
---------------------- 
NOTES FROM THE BIKELAB 
Issue #11 -- 6/22/91
by Steven K. Roberts
----------------------

Copyright (C) 1991 by Steven K. Roberts.  All Rights Reserved.
(Intact reposting and free distribution is OK with permission; 
personal forwarding is OK without.)

IN THIS ISSUE:
	20 Frequently Asked Questions

"You know you're going slow when you've got dead bugs on the
BACK of your bike."
	-- the always-quotable Dave Berkstresser, watching
	me trundle slowly up his driveway during a test ride.

	It's getting close.  Suddenly all priorities have changed --  the 
things that distracted me last month are now not even an option.  
Flip on the TV for a while to relax?  Yeah, right.  The only excursions 
into the world are for the daily 10-mile training ride and subsequent 
recharging of the CSU (Calorie Storage Unit), and sleep is an annoying 
necessity that interrupts me every night at 3 AM or so.

	A story in the current issue of Information Week generated 
70-80 letters, and I have found my emailboxes overflowing (sitting 
at 64 unanswered items as I write this -- many quite interesting, all 
deserving a response).  Instead of spending the next couple of hours 
trying to catch up, I'm going to use them as the basis of a FAQ 
document:  these questions are typical of those asked by a techno-
literate audience (as opposed to the kind encountered on the 
street...).  If you wrote to me and haven't received a direct reply, 
please understand and enjoy the following.  You've also been added 
to the distribution list for future issues -- let me know if you don't 
want any electronic publications and I'll remove you from the alias.

	First, a quick update... there's been a lot of progress in the last 
couple of weeks.  David Harris is moving ahead on the audio and 
serial bus cabling, doing a beautiful job with bundles of tiny shielded 
wire and tight LEMO connector wiring. The audio crosspoint matrix 
CAD work has been completed in San Diego by Bob Lockhart, and US 
Circuits turned out boards which will be stuffed and interfaced to the 
FORTH systems next week. Ron Covell and Jesse Newcomb are 
working on mounting the new molded fiberglass fairing, which 
Maggie Victor is painting.  I've just finished bringing up the Ampro 
core-module PC and Private Eye controller -- now cabled into the 
helmet and working.  Jay Hamlin is building a keyboard controller 
that will inhale force-sensing resistor data from the handlebars and 
produce closures that make sense to the Infogrip BAT chord 
keyboard controller.  John Noerenberg is writing software to link 
Eudora in the Mac to the satellite terminal via the Comm Toolbox, 
along with some unix hacks to tie the hub into internet via a 
dedicated Sun 4/260.  Steve Delaire is building a custom motorcycle-
type hydraulic disk brake for the monster.  Dan Kottke is building an 
LED matrix controller for diagnostics, Martin Rowland is running 
around Silicon Valley on a daily basis to acquire parts, Maggie is 
helping prepare the lab for shutdown... and I've been playing 
manager, PR flack, photo model, secretary, researcher, purchasing 
agent, technician, and project strategist around the clock.  I've also 
taken two test rides since the last update, just for a reality check.  (I 
noticed that it's like, um, ~really~ heavy.)

	The first ride was to give a talk at Apple; the second was to the 
Foothill Flea Market, and included a live test of the Qualcomm 
OmniTRACS satellite system.  It works rather dramaticaly.  Not only 
did I send and receive numerous pieces of mail enroute, but when I 
returned sweaty and panting to the lab I found my path drawn on 
the office PC screen as a blue dotted line, connecting the points on 
the map where transmission or acknowledgment of reception had 
occurred.  Pretty magical stuff!

	Work in progress includes the helmet cooling system, more 
brakes, trying to finalize a tent system that can accommodate all this, 
the distributed power switching system that allows FORTH control of 
all loads via FETs, the cellular modems, general waterproofing, and, 
well, everything else that has to happen before I can ride it next 
month.  Gonna hafta drill out my toothbrush to cut weight... it seems 
that BEHEMOTH is now over 400 pounds loaded.  <shudder>

	(One amusing fact:  the 105-speed drivetrain covers an 
extremely wide range from 7.5 to 122 gear inches.  This translates 
into some interesting numbers... in the granny gear, one full pedal 
revolution moves me forward 22 inches.  In the tall gear, the same 
pedal stroke moves me 33 feet.)

	OK, on to the questions........

20 Frequently Asked Questions 
-------------------------------- 

Q1:	"By open-ended nomadic community, do you mean you sort of 
invite people to ride along and get some firsthand experience of the 
joy of adventure?"  (pmarceli@apple.com)

A1:	Yup.  For a while I was seeking people who want to trash their 
lifestyles and hit the road with me, but that smacks of commitment.  
The new plan is much more realistic.... wanna go for a bike ride and 
sample high-tech nomadness?  Fine, let's do it.  Hams are particularly 
welcome since on-the-road communication without radio is a real 
pain.  I move at a liesurely pace by most cyclists' standards, so don't 
worry too much about your physical condition.  You're probably not 
hauling 400 pounds, and should have no trouble keeping up.  If 
you're fast, then you can zip ahead, take side trips, or otherwise pass 
the time while waiting for the recumbersome bikeasaurus to trundle 
into camp.  Any takers?


Q2:	"In your travels, you must have to [meet strangers, start 
relationships, and carry on conversations] constantly.  Did it come 
easily, or did you have to work at it?"  (raan@hpcvry.cv.hp.com)

A2:	It happened pretty easily, largely because of this high-tech 
door-opener underneath me.  Wandering around on foot, I have a 
very hard time striking up a conversation without obvious shared 
context.  The bike provides that context, which would lead to total 
burnout on the same topic were it not for the fact that it eventually 
switches from foreground to background.  People open up to 
travelers and writers anyway, and if there's ever a lull in 
conversation, there are always more bike questions.  Besides... 
anything that reinforces peoples' dreams makes them very friendly.


Q3:	"How did you get Sun to sponsor your R&D?  Were you a Sun 
employee before you started this project?  If not (or even, if so!) how 
were they enlightened enough to give you the resources you've 
enjoyed?"  (pld@mcrc.mot.com)

A3:	Sun is an unusual company in that they are not totally focused 
on a specific product line (despite the wild successes of same).  A 
number of the company's high-level people spend most of their time 
thinking about the long-term future and exploring areas outside 
today's specific product development issues.  The net effect is a 
symbiosis between generalists and specialists -- and a very lively 
corporate culture.  I had almost no exposure to Sun (or workstations, 
or even unix) prior to this relationship, but we both recognized the 
potential for mutual benefit.  Sun provides resources and a 
community of intelligent people (and SPACE!), and I reciprocate by 
sharing my ideas and contacts freely... a sort of high-tech court 
jester.
	The sponsorship issue in general becomes very complex, 
especially with about 150 companies involved.  This project can be 
thought of as a three-way partnership between the bike, the 
sponsors, and the media -- with me as facilitator.  Everybody wins:  
more new toys leads to more interesting bike functionality which 
leads to more media coverage which leads to still more new toys.  
I've become addicted to it.  <grin>


Q4:	"Where can I find out more about recumbents, human-powered 
vehicle construction, and bicycle-mobile ham radio?"  (lots of people)

A4:	The International Human-Powered Vehicle Association 
(IHPVA) is $20/year with excellent journals from:  IHPVA, P.O. Box 
51255, Indianapolis, IN 46251-0255.
	The Recumbent Bicycle Club of America (RBCA) is recumbent-
specific and has good reviews of various bikes.  $20 to RBCA, 427-
Amherst St., Suite 305, Nashua, NH 03063.
	Bicycle Mobile Hams of America (BMHA) is all about operating 
amateur radio from your bike... send $10 to BMHA, P.O. Box 4009, 
Boulder, CO 80306.
	And while I'm plugging publications, don't forget the print 
edition of Nomadness -- which includes a superset of these online 
reports along with lots of photos and graphics.  $15 for 6 quarterly 
issues to:  Nomadic Research Labs, P.O. Box 2185, El Segundo, CA 
90245.


Q5:	"Do you have a destination, or are you just on an endless 
journey?"  (delmarva!roslan@uunet.UU.NET)

A5:	Yes, but if you think too much about where you're going, you 
lose respect for where you are...
	More specifically, the general plan right now is to leave Silicon 
Valley via rental truck on July 15 and drive to Omaha, there to start 
RAGBRAI -- the big (10,000 people) bicycle ride across Iowa.  From 
there I'll head to Chicago to visit a few sponsors, then to Milwaukee 
for the IHPVA championships (no, I'm not racing).  From there, 
presumably, I'll pass through Oshkosh and head up to Door County, 
then cross to Michigan on the ferry, and head down through Lansing, 
Ann Arbor, and Adrian (for custom surge trailer brakes from Cyclo-
Pedia!).  After that, I'll zoom down through Ohio and stop by 
Columbus and Cincinnati, then probably wander through Lexington 
enroute to my parents' house in Louisville, Kentucky.  
	All that comprises a robust enough shakedown cruise to give 
me a very good idea what must be finished, fixed, or thrown away.  
The vague plan is to truck back here (possibly in time for Interop?), 
spend about 3 months finishing the job, then leave again from here, 
for real -- open ended.
	(I should mention that I've already done 16,000 miles on 
previous versions, and every time I ever made predictions like this 
they turned out to be wrong.)


Q6:	"If you run the computers while you are riding, how do they 
handle the vibration?"  (70296@rsccgu.msd.ray.com)

A6:	Hopefully, well!  On previous trips, everything worked fine 
without any shock mounting (though the rigidly mounted console 
kept trashing the bike's headset bearings).  This time, the console 
and RUMP areas are on rubber Lord mounts, and the hard disks (all 
4) are in additional shock-isolation environments designed to meet 
Conner specs.  I'll know more by the time I hit Louisville, but feel 
confident that they'll be fine.


Q7:	"How do you deal with cooling the CPUs?"  (bill@psl.wisc.edu)

A7:	I start with the most power-efficient CMOS machines I can find 
(in most cases), like the Ampro core modules for DOS, the Macintosh 
Portable, 68HC11s for control, and Microchip PICs for random logic 
replacement (the SPARCstation IPC is for occasional high-
performance use in compressed video and communications, not 
constant duty enroute).  I then use switching regulators, power-cycle 
heavy loads like disk drives, and shut down things that aren't in use.  
As an example, the main DOS machine that runs the Private Eye 
heads-up display draws 1 amp at 5V max, and about half that when 
idling with its display and hard disk on standby.


Q8:	"I was a bit curious about your satellite link to the internet.  
Does it allow you the type of real-time access to the network so that 
you can interactively use network services, or is the link only for 
sending and receiving electronic files"  (VAATEK@UKCC.uky.edu)

A8:	The internet link is now being implemented by Qualcomm, 
which has provided an essentially off-the-shelf OmniTRACS satellite 
terminal like those in use on some 15,000 trucks around North 
America.  This is a low-speed connection, for email only -- no ftp or 
telnet!  A dedicated Sun 4/260 is being installed to rewrite headers 
and otherwise implement the gateway between Qualcomm's satellite 
hub and the net, and Eudora on the bike's Mac communicates with 
the terminal via a driver in the Comm Toolbox.  As far as email goes, 
it should be pretty much transparent.
	I will have relatively high-speed net access whenever near 
cellular sites (or connected to a modular jack, of course).  I will be 
evaluating the Telebit CellBlazer and the Microcom 1042 under a 
variety of conditions, probably favoring the former for high-speed 
dialup IP via the Netblazer to my server at Sun, and the latter for 
low-power access to GEnie, MCI, America Online, and the occasional 
BBS.  Stay tuned....


Q9:	"What do you do with your on-board computers?  Do you run 
your own business?  Do you use them while riding or when you are 
at a pit stop?"  (brian@squid.ingres.com)

A9:	The computers handle everything from low-level control 
(security, power, network management, data collection, gear 
display...) to high-level applications (navigation and mapping, 
biketop publishing, email, CAD, ham satellite tracking, writing, 
database management....).  Yes, I run a business -- Nomadic Research 
Labs.  It's a bit hard to define, but includes publishing a quarterly 
journal (Nomadness), selling books and technical reports about the 
adventure, speaking gigs, consulting spinoffs, and a manufacturing 
joint venture now in development.
	As to the mobile-vs-stopped question:  one of the design specs 
is that there should be NO practical difference between movement 
and stasis.  The handlebar chord keyboard, Private Eye, MSC thumb 
mouse, ultrasonic head mouse, Audapter speech board, and low-
power rugged computers make it pretty comfortable to work and 
communicate while riding.


Q10:	"Are back issues of Notes from the Bikelab available via ftp?"  
(Lots of people)

A10:	Not yet, but soon.  I'll post the details in a future issue when 
they are online.


Q11:	"How do you protect the bike from rain, snow, etc.?  How good 
is the satellite link under adverse weather conditions?"  
(shankar@ulysses.att.com)

A11:	Given the choice, I don't ride in heavy weather... but I don't 
always have a choice.  All enclosures are waterproof, and a fabric 
cover can be velcro'd over the control console.
	The satellite link is not noticeably affected by rainy weather -- 
additional road experience will yield data about wider extremes.  
There may be some measurable attenuation visible on the 
maintenance screen, but I doubt it will be enough to block 
communication entirely.  This is 14 GHz spread spectrum.


Q12:	"Apart from using captured solar energy to run the computers 
on-board, do you also use it to give some power boost to your bike, 
especially in situations where you have to climb uphill with all that 
load?"  (shankar@ulysses.att.com)

A12:	Ah, that would be pleasant.  But the numbers don't work:  I 
have 82 watts of panels, and the 45 amp-hour battery is pretty 
much reserved for computers, communciations, and lighting.  A 
variable-reluctance motor-generator from Semifusion is being 
developed for the regenerative braking system, and calculations 
suggest that if we dump the raw solar bus into it (motor mode) the 
boost is roughly equivalent to a 2 kilogram push.  This will be nice on 
level ground, but down in the noise on a steep hill (without adding 
heavy gearing... this is a hub motor/generator).  Of course, I could 
always load up on batteries for a serious assist, but that's more 
weight... and I've already blown the load budget on other equipment.


Q13:	"You probably don't ride much on main highways or on the 
freeway... where do you go?  Dirt roads would be difficult due to 
your sensitive equipment... how could you get from place to place?  
Also, how fast can you go?  And I'm astounded that you're not 
robbed or vandalized on a regular basis.  Do you carry a lot of clothes 
or other personal belongings besides the computer stuff?  Also, not to 
be nosy, but are you independently wealthy?"  
(kris@babbage.ecs.csus.edu)

A13:	<grin>  Last question first....  not at all!  I'm a hand-to-mouth 
freelancer, which has occasionally been the literal truth:  take a 
subscription order on the road and pedal happily to the next grocery 
store with 15 whole dollars to spend!
	As to road choices -- most parts of the country have a rich 
variety of back roads, county roads, farm roads... the only problem is 
finding documentation.  They don't show up on the atlases or gas 
station maps (which only show cyclists where NOT to go).  The 
solution involves research:  acquiring county maps and DeLorme 
atlases, asking cyclists, trying to make sense of often-distorted local 
advice, and very soon, using CDROM map databases.  You are right 
about dirt roads; they're a drag.  Sand and gravel are even worse.
	How fast?  Depends on what I had for breakfast.  I usually 
think in terms of 10 mph average throughout the day, which varies 
widely with terrain and wind.  I've had it up to 50.5 mph with a 
gravity assist and am often slogging along at 2 mph up hills.
	I've never been seriously robbed or vandalized (except for a 
stolen Walkman in Palm Springs).  There have been some close calls, 
but the techno-bike talking to intruders and bristling with antennas 
rather gives the impression of alien technology and power.  Those I 
trust least are also the ones most intimidated by the machine (for the 
most part, anyway... the exceptions can be terrifying).
	Finally, yes... I carry a full suite of camping gear, cooking 
equipment, tools, clothing, and so on.  BEHEMOTH is home.


Q14:	"What is your motivation, and how long do you intend to do 
this for?"  (rnk@sei.cmu.edu)

A14:	Fun is the bottom line!  This whole gambit is a blend of all my 
passions:  bicycling, writing, ham radio, computers, networking, 
publishing, travel, adventure, romance, and play.  I'm absolutely 
addicted to the energy of on-the-road beginnings, exciting new 
technology, overcoming traditional limits, making equipment do 
amusing things, communicating around the globe with solar power, 
and meeting amazing people in Dataspace and face to face.
	How long?  I have no idea.


Q15:	"Are you planning to visit <insert place name here>?"

A15:	Unknown beyond "A5" above.  I will attempt to keep this 
distribution alias updated with my location and plans as they evolve.  
If you'd like to be in my hospitality database, arrange a visit, throw a 
party, ride with me, or otherwise get together -- please email me 
when I seem to be gradually nearing your part of the world (often 
such invitations have a significant effect on my route, so don't wait 
until I'm in your back yard to get in touch).


Q16:	"In the [Information Week] picture it looks as though you have 
some sort of CRT device in front of your right eye?"  
(ted@jhuhyg.sph.jhu.edu)

A16:	Yup -- that's the Private Eye display from Reflection 
Technology.  It presents a 720 x 280 red image that appears to float 
in space in front of me, just below my normal field of vision (like 
bifocals).  Controlled by one of the boards in the Ampro "Core 
Module" stack, it is the primary console device for the DOS 
environment and works amazingly well.


Q17:	"I was interested in the 'ultrasonic beam generated from the 
helmet that serves the same function as a mouse'" 
(jaffe@roses.stanford.edu)

A17:	Actually, the beam is generated from the console and sensed 
by three helmet-mounted transducers.  This is essentially a hacked 
Personics head mouse -- producing quadrature events as a function 
of phase and doppler data resulting from head movement.  Michael 
Butler and I interfaced this (trivially) with the innards of a Mac ADB 
mouse, and the job was done.  In a future issue, I'll report on how it 
works in the the windy, noisy, wet, bouncing conditions of the road.


Q18:	"Can you actually read your mail [while pedaling] or does a 
voice system read it to you?  Can you actually type while riding, or 
do you speak it (or tap it in code)?"  (josh@edsi.plexus.com)

A18:	Depending on conditions, mood, and other applications, I can do 
either -- the basic mail spool environment is Eudora on the Mac, and 
text can be displayed on the console screen, routed to the Private 
Eye, or piped to the Audapter synthesizer.
	And yes, I type while riding -- that's a major requirement.  
Force-sensing resistors from Interlink are built into the grips, 
scanned by a Microchip PIC and Maxim A-D/mux, and passed to the 
controller of an Infogrip BAT chord keyboard.  This appears via a 
DOS TSR as a console device.  A similar setup allows direct entry to 
the Mac or the trio of New Micros FORTH boards that do the dirty 
work.  I do have voice recognition (Covox) but it is far too slow for 
free text entry, and Morse code would be very cumbersome for 
computing (though I can do it while running HF mobile CW ham 
radio).


Q19:	"What about your family?  Do you have a bicycle for your 
sweetheart?"  (hopkins@select.enet.dec.com)

A19:	<grin>  Well, I did have a brief flirtation with marriage about 
10 years ago, but that would be essentially incompatible with this 
lifestyle.  I traveled 10,000 miles solo, then took on a companion 
named Maggie for another 6,000.  She has since done some touring 
on her own and we have decided to eschew interdependency... but 
we're having a go at sharing RAGBRAI and points beyond anyway.  
And yes, she has her own bike -- a Ryan Vanguard recumbent with 
homemade trailer carrying a cat, photolab, 2-meter ham radio, 
laptop, and solar panel.  Ah, the social lives of high-tech nomads....


Q20:	"I don't believe a word of this.  Where can I see a picture of the 
crazy thing?"  (wordy@bikelab.sun.com)

A20:	Check the July issue of Discover Magazine, which just hit the 
stands this week.  Also, the June 19 issue of Information Week, and 
supposedly the August Bicycling Magazine.

------------

22K of text again!  Sheesh... that's more than enough, and besides, it's 
20 questions.  (If you're wondering about the format change from 
previous issues, it's because I'm now writing on the Mac instead of 
the SPARC -- partly to get ready for the road, and partly to make the 
text more generic for use on GEnie and other non-internet services.)


Cheers from the bikelab!


	Steven K. Roberts
	Nomadic Research Labs

	wordy@bikelab.sun.com
	GEnie, AOL, MCI, Portal:  wordy






