US-20260125131-A1 - Techniques For Displaying Wind Metrics To A Bike Rider

US20260125131A1US 20260125131 A1US20260125131 A1US 20260125131A1US-20260125131-A1

Abstract

A method is presented for displaying wind metrics to a rider of a bicycle. The method includes: measuring air speed relative to the rider of the bicycle, where the wind sensor is attached to the bicycle; determining speed of the bicycle relative to the ground, where the wind sensor is in data communication with the computer processor; computing effective air speed experienced by the rider by subtracting the speed of the bicycle from the air speed; and presenting the effective air speed on a display device to the rider, where the effective air speed includes an indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle. In one implementation, the effective air speed is a numeric value and color of the numeric value is the indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle.

Inventors

Mark Snaterse
Kilian Hendrickx

Assignees

WAHOO FITNESS L.L.C.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20251104

Claims (16)

1 . A method for displaying wind metrics to a rider of a bicycle, comprising: measuring, by a wind sensor, air speed relative to the rider of the bicycle, where the wind sensor is attached to the bicycle; determining, by a computer processor, speed of the bicycle relative to the ground, where the wind sensor is in data communication with the computer processor; computing, by the computer processor, effective air speed experienced by the rider by subtracting the speed of the bicycle from the air speed; and presenting, by the computer processor, the effective air speed on a display device to the rider, where the effective air speed includes an indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle.
2 . The method of claim 1 wherein the effective air speed is a numeric value and color of the numeric value is the indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle.
3 . The method of claim 2 further comprises displaying the numeric value for the effective air speed in green to indicate a tail wind and display the numeric value for the effective air speed in red to indicate a head wind.
4 . The method of claim 1 wherein presenting the effective air speed further comprises dynamically updating the effective air speed displayed on the display device while the bicycle is moving.
5 . The method of claim 1 wherein the speed of the bicycle is determined using a speed sensor configured to measure rotational speed of a wheel of the bicycle.
6 . The method of claim 1 wherein the speed of the bicycle is determined using input from a GPS module interfaced with the computer processor.
7 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions that, upon execution of the instructions by a processor of a computer, cause the computer to: receive, from a wind sensor, air speed relative to the rider of the bicycle, where the wind sensor is attached to a bicycle; determine speed of the bicycle relative to the ground; compute effective air speed experienced by the rider by subtracting the speed of the bicycle from the air speed; and present the effective air speed on a display device, where the effective air speed includes an indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle.
8 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7 wherein the effective air speed is a numeric value and color of the numeric value is the indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle.
9 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8 wherein the computer executable instructions cause the computer to display the numeric value for the effective air speed in green to indicate a tail wind and display the numeric value for the effective air speed in red to indicate a head wind.
10 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7 wherein the computer executable instructions cause the computer to dynamically update the effective air speed displayed on the display device while the bicycle is moving.
11 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7 wherein the speed of the bicycle is determined using a speed sensor configured to measure rotational speed of a wheel of the bicycle.
12 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7 wherein the speed of the bicycle is determined using input from a GPS module interfaced with the computer processor
13 . A system for displaying wind metrics to a rider of a bicycle, comprising: a wind sensor attached to the bicycle and configured to measure air speed relative to the rider of the bicycle; a bike computer in data communication with the wind sensor, wherein the bike computer is configured to determine speed of the bicycle relative to the ground and computer an effective air speed experienced by the rider by subtracting the speed of the bicycle from the air speed; and a display device interfaced with the bike computer and configured to present the effective air speed to the rider, where the effective air speed includes an indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle.
14 . The system of claim 13 wherein the effective air speed is a numeric value and color of the numeric value is the indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle.
15 . The system of claim 14 wherein the numeric value for the effective air speed is displayed green to indicate a tail wind and the numeric value for the effective air speed is displayed in red to indicate a head wind.
16 . The system of claim 13 wherein the effective air speed displayed on the display device is updated while the bicycle is moving.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims the benefit and priority of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/716,959 filed on Nov. 6, 2024. The entire disclosure of the above application is incorporated herein by reference. FIELD The present disclosure relates to techniques for displaying wind metrics to a bicycle rider. BACKGROUND Bike computers are small devices configured to be attached to handlebars or another portion of a bicycle. Bike computers function to calculate and display various information about a ride to the rider of the bicycle. Information may include but is not limited to speed, cadence, power, distance, elevation profiles, etc. To calculate this information, the bike computer may be interfaced with and receive input from different types of sensors. Wind speed and how the wind is affecting the ride is one area that riders are keenly interested in. Therefore, it is desirable to develop improved techniques for determining and displaying wind metrics to the rider of a bicycle. This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art. SUMMARY This section provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not a comprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features. A method is presented for displaying wind metrics to a rider of a bicycle. The method includes: measuring air speed relative to the rider of the bicycle, where the wind sensor is attached to the bicycle; determining speed of the bicycle relative to the ground, where the wind sensor is in data communication with the computer processor; computing effective air speed experienced by the rider by subtracting the speed of the bicycle from the air speed; and presenting the effective air speed on a display device to the rider, where the effective air speed includes an indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle. In one embodiment, the effective air speed is a numeric value and color of the numeric value is the indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle. In one embodiment, the effective air speed is a numeric value and color of the numeric value is the indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle. For example, the number value for the effective air speed may be displayed in green to indicate a tail wind and displayed in red to indicate a head wind. In some embodiments, the effective air speed displayed on the display device is dynamically updated while the bicycle is moving. The speed of the bicycle may be determined using a speed sensor configured to measure rotational speed of a wheel of the bicycle. Alternatively, the speed of the bicycle is determined using input from a GPS module interfaced with the computer processor. In another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions that, upon execution of the instructions by a processor of a bike computer, cause the bike computer to: receive, from a wind sensor, air speed relative to the rider of the bicycle, where the wind sensor is attached to a bicycle; determine speed of the bicycle relative to the ground; compute effective air speed experienced by the rider by subtracting the speed of the bicycle from the air speed; and present the effective air speed on a display device, where the effective air speed includes an indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle. In yet another aspect, a system is provided for displaying wind metrics to a rider of a bicycle. The system is comprised of a wind sensor, a bike computer, and a display device. The wind sensor is attached to the bicycle and configured to measure air speed relative to the rider of the bicycle. The bike computer is in data communication with the wind sensor. The bike computer operates to determine speed of the bicycle relative to the ground and computer an effective air speed experienced by the rider by subtracting the speed of the bicycle from the air speed. The display device is interfaced with the bike computer and configured to present the effective air speed to the rider, where the effective air speed includes an indicia of whether the air is assisting or hindering the motion of the bicycle. Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. DRAWINGS The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. FIG. 1 is a diagram of a bicycle with a bike computer. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example implementation of a bike computer. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an improved technique for displaying effective wind speed to a