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FrankenBebi

5K views 30 replies 9 participants last post by  Cap-Couillon 
#1 · (Edited)
It's Alive!... With the sad demise of Bebi Electronics of Fiji, we have decided to start an "open source" project to resurrect the Bebi Owl.
The goal is to offer a replacement for the Owl anchor light taking advantage of the latest technology, while keeping the price and quality in line with the original Owl light. We plan to offer the FrankenBebi in three versions.

  • A complete, ready to install FrankenBebi
  • Build your own FrankenBebi kit with parts and instructions. (Igor not included)
  • An open source list of parts we use to assemble the FrankenBebi free to anyone who wants to figure it out and/or modify it for themselves.
.

At this point, we have several prototypes under test, and expect to have finished prototype products (version 0.01) ready in 4 to 6 weeks. We need 5 or 6 beta-testers to put these prototypes through their paces. If anyone is interested in being a "beta-tester", please send me a PM. We would prefer beta-testers to be active cruisers in order to subject the prototypes to the maximum "real world" conditions in the least amount of time. The beta-test prototypes will be straight 15 LED radial lights with no "day-night" switch. They will include a 5 meter power cord with a "lighter plug" or bare wire connection as you choose. Each unit will include a top ring so light may be hung from a flag halyard etc. There will be no charge for the beta-test units. We only ask that you beat 'em up, and let us know how they perform. The new system we are using provides a minimum output of 27 candelas per LED which according to the USCG intensity tables from 33 CFR 84 will provide a visibility of 4 nm in specified conditions in a 360 degree arc.

We do not expect to have these lights "certified to meet requirements" by an outside laboratory due to the cost of testing. Please be aware of the risks of using "uncertified" equipment, even if it meets requirements. You may bear the burden of proof.

We are not sure at this point that we can offer the original Bebi "lifetime" warranty, but we know we can offer a 5 year, no questions asked, replacement. If this project is successful we will also offer to replace any original Bebi Owl light bearing the "A Genuine Owl Lignt" logo that fails to operate. This offer is out of respect to the original Bebi Electronics founders and crew.

This post is not a solicitation for business, but rather a request for input from the cruising community. The Owl was too good a product to let fade into the past. We hope to resurrect it with this project.

Regards,
Cap' Couillon and the FrankenBebi Project

(For a quick view of the typical goings on at the FrankenBebi project, click here)
 
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#4 · (Edited)
Just so there is no misunderstanding, the FrankenBebi project is in no way related to Bebi Electronics. We are only hoping to take a great basic concept and be at least half as successful as the original Bebi founders and crew in terms of quality, and customer satisfaction.

@SkywalkerII
"Put the candle back!"
Thanks for the quote... Looks like a day at the project. Added it as a PS to the OP

Cap' Couillon and the FrankenBebi Project
 
#5 ·
Hey, Cap. I had discussed some of the technical issues with Michael (Bebi) some time ago, and as you mention "open source" I'd think it worth going over some of the design points you will be choosing. For instance:
How will you be regulating the power to the LEDs?
Will you be stinging them in strings of 4 to make '12-ish' volts, or putting them all in parallel?
Any lightning or surge protection?
How will you be spec'ing the LEDs? Prime LEDs can come in three lots, each 2x different in brightness, as well as three color, making 9 very visibly different LEDs for each single "part" unless oyu pay extra to spec the sorted ones. Which way are you going on that?
And will they be fully potted? If so, in what kind of resin/potting?
Any provision for heeling, i.e. an adequate beamspread vertically by using two or three rings of LEDs?

I wouldn't write off Bebi yet. If they were doing enough business, I'd expect he could set it up again in another location. A lot of their uniqueness was "just" the fact that he was taking the high road and using prime components to build a top-quality product. (Which many folks would only see as "expensive".)
 
#6 · (Edited)
How will you be regulating the power to the LEDs?
IC chip linear current control
Will you be stinging them in strings of 4 to make '12-ish' volts, or putting them all in parallel?
Latest prototype is running 3(s)x5(p) array with current control at 20mA (to match our diodes) Input voltage range 11.9V - 15V DC. Vf for each LED rated at 3.2V and testing shows rated Vf is very close to observed.

Any lightning or surge protection?
Not as such.... We will recommend 1A fusing for the circuit the light is connected to. The IC will dissipate over currents up to this level. As to lightning strikes, your cheap anchor light is the least of your worries.

How will you be spec'ing the LEDs?
We are binning the LEDs to stay within the USCG requirements (USC33-84.13) Color specification of lights. Using a well known, major manufacturer as a supplier, not a "catch as catch can" cheapo. Output level in mCan is a broader spec, but minimum output in the selected bin exceeds the requirements for visibility at 4nm as specified in USC33-84.15 (table "b" ).

And will they be fully potted? If so, in what kind of resin/potting?
Lights will be fully potted using 2 part epoxy potting compound. Selected compound is "loaded" with AO2 to provide thermal conductivity/mass to aid in heat dissipation during high voltage cycles (eg: battery charging) It is recommended the lights be disconnected during battery equalization. We expect to be able to meet or exceed the original Bebi spec of 1m submersion for 1 hr, although as Bebi Electronics stated... If your anchor light is under water for over an hour, you have bigger issues.

Any provision for heeling, i.e. an adequate beamspread vertically by using two or three rings of LEDs?
While we are kicking around the idea of "BibiZilla" with a two row 30 LED radial configuration, the initial prototypes with a single row 15 LED configuration provides adequate vertical beam spread to meet USCG requirements for vertical sectors (USC33-84.19) while at anchor. One would not expect a heel much in excess of 2-3 degrees while on the hook which would still allow the lights to remain within the required 60% above and below 7.5 degrees from horizontal. This is an anchor light, not an underway light.

I hope this information has answered your questions. Thanks for your interest and input.
We will release the full specs of parts including current control chip and LED mfg and part # (including bin specs) after prototyping and beta testing is complete.

Cap' Couillon and the FrankenBebi Project
 
#10 ·
I met Michael in Savusavu in 06. His lights still burning bright on Aeventyr after 7 years. Sorry to see him go.

Bring on the new Frankenbebi!
 
#11 ·
Re: FrankenBebi and Igor's contributions

After many conversations and a few beatings, Igor has been inveigled into "digging up" some unused web space and a few email addresses to avoid cluttering up the forum. You can access Igor's page here. While the page is pretty sparse right now, he has promised to do better when he can stuff 30 hours into the day. In the meantime, while we don't mind (at all) answering questions in this thread, he has posted an email address to contact the project directly with questions, general correspondence, and beta-tester requests. He has also decided (ok, we decided) to send out semi-regular emails updating the status of the project. Instructions on how to get on (or get off) the distribution list for "Igor's News" are also included on his page. He would not let us post a plain text version of the email addresses here as he worries about 'bots.

Thanks again SailNet for the support and encouragement.

Cap' Couillon and the FrankenBebi Project
 
#17 ·
In the interest of making life complicated...

Are the LEDs simply ;lit, constantly? Or have you considered pulsing them with PWM, or alternating back and forth (7-vs-8) so that they effectively used 1.4 to 1/2 of the power that a full-time-on set would use?

I know that could create RFI issues, but that should be surmountable, and as long as you've got components on a PCB anyhow...

And then maybe add an option to use the same light as a distress strobe or in an SOS pattern. (There must be a simple chip for that, given all the flashlights doing it.)
 
#19 ·
In the interest of making life complicated...
Suuuuure, that's just what I need. Wasn't expecting tne response to this project to be quite so overwhelming, but having put our a** out there to do it, we will persevere.

Can think of lots of great options, and PWM to reduce power usage is a great idea. Has a couple issues though.
1. Our background is mechanical, not EE so every iteration of circuit design is like giving birth, painful and slow.
2. "Fat Finger Syndrome" One of the primary goals is to be able to offer a DIY Kit at very low cost to reasonably competent individuals in order to allow them to assemble a FrankenBebi onboard with a minimum of hassle. The PCB we have designed is 1.4" in diameter and currently (with the integrated day/night switch) looks like this To construct the FrankenBebi without the "day/night" switch you insert a jumper wire between J1 and J2. Regardless, we are running out of room for a practical hand placed, hand soldered board, for us at the Project, or for the DIY Kit folks. Maybe in the future we can pursue your suggestions as they have merit, but at this point our goal is to get a good, simple version out for test and use.

It seems a pity for Bebi to be lost and I wonder if the owner has any plans to continue his work, or patents on his designs.
I see that we have not mentioned it in this forum, but while we have not discussed this with Michael and Kendra (Bebe-Electronics founders) directly, we received word via a third party on another forum that they are aware of the project and have no problems with our moving forward
Michael and Kendra are friends so I wanted to check with them about this. I just received an email back giving their blessing to your project.
They were not only good enough to give us their "blessing", they actually made some suggestions as to design issues we may face. Great stuff, and much appreciated. The Owl was a great design and product, and we only hope to be able to improve on their design, reliability and service.

Thanks to all for your input, interest, and ideas.
 
#20 ·
New news at the FrankenBebi Project website.

The site has been to moved to a new server which should eliminate the earlier problems we had during periods of high traffic.
We now have an official "webmaster" who has improved the look and navigation as well.

The project continues to make progress. Igor has posted the latest news and updates online, as well as sending out the new newsletter later tonight. We have also posted a schematic of the latest (ver: 0.10.3) prototype under test including the photoswitch circuit. Other additions include a white-paper on the goals and design philosophy of the project. At this point, the project is still (for the most part) on schedule to meet our goal of distributing the beta-test versions in early December and production versions in early January 2014.

Applications for Beta-Testers have now been closed. Thanks to all who applied for your time and interest.

As always, we appreciate any and all input and suggestions either here or via email. Contact info is available on the site. We are hoping with the assistance of the new webmaster to be able to integrate some type of comments section on the site to allow interested individuals to kick around additional ideas based on the FrankenBebi design. Right now, all our energy (and funds) are focused on the original goal of a replacement for the original Owl, but we have had some great suggestions for future efforts.

Thanks again for your interest and support.

Cap' Couillon and the FrankenBebi Project
 
#21 ·
New news at the FrankenBebi Project

Prototype PCBs arrived Friday afternoon, and the first try at population and assembly into the case was successful, A few issues, but it would seem the basic design premise is sound.

Schematic and PCB rendering for the next iteration (ver: 0.11.03) have been posted. New version includes a blocking diode to prevent damage from reversed power leads, and some additional significant design changes.

Coming soon... A documents repository will be added to the webpages, containing all relevant files, including the Eagle .sch and .brd files, .pdf copies of schematic and board layouts as well as licensing information. The project is being released as Open Source Hardware, under the CERN OHL v.1.2 Open Source Hardware License.

Thanks for your interest and support.

More info on the latest updates may be found at the project webpages
 
#22 ·
Cap, as an alternative to a blocking diode, what about installing a crowbar diode across the power leads? If power is hooked up in reverse, it goes through the crowbar and that appears to be a dead short, blowing the fuse in the power line to the light. Rashly assuming a proper fuse has been installed, of course. But it gets the voltage drop from a blocking diode out of the circuit. Or opens the whole can of worms on "protections".

I'd still suggest adding a chip (there must be cheap ones out there, because they are being used in really cheap flashlights) that would allow the light to strobe and SOS. Seen in LED flashlights shipping from China to the US for $5 each, including ground post shipping, so the chip can't cost more than what, one cheap LED does?
 
#23 ·
as an alternative to a blocking diode, what about installing a crowbar diode across the power leads? .... Rashly assuming a proper fuse has been installed
Fuse? You mean we need a fuse?

Crowbar would eliminate the voltage drop but too large a fuse (over the rated current of the crowbar diode) could cause the crowbar to fail open, cooking the innards anyway. Everything is a compromise, and from the performance of our prototypes at low battery voltages (less than 11Vdc) it was decided that the .5V drop across the Schotky diode we have decided to try will have a negligible impact on performance.

We would have preferred to eliminate reverse voltage protection all together (a can of worms indeed) but as it only takes a millisecond mistake to let the magic smoke out, we might be replacing a lot of units under warranty that were ok other than installation error.

As far as a strobe/sos generator, it should be fairly trivial to design if one does not already exist as an IC. Problem would be where to put it (see comments on board density above) and how to trigger it. It might however, make another kind of neat project as a stand alone device wired into the supply side circuit? If properly sized, it could be used on existing anchor/tri-light circuits or any other resistive load.

Hmmm.. add that one to the list of future Franken-Projects for the community to kick around.
 
#24 · (Edited)
New FrankenBebi Project News

New news at the FrankenBebi Project

Cheops' Law: Nothing ever gets built on schedule or within budget
We have had some changes in our release dates. For the full story, follow the above link.

Documentation: Now available online
Documentation pages are now online at the website. This area contains zip archives of each posted version of the FrankenBebi up to and including the latest untested v0.11.03. Each file includes the native Eagle Lite sch and brd files, standard image files of the schematics and board traces and layouts, and additional files concerning licensing and appropriate use.

Download and enjoy.

As always, if you have questions or comments, please contact us via this thread, a PM, or via the Email address listed on the website.
 
#25 ·
Re: FrankenBebi new news....

New news at The FrankenBebi Project..

First up, we now have our own domain, FrankenBebiProject.org and new email addresses to match. Shiny new toys for the holidays. If you have our older pages bookmarked, you will be forwarded to the corresponding page on the new site. All the old email addresses are still usable, but as always, it is best to update your bookmarks.

Along with the new domain, we have made a few changes to the web pages, mostly just housekeeping issues. We have however added a quick-mail form to our contact page so you can contact us directly without having to copy and paste our email address.

We have also added a short (5 question) survey to the home and news pages on the site. If you have the time, please stop by and fill it out so we have a better idea of what the community at large wants from the FrankenBebi anchor light. No personal information requested, just the facts ma'am.

Meanwhile, testing of existing designs continues along with some new experiments by our latest team members.

Igor will have the full newsletter for late December mailed out sometime this weekend. See the website for how to subscribe if you want "the rest of the story"....

Thanks again for your interest and support.
 
#26 ·
New FrankenBebi Project News

New News at the FrankenBebi Project.

Quick recap....
New project team members
New circuit design with better performance and reliablilty.
New monolithic case design (Thanks "HelloSailor")
Effects of new designs on release dates.

For all the latest news visit the FrankenBebi Project website
While you are there, you can subscribe to Igor's Newsletter to get the latest delivered to your inbox in a semi-regular fashion.

If you haven't done so yet, please take a minute to fill out our short (6 question) survey in order to help us tailor the FrankenBebi to the cruising community's needs.

As always, thanks for your interest and support.
 
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