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Brake Sensing Taillights - Useful Feature or Gimmick?

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Brake Sensing Taillights - Useful Feature or Gimmick?

Old 02-11-20, 02:28 PM
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sweetcyclists
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Brake Sensing Taillights - Useful Feature or Gimmick?

I'm curious what people's thoughts are on brake sensing bike tail lights. They seem to becoming more popular even on lower cost tail lights, but I'm still undecided if they are useful features or just a marketing gimmick.

I've used two lights that have the feature, Magicshine Seemee 60 and the Lupine Rotlicht. Both lights seem to implement them differently though: Magichshine switches to a high power flashing mode while Lupine goes to a high power solid mode.

CONS
  • Unpredictable battery life as you are running different modes
  • Sensitivity of sensors seems to trigger feature on potholes or bumps
  • Less control of mode, which may be a downside when riding in a group
PROS
  • Improves visibility maybe (any studies to confirm this?)
  • Adds some variability to the light output
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Old 02-11-20, 03:03 PM
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My thoughts on brake lights and turn signals are that they don't help a lot.

If you use flashers, then they would naturally confound sensitivity to other lights.

My goal is to BE SEEN, and I hope drivers react appropriately no matter whether I'm going steady, slowing, or at a stop light.

Perhaps glove lights??? But, I also pay attention to traffic before making sudden changes across traffic lanes.
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Old 02-11-20, 03:53 PM
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The ones that ride on the brake cable have a tendency to twist around and stop pointing rearward.
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Old 02-11-20, 04:57 PM
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Who will interpret what your light means?

This has been discussed here before and fairly recently. The problem as I see it is motorists are not going to interpret your dinky little stop light to mean anything. If you follow the progression of brake lights from antique cars to modern vehicles, they got bigger and bigger, brighter and brighter over the years. The DOT even added a requirement for a third brake light in the center and higher than the regular two brake lights. We know what a brake light means on a vehicle because it is always in the same location and the concept has been in use for about a century.
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Old 02-11-20, 07:14 PM
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I prefer my rear light flashing constantly in the daylight, and on constantly at night. I think that and using a hi-output light will get you noticed the most.
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Old 02-11-20, 07:24 PM
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Originally Posted by GeneO
I prefer my rear light flashing constantly in the daylight, and on constantly at night. I think that and using a hi-output light will get you noticed the most.
I agree, but giving it more thought, it might be useful if braking, say doubled the flash rate.
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Old 02-11-20, 07:29 PM
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Originally Posted by bobwysiwyg
I agree, but giving it more thought, it might be useful if braking, say doubled the flash rate.
Good idea, Or at least a some significantly noticeable change in pattern. Don't know how that would work at night though. Guess brighter like a car would be a good cue for a driver.
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Old 02-11-20, 10:01 PM
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hard to tell on brake lights. my e bikes tai light gets brighter when brakes are applied. but it is triggered by the brake levers.
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Old 02-12-20, 05:34 AM
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A friend of mine has a B&M taillight that works a a brake light, he likes it and from what I have seen it works reliably. But, it is a dyno powered light, the brake function is activated when the light senses that the dynohub is slowing, which is a reliable way of knowing if you are slowing down.
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Old 02-12-20, 09:11 AM
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Originally Posted by Tourist in MSN
A friend of mine has a B&M taillight that works a a brake light, he likes it and from what I have seen it works reliably. But, it is a dyno powered light, the brake function is activated when the light senses that the dynohub is slowing, which is a reliable way of knowing if you are slowing down.
I have one of these and have not sensed any change in how motorists react to me when I am riding in traffic. I don’t suppose there is any disadvantage to it though.
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Old 02-12-20, 10:51 AM
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Originally Posted by L134
I have one of these and have not sensed any change in how motorists react to me when I am riding in traffic. I don’t suppose there is any disadvantage to it though.
I sure reacted, my friend is riding along maybe 8 or 10 feet in front of me, and he says, let me know if my light gets brighter. Then he brakes hard and I had no warning that he was going to jump on the brakes, I almost crashed into him.
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Old 02-12-20, 01:57 PM
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I think it's a gimmick that could give you a warm fuzzy feeling which might prove to be unjustified. If a motorist is tailgating you close enough that he might crash into you, get out of the way. A taillight isn't the way to keep him away. So the braking feature might even be worse than useless.
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Old 02-12-20, 02:07 PM
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One thing to consider. When cars are moving 50 MPH, and bikes are moving 10 MPH, the bikes are ALWAYS stopped with respect to the cars.

Moving faster, slower, or actually taking your foot off the pedal really doesn't matter.

If a car can't react to a bike going from slow to slower... then they are following way too close.
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Old 02-12-20, 02:14 PM
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Originally Posted by sweetcyclists
I'm curious what people's thoughts are on brake sensing bike tail lights. They seem to becoming more popular even on lower cost tail lights, but I'm still undecided if they are useful features or just a marketing gimmick.

I've used two lights that have the feature, Magicshine Seemee 60 and the Lupine Rotlicht. Both lights seem to implement them differently though: Magichshine switches to a high power flashing mode while Lupine goes to a high power solid mode.
I have two lights as well, both going in higher mode: a B&M taillight, controlled by the change of the A/C frequency provided by the hub dyno and the Lupine Rotlicht.

I agree with Vegastriker that many motorists don't expect a brake light function from a bike It is useful for other bikers, and anyone (even a motorist) who pays attention to the surroundings can notice it (and should connect it with a braking function). IMO: no harm done, but i don't know whether it is always useful.

additional con of the Lupine Rotlicht:
That g sensor is sensitive to rougher bumps as well (and if used on the "high sensitivity" mode, that light is basically all the time in max brightness. It is ok in the lowest sensitivity mode). I use the rotlicht with the pulsing mode (on the second lowest level)
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Old 02-19-20, 03:42 PM
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I've seen several designs on patent websites in Canada and USA. Using a logic board limits the choice of materials and functions. I use an analog interface with my bike trailer - four switches on the bike connect via two cables to a wallet card-sized interface board. Any failed part that is obsolete is succeeded by a new circuit board. To date, all original parts in my bike trailer's electrical system are still working, 32 years after I invented it.
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