Cruise Blues!!!!!!

kingrj

Joined
Apr 18, 2013
Messages
7
Location
Hattiesburg, MS
Ok guys..I am in need so some good help here...I think I have a forest in front of me but I just can't seem to see the tree..I have just installed a Rostra electronic servo cruise control on my ST1300 and it doesn't work!!!

Completed installation..set dip switches...did complete diagnostic test and all passed..All PASSED!..Instead of buying a divide by two converter I made my own (am an electrical engineer so I would rather spend $300 to build my own than $30 for a store bought one!)
I hooked it up to a dual trace Oscope and input from bike's hall effect sensor is a pretty 5v peak to peak square wave..the output of my converter is a pretty 5v peak to peak square wave at exactly 1/2 the frequency. IT even "sees" the speed signal (flashing led) when I do the speed sensor diagnostic. I checked my ground to the low side of the brake light (violet wire I think) and it is less than one ohm to battery negative. Every thing seems to be in order but when I put it up on the center stand and run the bike up to 60 mph in gear the system will not engage. I am NOT using the "set" control at all..I am using only two buttons..the "resume" (am using this as a set since that is what the crappy manual says) and I am using a latched 12 vdc source to the red wire with brown tracer so that when that button is pressed it latches in and holds 12 volts on the red wire with brown tracer. The damned thing should work..why not? Is the fact that I am not using the "set" button at all (green wire) causing the unit to not set? Does the Rostra unit need a higher voltage peak to peak square wave speed signal? Throw me a bone here!

kingrj :confused:
 
Any sign of it kicking in at all?

Here is my concern. With the bike on CS and you kick it in it may see a spike in RPM. The problem with this is that is how it monitors for your clutch being pulled and will cancel the cruise. I always have done a road test on my bikes. I haven't done Rostra install but the Audiovox units are pretty close. Also I think some people did a divide by 3 rather than a divide by 2. Not sure the benefit but maybe the pulse rate is still too high at a divide by 2.
 
I am using a factory Rostra pulse divider /4. I set the Gain to Extra Low and the Pulses to 16090 and everything is smooth as silk for now. Sennister helped me figure that out this spring..
 
I know that the Audiovox unit will not take a set speed when on the center stand. I tried the same thing that you are and had the same results. Once I took the bike out and put a load on the motor all worked fine. The RPM spike sensor is very sensitive.

Sent from my RAZR M using Tapatalk 2
 
mlheck said:
I know that the Audiovox unit will not take a set speed when on the center stand. I tried the same thing that you are and had the same results. Once I took the bike out and put a load on the motor all worked fine. The RPM spike sensor is very sensitive.

Sent from my RAZR M using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...

Yeah by design for the clutch cut out. I don't know if you would be able to hear the RPM change before it cuts out or not. With no resistance against the rear wheel and an engine as big as we have it wouldn't take much to kick it out.

I know there are some risks in doing a road test but it is the best way to really know if it works or not. Just remember that the cruise can take off on you but there is nothing that the cruise can do to overpower that almighty kill switch on the right switch pod. Set the cruise and see if it works. If something is wrong the kill switch is your trump. Mash it and pull the clutch. From there you can stop on the side of the road and worst case pull the fuse for the cruise and ride back to the shop with your tail between your legs to figure out what happened.

I have done road tests with the Audiovox setup and I was a little nervous but it has to be done at some point. You can ride the ST naked. Well not you but the bike. Just need the headlight assembly and that part of the front cowl which you likely never took off. Pop on the mirror covers and hook up the front turn signals and hit the road. You don't need the side panels, inner cowls, lower cowl. Might get some strange looks but it will run just fine for a test.

It might also be the divide by 2. I know a lot of people did /3 and Dan pointed out he did /4 so I think it isn't enough. I was trying to find what the VSS input range is for the Rostra compared to the signal range on the 1300 but couldn't find it now. It is out there somewhere but either a /3 or /4 sounds right. Again, never installed one myself just basing this on what I have seen in the past.
 
I can't be certain but I think the max the Rostra can read is 24,000 pulses/KM. I saw one place said the 1300 is 72,000 pulses/KM. Now if you had a /2 you would still be at 36,000 pulses/KM. If you did /3 you are at 24,000 and in range. On the high end of the range if the numbers are accurate but it is pushing it. The /4 would get you down to 18,000 and something more manageable by the Rostra. Not sure of the trade off of going with a /3 vs /4 but if the numbers are right that is what I am calculating.

However you said that it does "see" the speed signal. If that is true and the numbers above are not accurate, then I would say road test it. It is entirely possible you are dealing with the clutch cutout when it sees an RPM spike.
 
Last edited:
sennister said:
I can't be certain but I think the max the Rostra can read is 24,000 pulses/KM. I saw one place said the 1300 is 72,000 pulses/KM. Now if you had a /2 you would still be at 36,000 pulses/KM. If you did /3 you are at 24,000 and in range. On the high end of the range if the numbers are accurate but it is pushing it. The /4 would get you down to 18,000 and something more manageable by the Rostra. Not sure of the trade off of going with a /3 vs /4 but if the numbers are right that is what I am calculating.

However you said that it does "see" the speed signal. If that is true and the numbers above are not accurate, then I would say road test it. It is entirely possible you are dealing with the clutch cutout when it sees an RPM spike.
Click to expand...

Thanks for all the replies on this problem! I measured the frequency using my Oscope and a frequency counter and the pulses from my ST calculated out to be about 90,000 pulses per mile...The Rostra can take up to like 38,000 pulses per mile so I may actually be over the limit on the speed signal by dividing only by 2 even though several folks on this forum have used a divide by 2 successfully with the Rostra unit on an ST1300. The easiest thing to do is just swap out my ripple counter chip (a 4020 for a 4024 which has divide by 4 capability..chip only cost pennies so that will be my next try unless somebody else has another idea. Thanks to all!

Kingrj
 
kingrj said:
Thanks for all the replies on this problem! I measured the frequency using my Oscope and a frequency counter and the pulses from my ST calculated out to be about 90,000 pulses per mile...The Rostra can take up to like 38,000 pulses per mile so I may actually be over the limit on the speed signal by dividing only by 2 even though several folks on this forum have used a divide by 2 successfully with the Rostra unit on an ST1300. The easiest thing to do is just swap out my ripple counter chip (a 4020 for a 4024 which has divide by 4 capability..chip only cost pennies so that will be my next try unless somebody else has another idea. Thanks to all!

Kingrj
Click to expand...

I guess that kind of confirms it. Your O-scope would be able to see the pulse rate. 38,600 is what I think is the max rate in pulse/mile based on the dip switch setting. Either way if you are doing a divide by 2 on 90K you are still too high. I agree that I would try a /4 chip and see if anything changes. Maybe someone can comment on the sacrifice when using a /3 vs a /4. Is it sensitivity. I want to say that the cruise should bump the speed 1 MPH each time you bump it up one click or down one click. Does a divide by 3 mean 3MPH per click and 4 4 MPH per click? It might. By click I am talking about each press of the Acc/Res button to bump up your speed or the Coast/Set button to drop it. I could see that this might be the case but not 100% sure.
 
An update...I finally got Rostra electronic cruise control working on my ST1300. I replaced the chip in my home-made pulse divider to make it a divide-by-4 and I also used the "set" wire instead of the "resume" wire to set the speed. For some reason it would not set initally using the "resume" wire...??? All good now!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom