Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!iuvax!rutgers!dayton!jad
From: jad@dayton.UUCP (J. Deters)
Newsgroups: sci.electronics
Subject: Re: Car electronics projects (another idea)
Keywords: black box
Message-ID: <6698@dayton.UUCP>
Date: 7 Aug 89 19:21:48 GMT
References: <21012@cup.portal.com>
Reply-To: jad@dayton.UUCP (J. Deters)
Distribution: na
Organization: Terrapin Transit Authority
Lines: 25

In article <21012@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
>Another idea for the well-heeled hobbyist is the mounting of a cheap video
>camera pointing forward for documentation of any traffic accidents which
>aren't your fault.  A Fisher-Price camcorder would be ideal for this, if they
>were still available.

One of my pet ideas for the last x years has been to build my own
'black box' a la flight recorder.  Maybe an endless loop 60 min. cassette
tape (I understand that these are finicky!), or an auto-reverse recorder.
Possibly encode one channel with the cab audio, and the other with a
synthesized-speech-chip-generated readout of current time, date, speed
and braking information.  Useful in an accident situation, and also for
those few instances when you get one of the redneck state troopers
calling you names.  :)

-j

DISCLAIMER:  Minnesota actually has very nice Highway Patrol officers,
(I've never been stopped by anyone who was less than courteous,)
but I can't say the same for some of the neighboring states.
-- 
J. Deters - jad@dayton.DHDSC.MN.ORG
"I'll tell you what kind of guy I was.  If you ordered a boxcar full of
sons-of-bitches and opened the door and only found me inside, you could
consider the order filled."  -- Robert Mitchum