Wireless Lanyard

[pwcindustries]

Some of you know us, some don't. We have the capability to pull this off and were told this was a needed product. We've been contemplating building this product, so we're looking for opinions.

We currently have some other projects slated for development, but I like the idea enough to move forward with some initial research.

We design, build, and test electronics specifically for the PWC consumer, be it a "couch" "boat" or stand up. Anybody that enjoys being on the water, we have no bias. All of our products are designed and manufactured here, not offshore. So essentially, we build high end quality products, not junk.

Plain and simple, we can design a proximity lanyard. If you're within 10 ft. of your ski, it will run. If not, no spark. It's that simple, not rocket science. It should provide you with the freedom you need, and the safety.

We feel it can be accomplished with a transmitter worn on the vest utilizing 2 AA batteries. Research will be needed to determin the voltage life, I'm thinking about 60 hours. Obviously an led will flash indicating 70% drop and time to replace, yet still good for the day.

The receiver will be powered by the ski, only milliamps for draw, so no concern there. Also, key on hot for automatic use. And, overide if you need it. (can you imagine the couchers stuck on the lake needing a battery
Don't want to sell to them anyway...

We're looking into it. Problem is, development is expensive. You have to know enough people would want one to warrant the expense before moving forward, and a reasonable price people would be willing to pay. When you build high end marine electronics, the product isn't cheap if it's quality.

 

[meatball]

What other products do you offer as reference? Im interested, but would need to know an estimate price range. My biggest worry is that the transmitter piece wouldnt be waterproof enough, and would turn to crap in a saltwater environment (or in my case brackish)

 

[mosquini]

I have no Idea what your retail on that would be but it's worth a few bills to me not to have a kill cord but still not have the ski run away. but yes there should be a lot of interest but thats just me.

 

[Mouthfulloflake]

and then there is the liability issue.

will this device be considered a 'legal' alternative to a mechanical tether shutoff?

I can speculate right now, you wont sell enough of these to ever get the ROI on initial R&D.

 

[meatball]

who cares if its legal? The way I run the ski as is is illegal and I dont give a crap. I guess I'd only be interested if I could feel like I could afford it I guess. And on a soon to be college student budget, thats probably not more then $100.

 

[pwcindustries]

I would think for both a transmitter and receiver, somewhere around $150

Hopefully less with large production levels, but you only get good price breaks at 1000 units for the various IC's required build them. Part of the process is encapsulation in epoxy, so yes, we can gaurantee a 100% waterproof solution. Again, epoxy is not cheap, but there are substantial price breaks with volume.

We build deceleration lights for couches at www.jetskibrakes.com
And waterproof audio systems at www.fullwaveaudio.com

We are currently working on waterproof 2 way radio communications and some other projects as well. A reliable proximity solution is a peice of cake...

 

[pwcindustries]

We've already taken into account the friggin lawsuit happy pricks. We would have to form a Limited Liabillity Corp if we even thought about making them.
Low power transmition avoids FCC rules, so it could be done. Each unit would have it's own binary code transmited / received, so interferance wouldn't be an issue. Trust me, it's very doable but no one has the balls because of liability.

Question is, what are the numbers? I hate to say it, but we put up our own resources for development. It would be great if 1000 people said lets do it, but we don't take money up front, so there's no issues down the road. That leaves us to pony up the dough and before we do, we need some idea of interest or it just isn't feasible. I still like the idea though, and not scared. A reliable unit can be made, or I wouldn't be wasting my time..

 

[rkymtnrider]

id buy 1

 

[SuperJETT]

I'll look into some of the RFID equipment I deal with. The tags are waterproof, just need an activator/receiver that can hold up inside the ski.

 

[romack991]

i would be interested in one. similar cost to a seadoo dss type lanyard. it would be a unique key but offer the cordless benefits as well. have you posted this on pwctoday?

 

[KaosFreestyle]

Because I dont believe a 1000 units would be easy for such a small niche market it would be best to think about other applications or markets this could be used for. For isntance from the other thread with others talking about fishing boat accidents. That could provide a larger market for the product.

 

[superjet0587]

id buy one

 

[Darktower]

id pay about $100 dollars for one

 

[superjet0587]

i always try to hold on but sometimes i lose my boat and i hate the feeling i get before it starts turning around definately worth 150$ for peace of mind

 

[WFO Speedracer]

For $150.00 I want one, maybe more.

 

[Boris]

It seams that any electrical/electronic device I install in my ski dies soon after. That salt has a way of killing everything.

For about $150 what kind of warranty would you offer ?
How would such a device be installed (would I need to open the electrical box) ?
Would there be a "defeat" function that wouldn't leave me stranded ?
How much would a replacement key fob cost ?

I know it's hard to answer these questions at this stage of development but those would be my concerns as a potential customer.

 

[pwcindustries]

No, not posted on PWC Today, I don't want a firestorm over this. I was told by two people to guage interest here. We're pretty busy, but I like the idea.

When we buy resistors, capacitors, transistors, IC chips etc, the price break at 1000 peices really changes the whole picture. It can reduce cost by 50% or more. We already buy bulk epoxy, so that helps. It still boils down to component cost and labor per unit.

There's already a wireless lanyard for fishermen, but it works by submersing the transmitter. Not an option for freestyle, as it would get wet and false.

Again, we try to guage interest and then assess costs. We may proceed, maybe not. It depends on if we can get a system produced at a reasonable price. Sometimes it has to be left to the Chineese, we only build top of the line products because of the operating environment. It would be suicide to build a cheap product, that's just the way it is.

 

[pwcindustries]

The potential product would be encapsulated in epoxy. Basically, you could leave it to your grandkids, it won't fail. It would be in a PVC project box about 1" x 2". mounted anywhere you wish. Warranty is one year standard, but designed to last a few lifetimes. Price undetermined for now...

 

[norcal ex]

I also have contemplated making these and have all know how needed, but i decided that it wasnt feasible UNLESS the transmitter on the rider does not have a battery ( purely magnetic) right now that technology can not handle this. 2AA batteries are way to large for me to find somewhere to put. The way i ride it will break off or break a bone when i come in contact with the ski.

 

[cdubb]

2AA batteries are way to large for me to find somewhere to put. The way i ride it will break off or break a bone when i come in contact with the ski.

I could think of somewhere for you to stick them......:haha:

JK had to say it.


Cool Idea,but yeah maybe some bluetooth?? there are magnets that might work,like the ones companies use for gates.I had one when I was driving a truck that would work from ten feet. Also what about the technology inside the toll road prepaid things?? Just some of my random thoughts:bigeyes: