A confession and a thought!

I've got to confess I'm addicted to youtube videos of motorcycle and car crashes. I keep telling myself I will learn something from watching them!
I've seen several crashes where the bike gets away from under the rider because they panic and twist the throttle. It is made worse because in trying to hold on to a bike intent on getting away from them, they twist the throttle even more! This positive feedback loop ends up with bad consequences. What if the throttle control was reversed: i.e you twist away from you to accelerate? Perhaps this could be made optional in the new TBW (throttle by wire) bikes!

I've seen some threads here about evolution of motorcycle controls but do not seeing any specific reasoning behind the current system.

--Ram

That's an interesting thought, but complicating a forward twist to accelerate is the front brake. As you reach for the front brake, it's natural to reduce throttle so an opposite throttle would probably require also changing how the front brake is applied and/or where it is located.

Pulling towards you to accelerate seems intuitive, but maybe I'm conditioned to think like that by doing it for so long.

sstakes1 said:

What if the throttle control was reversed: i.e you twist away from you to accelerate?

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The infamous Suicide Grip. Two considerations: It's possible that wrists my be more easily fatigued with that configuration. And what happens if you have to stop hard? Rolling your hand from the grip to the brake or applying the brakes hard could/might/would roll on the throttle as your body is force forward.

I don't know how likely either of those scenarios are but I've got too much muscle memory invested to consider trying something like that.

I think you would have a LOT more videos to watch!!!

Okay, you are talking about a "fly by wire" system, how about instead of a throttle control where you are controlling the amount of gas going to the engine, an acceleration control?
A neutral position would keep you going at a constant speed, rolling forward would increase your speed and rolling back would decrease your speed. A little would only change the fuel flow, a lot would do more. A strong back roll would engage the brakes. A strong forward roll would down shift and dump more fuel into the engine.
You would have a cruise control, automatic transmission, and automatic braking system all in you right (or left because it is only a change in the wiring) hand.

jgfried said:

... how about instead of a throttle control where you are controlling the amount of gas going to the engine, an acceleration control?
A neutral position would keep you going at a constant speed, rolling forward would increase your speed and rolling back would decrease your speed. A little would only change the fuel flow, a lot would do more. A strong back roll would engage the brakes. A strong forward roll would down shift and dump more fuel into the engine.
You would have a cruise control, automatic transmission, and automatic braking system all in you right (or left because it is only a change in the wiring) hand.

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Brilliant! If I were you I would run to the patent office

A patent is only as good as your lawyer and the depth of your pocket. Besides, having talked about it on this forum makes it harder to get a patent that can be defended. Public disclosure and all that.

jgfried said:

Besides, having talked about it on this forum makes it harder to get a patent that can be defended. Public disclosure and all that.

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I would say impossible... it's already been disclosed in the public domain. As least that's what our patent lawyers tell us here at work.

paulcb said:

I would say impossible... it's already been disclosed in the public domain. As least that's what our patent lawyers tell us here at work.

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That seems odd but I'm no lawyer. Unless there's prior art it seems to me the only problem with disclosing it would be somebody else being quicker on the trigger. You go in to register your patent and the guy with the glasses green visor and quill and ink bottle points to the guy walking out and says "Sorry that guy already got that."

Anyway patents are a morass and I'm content not to invent a better mousetrap when a 12ga gets the job done.

Hmm. Undoubtedly, "panic and twist the throttle" is, and has been, a scenario in crashes. There's also another scenario, courtesy of the still inexperienced rider. Coming over the blind crest of a hill (at reasonable speed), realizing there's a hairpin left-hander right after the crest and, although technically you're fine, you panic (thinking you're going in too hot) and instinctively grab a fistful of front brake (couldn't guarantee that that's what happened, but I'd put money on it). That's what I believe happened to me (but don't actually remember) and I wound up at the bottom of a very deep ditch on a steep slope, with the bike on top of me, resulting in a crushed thorax and 3rd degree burns to my right arm from the exhaust pipe. I was DAMNED lucky. At the end of the day, I'd have to say this - any technology/failsafes the motorcycle industry come up with are more than welcome...as long as they work. They're certainly helpful, without a doubt...but ultimately, it comes down to the skill of the rider. Note that here, I'm not even addressing the stuff that can (and does) happen to eminently skilled riders - sometimes it's a split-second, never-saw-it-coming scenario.
Heh...that was longer than I intended. Replies more than welcome!

Patty

Oh, and I'll add this...at the proverbial "oh f...!" moment, I spoke the motorcycle training out loud to myself. "OK, keep your throttle steady, use your head, look through the turn and LEAN." I'm convinced that if I'd been a more experienced rider, I would have made the turn. Something went wrong somewhere (i.e., pretty sure I grabbed the freaking brake. )

Still riding Patty? Haven't seen you at any Canada (or northeast) gatherings of late.

DeanR said:

Still riding Patty? Haven't seen you at any Canada (or northeast) gatherings of late.

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Well, Dean, I'll be taking the bike out of storage shortly. Haven't had time before now, buried in work. There's a recall on my bike (don't get me started - it's a 2010 and it's taken them this long to figure out there's a problem) so as soon as I take it out, I have to get it to a Suzuki dealer to fix the issue. As for the rest...sigh...I have no idea. I just have to take her out and ride. Lots and lots of anxiety there. Was diagnosed with PTSD after the crash and have been struggling with it ever since. The bike sat in my driveway all season last year - hope that will change this season. If it doesn't, I will (with much regret) have to sell her. We'll see. I'm optimistic. Thanks for asking, my friend.

Before I joined this forum, I knew nobody who had injured themselves in a mc crash. Most of the get-offs I heard about were relatively low speed and single vehicle incidents with some bruising. That's changed big time here. Stories like Patty's above really frighten me - I'm not so arrogant to believe that what happened to her cannot happen to me. Or to believe that what happened to Vishnu in a STOC ride can't happen to me. So far it is not enough to make me hang up my gear and sell the bike, but it surely is enough to make me very aware of what can happen when I ride, and make me more careful than I otherwise might be.

Peppermint said:

As for the rest...sigh...I have no idea.

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You'll get it figured out and come up with the best decision for you.

Peppermint said:

We'll see. I'm optimistic.

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If you feel that having someone go along with you will help with the motivation or the confidence just holler!

SMSW said:

Or to believe that what happened to Vishnu in a STOC ride can't happen to me.

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Must have missed that post. What did happen to Vishnu? Hope he is OK!

Well, having a correct rotation throttle and after reading all those previous post on throttle rotation direction..........I'm now thoroughly confused, and not sure if I should still ride or not.

jgfried said:

A patent is only as good as your lawyer and the depth of your pocket. Besides, having talked about it on this forum makes it harder to get a patent that can be defended. Public disclosure and all that.

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forget about the patent office I have already copied and printed the idea and put it in an sealed envelope and mailed to myself i now have all the patent rights