Published June 17, 2016 © GPL3+

iBrake Remote Braking System for Kids Bikes

The iBrake system allows the girls to have the freedom but me the piece of mind knowing that i can stop their bikes remotely from up to 100.

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iBrake Remote Braking System for Kids Bikes

Things used in this project

Hardware components

SparkFun Blynk Board - ESP8266

4xAA battery holder

USB-A to Micro-USB Cable

Breadboard (generic)

LED (generic)

470ohm Resistor

Resistor 10k ohm

MPSA13 - NPN Darlington Pair

Jumper wires (generic)

Servo Tower Pro MG995

AA Batteries

USB Power Bank Mini 2600mAH External Battery

Software apps and online services

Autodesk Fusion

Hand tools and fabrication machines

3D Printer (generic)

Soldering iron (generic)

Story

This idea came to me in a moment of Dad inspiration.

I love to let my girls ride their bikes, but then i also don't want them going too far just in case.

The iBrake system allows the girls to have the freedom but me the piece of mind knowing that i can stop their bikes remotely from up to 100 metres away!

The system comprises 2 main parts, the iBrake (servo and actuator) and the iBrick (the home of the batteries, Blynk Board and brick compatible lid)

Using the Blynk Board and Blynk custom iOS app, i am able to turn on the brake on and also able to turn on the 12 LED lights that surround the iBrick. I used super-bright white LED's to be safe and seen! The lights flash when the brake has been applied to give you a visual cue that the brake as been deployed

I printed the housings at 0.2mm 20% infill, the Rack and Pinion were printed out at 80% infill with 3 perimeters for extra strength.

first things first.. it's time to familiarise yourself with the SparkFun Blynk Board

Did you have fun? good isn't it!

Firstly i added some pins to easily connect things together

I added pins for GND, 5 and 12. 5 is used to control the LED's and 12 is the PWM controller for the servo

I made a little board to act as a junction point for the grounds, volts and have somewhere to put the LED darlinton pair

This little stripboard is used to hold the darlington pair that will control the LED's (i used a darlington as the switch to stop frying the pin on the blynk board)

The rest of the wires are just volts and ground. this is a handy star point for everything volty.

The is the LED and resistor wiring

So the next step was to add the LED's and resistors, just simply solder the legs together. and repeat on the other side for 12 in total

These can then be connected to the little strip board

The Blynk Board is powered by a USB power bar. The servos and LED's are powered by 4xAA batteries in a holder. Those servos are current hungry little things

1 / 5 • Here's a few renderings showing the construction

Next step was the code

The Blynk Board was re programmed to connect directly to my iPhones personal hotspot, so this can be used when no other wifi is available

The code can be found at the bottom as usual.

The App is set up as follows

Create a new blynk sketch, make a note of the auth number to pop in your code.

You will need 2 buttons and a slider.

1 button controls the bike lights, the 2nd one controls the braking. The slider controls how long the delay is until the brake can be taken off again (by default it's 5 seconds).

When the Brake is enganged the lights flash regardless of their previous state for the set number of seconds.

The buttons should be set up like this.

These are the settings for the lights

These are the settings for the brakes

This is the slider

The iBrake is fitted over the brake cable as shown here using some self tapping screws that also secure the servo.

iBrake attached to the brake

The iBrick housing is attached here using the printed clamp and 2 x M5 screws and Nuts.

1 / 2

The enclosure can be viewed and downloaded here.

Schematics

Code

iBrake Blynk Board

/**************************************************************
 * Blynk is a platform with iOS and Android apps to control
 * Arduino, Raspberry Pi and the likes over the Internet.
 * You can easily build graphic interfaces for all your
 * projects by simply dragging and dropping widgets.
 *
 *   Downloads, docs, tutorials: http://www.blynk.cc
 *   Blynk community:            http://community.blynk.cc
 *   Social networks:            http://www.fb.com/blynkapp
 *                               http://twitter.com/blynk_app
 *
 * Blynk library is licensed under MIT license
 * This example code is in public domain.
 *
 **************************************************************
 * This example runs directly on ESP8266 chip.
 *
 * You need to install this for ESP8266 development:
 *   https://github.com/esp8266/Arduino
 *
 * Please be sure to select the right ESP8266 module
 * in the Tools -> Board menu!
 *
 * Change WiFi ssid, pass, and Blynk auth token to run :)
 *
 **************************************************************/

#define BLYNK_PRINT Serial    // Comment this out to disable prints and save space
#include <ESP8266WiFi.h>
#include <BlynkSimpleEsp8266.h>
#include <Servo.h>

// You should get Auth Token in the Blynk App.
// Go to the Project Settings (nut icon).
char auth[] = "put your auth code here";

Servo BrakeServo; // create servo object

// initial values
int closed = 100;
int open1 = 20;
int LED = 5;
int timer = 5;

void setup()
{
  Serial.begin(9600);
  Blynk.begin(auth, "WIFI_SSID", "WIFI_PASSWORD"); // add your wifi credentials here (use iPhone access point)
  BrakeServo.attach(12); // set up pin 12 as PWM
  pinMode(LED, OUTPUT);
  BrakeServo.write(open1); // open servo by default
 }

BLYNK_WRITE(V3) 
{
   timer = param.asInt(); // read slider for delay value in blynk app
}  
  
BLYNK_WRITE(V0) // assign pin V0 to servo control
{
  int i = param.asInt(); // read value from blink app
  int time = timer;
   if(i == 1)
   {
    BrakeServo.write(closed); // activate brake
   
    while (time != 0) // flash lights timer times
    {
    digitalWrite(LED, HIGH);
    delay(500);
    digitalWrite(LED, LOW);
    delay(500);
    time--;
    }
   }
   else
   { 
    BrakeServo.write(open1); // deactivate brake
    delay(10);
   } 
}

BLYNK_WRITE(V2) // control the light 
{
  int j = param.asInt();
   if(j <= 0)
   {
    digitalWrite(LED, LOW);
   }
   else
   {
    digitalWrite(LED, HIGH);
    delay(10);
   } 
}
void loop()
{ 
    Blynk.run();
}

Credits

Dave Clarke

14 projects • 83 followers

Industrial Designer, Maker of Things, Lover of Phi and all around nice guy

iBrake Remote Braking System for Kids Bikes

Things used in this project

Hardware components

Software apps and online services

Hand tools and fabrication machines

Story

Custom parts and enclosures

iBrake Parts

iBrake STL files for 3D printing

Schematics

iBrake Wiring Diagram

Assembly Instructions

Code

iBrake Blynk Board

Credits

Dave Clarke

Comments

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iBrake Remote Braking System for Kids Bikes

iBrake Remote Braking System for Kids Bikes

Things used in this project

Hardware components

Software apps and online services

Hand tools and fabrication machines

Story

Custom parts and enclosures

iBrake Parts

iBrake STL files for 3D printing

Schematics

iBrake Wiring Diagram

Assembly Instructions

Code

iBrake Blynk Board

Credits

Dave Clarke

Comments

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