On 12 May 2004 01:13:59 -0700,
[email protected] (Navid Naghdi)
wrote:
>Because I'm going to design and make a bike alarm; for
>my report I will require to write about existing
>products and their specifications. So far it has been
>difficult to get my hands on any bicycle alarm around my
>area here in the UK.
>
>It will be appreciated if you could offer some links
>relating to bicycle alarms listing its specifications or
>any other bits of information I will need to keep in mind.
When I was a small child, having been well-fed of the common
(here in the US, anyway) drug propaganda, I was paranoid
that "anything could be replaced by drugs", and I was
especially paranoid that my bike would be. So, I had an
alarm on it.
It clamped on to the handlebar like any other accessory. It
had a numeric keypad on it, into which a code must be typed
before disturbing the bike, and a motion sensor to trip if
somebody does touch the bike. At that point, it would make a
moderately loud siren wail. I wonder how often my dad had
bumped it walking through the garage and set it off?
It was made entirely of plastic. I'm sure that it could have
been disabled and destroyed with an adult's bare hands;
surely a rock or hammer would work.
Maybe something that is well-armored (probably built-into
a U-lock).
Even better, inserted into the seat tube and wired
internally to the dropouts to detect a wheel moving/being
removed. It would have to have a built-in cell phone
connection and location tracking; just a wailing siren is
useless nowadays, at least here in the US. A remote-
control disarm would be necessary; this way, the alarm
cannot be accessed without removing the seatpost (also
wired to the alarm).
So, something like LoJack (for that matter, how about
something using the LoJack network, although I don't know if
it exists outside the US), to fit inside the seat tube below
the seatpost, armed and disarmed with a small RF remote
control (like an automotive alarm), able to detect spinning
wheels and removed components, and...er...fires a sharp
spike through the seat when somebody steals the bike,
puncturing the thief.
--
Rick Onanian
