

I was re-published on TreeHugger!!! http://www.treehugger.com/slideshows/gadgets/how-make-led-turn-signals-your-bike/

Turns out the guys at CleanTechnica and WonderHowTo blogged about this without telling me first. Not sure if I should be upset or happy, haha. Check it out:
http://cleantechnica.com/2012/10/17/led-turn-signals-for-your-bike-by-a-9th-grader/
http://cycling-lessons.wonderhowto.com/how-to/add-led-turn-signals-your-bike-for-safe-road-cycling-0138678/

I made a schematic using Upverter! This should help a lot of people.

Update 8-5-12: Thanks so much guys for the homepage feature AND the newsletter feature! I've always wanted one of my instructables in the newsletter!

Hand bike signals are boring, and who doesn't love electronics and LEDs? I don't do much road biking where I actually need turn signals, but they look cool and are fun to make. Also, they go great with an Altoids Bike Headlight on the Cheap! (That's another one of my 'ibles.)

~~~If you like this, please please please vote for it in the Bicycle, LED, and Hurricane Lasers Contests!~~~

**Video of the turn signals in action coming soon!**

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Step 1: Ingredients

1- Project Box 3x2x1. UPDATE: scratch this. Use a bigger one! The pins from the switch didn't fit inside so I had to mount it the wrong way, and the battery didn't even fit! I would suggest using one at least a 1/2 inch bigger on all sides.
3- Velcro Straps or Hose Clamps - you could use zip ties, but then you would have to cut them every time you needed to remove the turn signal system for transportation.
1- Project Box 5x2.5x2
2- 10 ohm resistors
1- 9V battery snap
1- Center Off 3-way toggle switch
10- 5mm Yellow Flashing LEDs. Get some that require 1.8V so that you can use a 9V battery.
10- 5mm LED holders
2- old bike reflector mounts (one rear mount and one front mount)
1- 9V battery
Hot glue or super glue
Screws
Drill with assorted bits
Solder & Soldering iron
Screwdriver

Anurupjalota2 months ago

Yeah I made it in 2 Hours

TANYUNSHENG8 months ago

Can i have this circuit diagram?

Winged Fist2 years ago

Congrats on being a finalist Adam! You got my vote;-)

Adambowker98 (author) Winged Fist2 years ago

Wait, I was a finalist? In what contest? And thanks for the vote!!!

Winged Fist Adambowker982 years ago

Sorry... I misspoke. I meant congrats on being featured... Oops;-)
good luck in the Hurricane, Bike and LED contests;-)

Adambowker98 (author) Winged Fist2 years ago

Well, I guess you didn't misspeak... I am a finalist! ;)

Adambowker98 (author) Winged Fist2 years ago

Oh, that's okay! Thanks for the luck!

Kurt E. Clothier2 years ago

Awesome job! I wish I had access to this kind of stuff when I was as young as you. A note on the lights... this is a great start, but it won't be all that effective as actual lighting. In sunlight, the lights will not be very visible from a distance, and at night, someone will only see a flashing blob of light, as opposed to a directional indicator because the two turn signals are so close together - still good, just not as effective. Check out my own bicycle lighting project here:

http://www.projectsbykec.com/projects/modifications/cyclelux

Mine isn't the most effective in the daylight either, so I am still sure to use hand signals! The only way to get LEDs to shine in the sunlight is to use high wattage ones, but they will drain your batteries pretty quick and must be properly driven with heat considerations as well. Again, great job with the whole project!

Adambowker98 (author) Kurt E. Clothier2 years ago

Thanks! I tried to solve the problem of the LEDs not being visible in the daylight by mounting them under my seat in the shadow.

Kurt E. Clothier Adambowker982 years ago

Yeah, that should help some. Good thinking!

Adambowker98 (author) Kurt E. Clothier2 years ago

BTW, great job on yor bike lighting project!

Kurt E. Clothier Adambowker982 years ago

Thanks, it's been a long time coming...

Nadr0j Kurt E. Clothier2 years ago

I think because of the reflective surface inside of the headlight you're going to run into some issues with the light looking light a blob when using turn signals.

Kurt E. Clothier Nadr0j2 years ago

Yeah, I though about that, but it actually works really well. Since the LEDs do not have a very wide viewing angle, hardly any reflection is seen. The bit in the video is on my first generation headlight, but it is not there in the second gen build.

wadhwavandana2 years ago

i have learned alot from this best of luck for contest

Adambowker98 (author) wadhwavandana2 years ago

Thank you!

jcalabria Adambowker982 years ago

YOU ARE AWESOME!!!!

DELETED_Zach49972 years ago

(removed by author or community request)

Adambowker98 (author) DELETED_Zach49972 years ago

Thanks! I learned a lot from the instructable "LEDs for Beginners" and from doing research here on instutables and posting a few questions. With a little bit of time and effort, I'm sure you could've made this too!

Thanks again for the kind words!
-Adam

absolutekold2 years ago

Great Job will need to do this to my ride. With just a little time you could clean this up and make it look professional. A few small chunks of circuit board to mount the components to and some split looming to run the wires inside of and nobody would tell that you did this by hand. Also when doing layout for drilling the holes painters tape is your best friend. you can draw the shape using pencil and ruler until you get it right then there are no scratches on the surface. This would look awesome in those clear plastic waterproof cases for phones/wallets. Also for visibility issues consider gutting a few cheapo led flashlights. The electronics in them are trash but all we are after is the reflector and the lens. Mount them on the ends of some short pvc rods (size the pvc so the flashlight fits in a tee and epoxy the whole thing solid) so they are about a foot apart and setup a blinking red shape in the center for safety. The larger box should let you look into rechargeable RC batteries to extend the lifespan and being easy access you can always keep a spare charged one on you if you need to swap on the road. The only special trick to making everything look "Pro" is taking you time and doing it right. You're far further along than I was when I was your age. Keep learning from "trials" (or in my case mistakes), always thinking how can i make this more awesome and never be afraid to see where that takes you.

DoctorDv2 years ago

Voted for you in the bicycle contest! Best of Luck!

-Doctordv

Adambowker98 (author) DoctorDv2 years ago

Thanks! Could you vote in the Hurricane Lasers and LED Contests as well?

DoctorDv Adambowker982 years ago

Yup!

danman332 years ago

Do they all flash at the same time?

Adambowker98 (author) danman332 years ago

They were supposed to, but some of the LEDs flash at a different rate. The left arrow flashes mostly all together, but the right arrow has one odd LED.

DoctorDv2 years ago

This is awesome! My friend loves biking so I'll have to make him one of these!

-Doctordv

Adambowker98 (author) DoctorDv2 years ago

Awesome! Let me know how it turns out!

audreyobscura2 years ago

This is great! Thanks for the share!

Adambowker98 (author) audreyobscura2 years ago

Your welcome!

Random232 years ago

Nice and simple. Good job. I need to make something like this for my cargo bike but am leaning towards momentary push buttons instead of a toggle switch so I don't accidentally leave the blinker on.