Innovative Motorcycle / Cycle UI

Andrew Ross · 9 Oct 2022, 20:15

@Jabp wow - this is amazing - thanks for putting it together as an idea.

As a current Beeline user this is the type of Navigational Display that I would definitely want as the main display. While going around cities / busy areas I might want to swap to the map - that is where the beeline struggles. For longer, less busy areas I would certainly want this display as the primary.

myroute.appas-gps.be · 10 Oct 2022, 11:27

@Jabp
Personally, I am an advanced Tripy user. The principle is the same as what JABP describes. It is much more readable and secure. It's super efficient as a system. The user should have the choice between this system and the map view which is sometimes very useful. I agree 100% with his idea and I would be very happy if it could lead to an option in My Route Navigation Next. Contrary to what has been written, I know many users interested in this navigation information layout.

myroute.appas-gps.be · 10 Oct 2022, 11:30

@Andrew-Ross
I agree with you

Andrew Ross · 10 Oct 2022, 11:58

@Alain-Spronck Not heard of the Tripy before. I assume you mean this: https://www.tripy.eu/en/tripy-2-gps-road-book-motorcycle-road/digital-road-book/benefits

The website won't load at work so I'll have to wait till I get home!

Drabslab · 1 Apr 2023, 21:43

@Alain-Spronck said in Innovative Motorcycle / Cycle UI:

It's super efficient as a system.

Pfff, it doesn't even allow for loopings, never mind Immelman turns.

but, repeating myself, introducing the HUD idea does not exclude having a map view aside, certainly not on larger screens.

Tim Thompson · 10 Oct 2022, 13:16

I'm generally in favor of such a display. Can't say if it would work for me in the long run, but I like having options. Having such a display would certainly distinguish MRA amongst the competition.

Couple of things crossed my mind while looking at it. First, I'm not certain as to the usefulness of the blue heading bug. I can see it for flying, but info relating to navigating as the crow flys on a motorcycle may not be all that useful. Second, even though the scenario where you have turn events close together was addressed, lane assist arrows (the lack thereof) came to mind. Sure you can sort of infer it from the scenario presented. But, not all scenarios will meet the criteria for back to back turns, and even when they do, lane assist arrows seem handy. I guess that has to be weighed against the desire to keep the display simple.

MyRoute-app community · 12 Oct 2022, 12:43

@Jabp

You've done what great innovators do: see two unrelated things and draw inspiration from it to do something new, something that was previously impossible.

Thank you for making these inspiring mock-ups. Good contrast, very interesting idea.

Jabp · 29 Oct 2022, 13:16

@Tim-Thompson
The heading bug is there to provide situation awareness. A ‘are you heading in the right direction’ awareness. It is also useful if you miss a turn allowing you to anticipate the likely re-route. It will also help off road or where mapping is poor. Or you (like beeline) could be adventurous, not have route and just use the bug to find you next waypoint!

Tim Thompson · 29 Oct 2022, 14:15

@Jabp said in Innovative Motorcycle / Cycle UI:

@Tim-Thompson
The heading bug is there to provide situation awareness. A ‘are you heading in the right direction’ awareness. It is also useful if you miss a turn allowing you to anticipate the likely re-route. It will also help off road or where mapping is poor. Or you (like beeline) could be adventurous, not have route and just use the bug to find you next waypoint!

Ok. Fair/good points.

Wiwo · 9 Nov 2022, 14:38

a very usefull option, i vote for this

Tim Thompson · 5 Mar 2023, 05:39

Beeline was mentioned a few times in this post... Thinking about the alternative GUI suggested here... Interesting idea... But it misses much of the benefit that something like Beeline offers. Specifically, the GUI is displayed on a small, durable, easily installed and unobtrusive device. Because the device is all of these things, it's GUI is simple in part due to necessity (minimal real estate available). The phone is pretty much taken out of the equation - to include the punishment they generally experience in this type of application. It's a trade-off. Simple display and small, rugged device, spares the phone. If you were going to use the phone anyway, then the required trade of a simple display isn't needed.

I've been testing the Beeline display on the phone app. I would probably rate it as a tad more simple and easier to interpret than the GUI suggested in this thread. It's viable... But it does have it's issues. I believe it begins to stumble when it encounters complex routing situations - offramps, quick successive turns, etc. etc. Part of that probably has to do with the inherent GPS data update lag typically seen in these types of apps. The underlying map data is also probably a contributor.

So no matter what software/hardware is driving simple GUIs like this, they would all probably suffer the same issues with complex navigation situations. This is where more traditional navigation GUI/software has an advantage. The navigation/route line is in view beyond the immediate complex navigation scenario, which helps provide better situational awareness and understanding of how to navigate it. Plus you got real estate to display road/street names, lane assist, subsequent turn information etc.

Still the trade off for such a simple, neat, rugged little device like a Beeline Moto has it's appeal. It may be a decent solution for one of my bikes. I probably wouldn't use such a simple display like this unless the device itself required it - as is the case with Beeline.

UltraStar · 5 Mar 2023, 15:51

@Jabp I think there are some things that we could adopt in the MRA Next. I think we have a Skip pretty well defined already. The circle around the camera is what caught my eye. We could use something like that to display the distance to the next maneuver or - in this case - speed camera (turn, runabout, etc.) It could be a circle or a small vertical bar at the edge of the display showing approximate distance to the maneuver (if I am not mistaken, Nissan navigation system has something like that.) The bar could be displayed a mile before the maneuver, and slowly decrease in height while you get closer ("Right turn in 600 yards", "Right turn in 350 yards", etc.)
Also, in the old navigation there was an icon for the fuel station somewhere on the left side of the display showing the distance to the fuel station (decreasing or increasing.) There might be something that could be utilized here; little button listing the nearest fuel stations with directional arrow (I think Garmin had something like that.) Once station is selected, it could be on the fly (no pun intended) added to the route.

RetiredWingMan · 6 Mar 2023, 17:16

Personally I prefer seeing the road ahead. On curvy roads I like seeing what the next curve looks like, it helps to adjust speed heading into the curve. I don't think MRAM can be all things to all people.

Con Hennekens · 6 Mar 2023, 17:33

Seeing the road with actual resemblance to the real situation is ultimately what makes navigation worthwhile in my view. A thing like beeline in my vie does not offer much more that a roadbook on those rolls you need to turn (except you don't need to turn...)

Corjan Meijerink · 6 Mar 2023, 18:42

Personally on all my tours, I don't care about voice prompts or even instructions. I just want to see the map with a line

During my 2022 UK tour, I navigated all the way with the Mobile app "follow the line" navigation. In 2017, when MRA Navigation was still developed, I even did another UK tour completely with the old Mobile app

Voice prompts are distracting from conversations with my significant other / pillion or the music I'm listening to. Instructions are rather pointless as there really only is one suitable road in the routes I tend to make. And well...driving a wrong road is only more adventure!

That said: these functionalities do need to function perfectly in our app and when driving somewhere I don't know the way or around busy roads it is a vital function of the app.

Just felt like sharing my own personaal opinion on this matter. Not speaking as the developer here

Tim Thompson · 6 Mar 2023, 19:53

@Doug-Robinson said in Innovative Motorcycle / Cycle UI:

Personally I prefer seeing the road ahead. On curvy roads I like seeing what the next curve looks like, it helps to adjust speed heading into the curve. I don't think MRAM can be all things to all people.

@Con-Hennekens said in Innovative Motorcycle / Cycle UI:

Seeing the road with actual resemblance to the real situation is ultimately what makes navigation worthwhile in my view. A thing like beeline in my vie does not offer much more that a roadbook on those rolls you need to turn (except you don't need to turn...)

I can certainly understand these views. I think it's a tradeoff between what information is actually needed, how fast it can be accessed, and how to minimize tech distractions. I too often appreciate advanced warning about the road ahead. But I also consider the notion/question - How did we managed before we had all this tech? Plus, if one is riding appropriately for the roads and conditions, one shouldn't really need the additional eye candy provided by the tech.

I too was initially really skeptical about the utility/viability of the GUI originally suggested in this thread and the simple Beeline GUI. However, my skepticism has diminished more and more as I continue to test the Beeline display in their app. I believe you got to keep in mind the main purpose of this tech - and that is navigation. Simply put - does it get me where I want to go and guide me via the route I want to use to get there? I think in the vast majority of scenarios, the simple Beeline display may fulfill that mission. Yes, there may be cases where complex navigation scenarios might trip the Beeline display up a bit. However, such scenarios may actually be more rare than I initially envisioned. Plus, if the Beeline recovers (rerouting etc.) well in the rare case when it happens, is it really that big of a deal?

I can definitely see the Beeline being a solution for my Nightster. I don't care for large devices and mounts being installed on that bike. The Beeline would give me an acceptable navigation solution/GUI on the Nightster, whereas today, I don't really have one.

Could the Beeline become my primary navigation solution (say touring on my Heritage)? IDK. I think it would require a fair amount of testing to answer that question. Right now, I'm much less skeptical about that possibility than when I first started looking at the device.

flamingm0e · 6 Mar 2023, 20:54

I like this idea honestly.

I would expand to say that this could actually be a HUD for people wanting to use it in a car (something like Sygic and a few others do)

But for my Adv and off-road riding, this would be killer.

Jure Sirena 0 · 6 Mar 2023, 21:10

@Matt-Flaming bery nice and minimalistic design. As an option - because majority of drivers rely to see road infra to make correct action
This is actualy cery close to what Triumph tiger has built in (yes I said Tiger again) and its very usefull

P.S. where is the ‘pull up - terrain’ warning

Very nice work in deed. Maybe it could trigger part of MRA team to allow own artwork for the skins?

Nick Carthew · 6 Mar 2023, 21:20

@Corjan-Meijerink said in Innovative Motorcycle / Cycle UI:

Personally on all my tours, I don't care about voice prompts or even instructions. I just want to see the map with a line

Voice prompts are distracting from conversations with my significant other / pillion or the music I'm listening to. Instructions are rather pointless as there really only is one suitable road in the routes I tend to make. And well...driving a wrong road is only more adventure!

I agree 100% although the camera warnings are useful

Tim Thompson · 6 Mar 2023, 23:13

@Matt-Flaming said in Innovative Motorcycle / Cycle UI:

I like this idea honestly.

I would expand to say that this could actually be a HUD for people wanting to use it in a car (something like Sygic and a few others do)

But for my Adv and off-road riding, this would be killer.

I'm not too familiar with Sygic's HUD solution. However, if it's just sitting a smartphone on a dash facing up... Beeline's app will produce their simplified arrow display. I wonder if that would work. For S&Gs, I might play with that on the drive home tonight.

I'm not sure what you meant for the ADV/offroad application. Are you talking about using a phone to produce a HUD on the ADV windscreen? Or using something like Beeline Moto (or it's app on a phone) on an ADV? I might be skeptical about using a phone offroad on a ADV. But a Beeline Moto would likely work well. Especially because of all the versatile mounting options and it's diminutive size. You could easily mount it so it's practically in your line of sight. You would likely be able to see it clearly in your peripheral vision without moving your head or eyes.

HUDs for helmet visors might also be cool.