DuctTapedGoat
Active Member
As this would be a great emergency safety device, I'm tossing this out there now without any worry of anyone capitalizing on it.
If anyone has ever played with the notions of using UV lights and Glow in the Dark Phosphorescent plastics, you will know that UV lights immediately "charge" the plastic, making it incredibly bright, though it doesn't last for long.
I am in the process of acquiring materials in which to make this, and would like to share it with the MotoredBike community.
Essentially, it involves replacing the standard LEDs with UV LEDs in a standard reflector light, and replacing the (usually red) reflector with a reflector made of phosphorescent (glow in the dark) material.
With a proper mold, you can get similar qualities as a standard reflector. This is designed for two reasons. The first is that on more rural roads riding late at night, cars tend to travel far above the speed limit and also are quite spaced out from each other. In the event your batteries die while on a big ride, a passing car from behind will charge (for a short time) the glow in the dark reflector, allowing your once dark bicycle to be seen by the vehicle behind them. The other reason behind this is that a lesser amount of LEDs could be used to illuminate the reflector, allowing batteries to last longer. This is a safety thing though, not intended to be a green thing.
Of course, this would not be a permanent replacement for standard bicycle lights - it would only be used in cases of emergencies as a backup light system so that you yourself can be seen. Also, this material would prove far less effective in a nighttime lighted city situation, as it would not pierce the ambient street light.
I am only wanting to get this going for myself, as I am looking a 60 mile daily commute across two towns and everything in between is very rural.
I would love to hear any suggestions and comments about this, especially if you think there is a way this could be improved. I know that there are countless possibilities, and perhaps even some more effective and efficient possibilities if a clear fluorescent plastic was used in conjunction with the UV LEDs.
If anyone has ever played with the notions of using UV lights and Glow in the Dark Phosphorescent plastics, you will know that UV lights immediately "charge" the plastic, making it incredibly bright, though it doesn't last for long.
I am in the process of acquiring materials in which to make this, and would like to share it with the MotoredBike community.
Essentially, it involves replacing the standard LEDs with UV LEDs in a standard reflector light, and replacing the (usually red) reflector with a reflector made of phosphorescent (glow in the dark) material.
With a proper mold, you can get similar qualities as a standard reflector. This is designed for two reasons. The first is that on more rural roads riding late at night, cars tend to travel far above the speed limit and also are quite spaced out from each other. In the event your batteries die while on a big ride, a passing car from behind will charge (for a short time) the glow in the dark reflector, allowing your once dark bicycle to be seen by the vehicle behind them. The other reason behind this is that a lesser amount of LEDs could be used to illuminate the reflector, allowing batteries to last longer. This is a safety thing though, not intended to be a green thing.
Of course, this would not be a permanent replacement for standard bicycle lights - it would only be used in cases of emergencies as a backup light system so that you yourself can be seen. Also, this material would prove far less effective in a nighttime lighted city situation, as it would not pierce the ambient street light.
I am only wanting to get this going for myself, as I am looking a 60 mile daily commute across two towns and everything in between is very rural.
I would love to hear any suggestions and comments about this, especially if you think there is a way this could be improved. I know that there are countless possibilities, and perhaps even some more effective and efficient possibilities if a clear fluorescent plastic was used in conjunction with the UV LEDs.
