Misc: Everything Else wiring usb for a GPS
- Thread starter Chris.R
- Start date
For GPS I stick my mobile on a handlebar mount in fact its about the only time I use a mobile (apart from foreign touring) since I dont get a signal at home. Still to be fair I am only in the home counties and its not as if I am in Zambia or somewhere that has good mobile connections.(whats 2G?). I love the text messages on the land line "your code number is two hundred and fiftyfive thousand three hundred and twenty seven" cue scrabble for pen and paper, or the web site when filling in details that says "that is not a valid mobile number". And yes I do know about wi fi calling 
I have a Tom Tom 550, having started with a Rider one when we "did" Australia in 2007.
I ordered the 550 with the motorcycle accessory stuff and the mount. It comes all set up to just plug into 12V. and somewhere between the battery and the pick up pins on the mount it get converted to the appropriate 5.7V
However, if you want to plug it into a 6V machine I am not sure what would happen. To that end I have made a little circuit that fits (On the B in the headlight shell and on the A in the tool box) that has a Voltage control. They are available from any electronics store for a few dollars. They will covert pretty much any dc supply up to 24V 5.7. The 550 has provision for a direct connect mini USB so I just wire from the regulator to that plug. It is not waterproof, but if it rains I guess I have to find a pub! You cam also use it to charge your phone from the 6V bike if you need to!
I ordered the 550 with the motorcycle accessory stuff and the mount. It comes all set up to just plug into 12V. and somewhere between the battery and the pick up pins on the mount it get converted to the appropriate 5.7V
However, if you want to plug it into a 6V machine I am not sure what would happen. To that end I have made a little circuit that fits (On the B in the headlight shell and on the A in the tool box) that has a Voltage control. They are available from any electronics store for a few dollars. They will covert pretty much any dc supply up to 24V 5.7. The 550 has provision for a direct connect mini USB so I just wire from the regulator to that plug. It is not waterproof, but if it rains I guess I have to find a pub! You cam also use it to charge your phone from the 6V bike if you need to!
Your quote is very much what I knew and that helps it would seem that the best option might well be a fag lighter socket placed somewhere out the way being careful to unplug when not in use certainly this option seems the simplest
Chris
I realize we are talking about a Garmin but I thought I'd mention my smartphone solution. I bought one of these: https://www.ebay.com/itm/QC-3-0-Mot...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649
I got a handlebar mounting stud that's 1/4 inch longer than standard and mounted the device on it, just over the choke levers. The grip on the device is hard aluminum. I didn't like that, so I got some rubberized tape and covered all the surfaces that contact the edges of the phone. Now it has a soft grip and isn't likely to slip out under the influence of Vincent vibes. The built-in charger has an on-off switch and is the higher-amp version that charges the phone faster (3 watt?). I wired the charger directly with a micro fuse. Since my bike is a "D", I could have wired it to the switched side but I wanted it to be able to charge the phone with the bike shut off. There's a radial spline like the shift lever on a Vincent twin between the arm and the holder. When tightened fully, it still wobbles, so I put an O-ring in there which creates a nice rubber shock-absorber effect. I admit I haven't given it a real test yet. Soon.
Gary
P.S. I took a ride this last Sunday with three other guys. There were tons of bikes out there. The police aren't patrolling for that in these parts. I didn't see any violations of social distancing, unless you count the fact that we were outdoors.
I got a handlebar mounting stud that's 1/4 inch longer than standard and mounted the device on it, just over the choke levers. The grip on the device is hard aluminum. I didn't like that, so I got some rubberized tape and covered all the surfaces that contact the edges of the phone. Now it has a soft grip and isn't likely to slip out under the influence of Vincent vibes. The built-in charger has an on-off switch and is the higher-amp version that charges the phone faster (3 watt?). I wired the charger directly with a micro fuse. Since my bike is a "D", I could have wired it to the switched side but I wanted it to be able to charge the phone with the bike shut off. There's a radial spline like the shift lever on a Vincent twin between the arm and the holder. When tightened fully, it still wobbles, so I put an O-ring in there which creates a nice rubber shock-absorber effect. I admit I haven't given it a real test yet. Soon.
Gary
P.S. I took a ride this last Sunday with three other guys. There were tons of bikes out there. The police aren't patrolling for that in these parts. I didn't see any violations of social distancing, unless you count the fact that we were outdoors.
Ebay has listings for handlebar mount sockets that the car adapter will plug into.
The difficulty is that there's a couple of yards of charger cable to lose between socket and sat nav.
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