Smart phones have been making navigation easier and safer for riders and keeping them in contact and entertained with the help of handlebar mounts such as the Aussie Quad Lock.
Now the Sydney-based company is keeping pace with the rapid development of smartphones by 3D printing their cases and mounting systems.
This means they will quickly release suitable products for the new era of foldable phones unfolds (lame pun intended).
It’s good news for tech-savvy early-adopter riders (read BMW owners).
Quad Lock has joined forces with Singapore 3D printing companyUltimaker to speed up the development of new mounts such as their award-winning Quad Lock Vibration Dampener.
Imaginables, partner of Ultimaker in Australia, served as a support partner to Quad Lock delivering various types of Ultimaker 3D printers.
Together they Lock developed a flexible research, design and development process that gathered lab and field test feedback almost as quickly as they could design and print the new part.
Various types of Ultimaker printers were used to print prototypes strong enough to withstand hours of testing on a vibration test rig, from which the team gathered valuable feedback and data.
Wireless charging is now available with the Aussie invention, Quad Lock, so you can more conveniently mount your phone on your bike and charge it on the run.
Quad Lock already has a $A44.95 charging accessory, but you need to plug in a USB cable which is a little messy and time consuming (like about two seconds!).
It is a bit bigger than the previous charger, but not unsightly.
Wireless charging
Having your phone charged while you are out on a ride is not only a convenience, but also a safety device.
If you get lost, crash or fall ill, your phone will still have charge so you can ring emergency and they can track you.
The company says some of the chargers already sent out to customers have an issue with the O ring becoming detached. They have provided a video of how to easily re-assemble it.
They assure us that future units will not have this issue.
I have been using a Quad Lock for several years and have been using the charger for several months without any issues.
I’m looking forward to getting a wireless charger!
They are easy to fit, discrete, quick to mount and remove your phone, robust and secure.
While the chargers are waterproof, I found with the cable charger that if you get water on the plug end that goes into your phone, it may not work until you dry it off.
The Quad Lock is available for motorcycles, scooters, cars, bicycles and runners.
You can buy the mount (RAM, handlebar or mirror), the case to suit your iOS or Android phone, a waterproof covering if required and the charging units separately or as a pack to save money.
How to fit
They are very easy to fit with just a few allen bolts and they are very secure with the screws tightened.
The charging units sit on top of the mount with a lead that goes to your battery, a USB port or SAE connector.
To mount your phone, hold it at a 45-degree angle until it slots into place, then twist it clockwise to a vertical or horizontal position where it remains securely in place.
To remove the phone, simply push the blue tab and rotate anti-clockwise.
That makes it useful if you are riding along and see something worthy of a photo – no fumbling in your jacket for your phone, just grab it and take the shot, then re-attach it. (Obviously, stop first!)
The wireless charger should make that a little less fiddly as there is no need to remove a cable.
Although it is very secure, it does vibrate which makes it impossible to use the camera or video function on the move.
There are various places you can mount your phone – handlebar, mirror, triple clamp or RAM mount.
The mirror fitting is especially useful for scooters which often have conventional handlebars. It also puts the phone up nice and high so you don’t have to divert your eyes far from the road ahead to see the screen.
There is also an extension arm that you can fit to raise the phone up even higher in your field of vision. And now you can also get a ball mount to match a RAM fitting.
Quad Lock mobile phone mount with extension
It is handy to have the phone in front of you for navigational purposes and being able to rotate it to a wide or vertical orientation is very useful.
However, if you just use your phone for calls and music, most Bluetooth devices allow you to operate the controls without touching your phone.
It can be a bit distracting when text messages flash up on our phone while riding. There is a real temptation to read them! However, you can also turn this feature off or exercise some willpower.
Riders often criticise car drivers for texting while driving, so we strongly advise against using it for texts unless you are stopped.
Honda will join several other motorcycle companies in integrating your smartphone with your bikeand car so you can access all sorts of tech and apps while on the go.
Honda calls its system Smartphone As Brain.
Integrating apps
Like other systems such as Apple Carplay, the smartphone shows some of the phone apps on the motorcycle instruments.
They will include satnav, texting apps, weather forecasts, phone calls, music and an app that looks like Waze where you can note potholes and other road hazards.
While some apps can enhance rider safety, we seriously question the distractions caused by other apps such as texting.
Access to these apps appears to be via handlebar controls and voice recognition.
The latter is already available to any rider who already has a Bluetooth intercom.
For example, you can ask your phone to read your last message, then dictate and send a reply, without having to take your hands off the bars.
Although, it is a distraction at a time when riders should be concentrating 100% on the road ahead and the vehicles around them.
So far safety nannies have not been able to legislate against this tide of distracting technology in cars, trucks and now motorcycles.
But since it seems impossible to change motorists’ behaviour, it may actually be safer for them to at least access phone apps via handlebar and voice controls than handling their phones.
The first week of a trial of new cameras that detect illegal mobile phone use in NSW have caught more than 3000 offenders.
They will only be cautioned during the three-month trial. Other states are keenly watching this trial.
