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Free/Cheap garage door opener solution!


cndnmax

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Free/Cheap garage door opener solution!
 
 
For all my bikes I like to hide my garage door remotes out of site and use small discrete push buttons to operate them from the handle bars. 
 
Items required:
• Garage Door Opener
• Push-button-must be momentary Normaly open
• 8ft of small gauge wire
• Solder/Solder iron
• Crimp on connectors (optional)
• Small project box (optional)
 
Step 1: Disassemble your garage door remote.
 
The circuit board was held in by a small clip for me. Yours may have a small screw, clips, or nothing at all.
 
Clip-Thumb.jpg
What we will do is solder some short wires to the back of the button that works your garage door.
Board-Thumb.jpg

The push-buttons may have 2 or 4 terminals each (mine have 4), you will need to figure out which 2 terminals to solder your leads to. If you are not familiar with electronics you can use a screwdriver to short two of them together and see which combination activates the garage door.
 
Back%20Board-Thumb.jpg

Step 2: Soldering 101:
 
• Heat up Iron
 
• apply small amount of solder to the iron
 
• use helping hand or pliers to hold the wire lead to the terminal you want to connect it to
 
• apply heat to the wire and the terminal
 
• allow small amount of Solder to flow through the wire
Solder%20Setup-Thumb.jpg

Done!
Solder%20Complete-Thumb.jpg
 
Now you will need 2x 5ft wires and solder these to the two terminals on your push-button. Use heat-shrink or electrical tape to insulate the terminals. you do not need waterproof buttons, I've never had an issue. 
Push%20Button-Thumb.jpg
 
Step 3: Find somewhere to mount it! On my previous bike I drilled a hole in the switch assembly and mounted my push-button inside but for this one I needed to operate two remotes so I mounted both my Push-buttons in a small project box and mounted it to the back side of my brake reservoir (Mini-Project box 1.5x1x.5"). 
Mounted-Thumb.jpg
 
Route your wires through this nifty reusable zip tie kindly provided by Yamaha.
 
Routing%201-Thumb.jpg

 Route the wires underneath the tank and all the way to the under seat storage area. You will need to remove both seats, removing the right side tank covers will make it easier but it is not required.
Routing%202-Thumb.jpg
I used crimp on connectors to connect my push-button to my remote – this allows for easy removal to replace batteries and stuff.
Finished%20Product-Thumb.jpg

My remotes fit nicely underneath this metal bracket – be careful not to block the seat latch though.
Storage-Thumb.jpg
 
Update:
**** "Secure" Ignition dependent Remote- if you're the paranoid type ;)
Most remotes use Rolling codes that prevent them from being cloned but If you are worried about someone opening your garage when you leave your bike in-front of your house and don't want to disconnect the nifty crimp connectors then follow these steps:
 
Version 1 (simple): 
-Buy a 12volt version of a remote that works with your garage door.
-remove the battery and solder some short wires to the "Positive" (usually flat) and the "Negative" (spring) terminals. 
-Tap into that convenient DC accessory connector underneath the left side tank cover using press on taps or make a connector.
-Use crimp connectors to connect Pos and Neg (accessory) to Pos and Neg (remote)
-Now the remote will only get power when the ignition is on.
-Follow previous steps to complete mod. 
 
Version 2 (advance):
-Buy a simple 12VDC relay SPST or SPDT from anywhere 
-Create the leads to operate the remote as shown above
-Tap into that convenient DC accessory connector underneath the left side tank cover using press on taps or make a connector.
- Positive accessory lead goes to one side of the push-button
-wire relay as shown below. 
Relay2%20copy.jpg
 
The relay gets power only with the ignition ON, the push-button activates the relay which then activates your garage remote. 
 
 

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squintyeyes

Thanks! i didn't know it was that easy! Whats is the plastic housing called or where did you get it that you have the buttons in?

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This is SOOO AMAZING!!! I wish I had the courage to take this on because it looks easy enough but I am just not that crafty..

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Thanks! i didn't know it was that easy! Whats is the plastic housing called or where did you get it that you have the buttons in?
 
It's a mini-project box (1.5x1x.5") I had laying around but you can get them online or like radio shack. If you just need one button the cleanest install is to mount it in the switch assembly-just make sure it will fit before u drill the hole!
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This is SOOO AMAZING!!! I wish I had the courage to take this on because it looks easy enough but I am just not that crafty..
 
It's pretty much impossible to mess up, at worst you need a new remote. I say go for it!
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grahamfz07

Great idea, thanks
It would be nice to tie the signal through a relay contact which is switched on an ignition power source so it will only work when the bike is turned on. Just in case you leave it parked outside your house, you would never need to disconnect the remote wires

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I've just got my spare opener taped near the handle bar but not as clean looking as your set-up - nice.

Current ride = 2014 Moto Guzzi California 1400 Custom

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Great idea, thanks It would be nice to tie the signal through a relay contact which is switched on an ignition power source so it will only work when the bike is turned on. Just in case you leave it parked outside your house, you would never need to disconnect the remote wires
 
I never felt the need to, most people would never guess that the buttons would work the garage door. I'll add some quick instructions on how to wire up the relay incase others have this concern also.
 
*just added to the top*
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fivefootthree

I really liked the idea of adding an opener for the bike so I went ahead and worked on another "solution" to this for myself and those who are interested.  Instead of a separate button for triggering the remote, it is wired to the flash to pass switch.  This is a bit more complicated design but still fairly easy to do with some basic soldering skills... the same as needed to do any of the other methods described by @cndnmax.  Here is the link to where I found more information on this design:  link
 
The door remote is triggered for about 1.5-3 seconds when the high beams are switched on via the flash to pass button or the standard rocker switch.
 
**I have removed the instructions/information from when I originally posted this design as it did not work fully as intended, and stopped functioning upon changing from the stock halogen H4 bulb to a Cyclops LED H4 bulb.  See later posts for newer design**

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@fivefootthree, I thought about doing it the way you did initially. Just a few questions on your setup.
1. Why the capacitor and resistor? A 12v relay should do just fine with a direct connection to the coils. You shouldn't need the diode either, the bike runs on DC.
2. If you connect across the switch(looked like it from the picture) ur bypassing the switch and ur relay will receive constant power. I would connect to the "out" of the switch and ground(assuming they are switching pos).

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fivefootthree
@fivefootthree, I thought about doing it the way you did initially. Just a few questions on your setup. 1. Why the capacitor and resistor? A 12v relay should do just fine with a direct connection to the coils. You shouldn't need the diode either, the bike runs on DC.
2. If you connect across the switch(looked like it from the picture) ur bypassing the switch and ur relay will receive constant power. I would connect to the "out" of the switch and ground(assuming they are switching pos).
For starters, the voltage over the momentary switch (flash to pass/ high beam circuit) is 12v when the low beams are on, and then goes to 0v when the high beams are on. This is slightly counter intuitive to what I originally thought would happen. 
1. The capacitor and resistor take the constant 12v signal supplied by the bike and change it to a one time momentary 12v signal. Without that, the relay coil would be charged the for as long as it was receiving the 12v, which would drain the little 3v battery in the door opener remote very fast as the "button" would be "pushed" for the duration that you high beams are on (the relay would also have to be wired to the low beams and not high beams for the relay to charge when high beams are on).
 
When the low beams are on there would be a constant 12v over the coil charging it and tripping the relay, however since the capacitor is in line with the relay it draws the voltage off the coil and thus the capacitor charges and not the coil. With that, when the low beams are on the capacitor is charging and the relay stays off and the remote button is not "pushed".
 
Now when the high beams are flipped on via the rocker or flash to pass, the voltage over the momentary switch goes to 0v. This essentially is disconnecting the relay, but since there is voltage in the capacitor it then discharges over the relay and charges the coil for a set duration of time (the size of the capacitor). This is how you achieve the single input on the remote and not a constant input.
 
The diode: What that is doing in the circuit is protecting the feedback loop. I cant 100% explain all that, but without that the relay would be triggered once when you turn the high beams on (for 1.5-3 sec) and then again when you turn them off (for another 1.5-3 sec). With the diode, the relay is only triggered when the high beams go on.
 
 
2. I'm not exactly sure what you're getting at/ asking, but the voltage from the bike is connected over the coil (pins 85 and 86). The door remote is connected over the switch (pins 30 and 87, 30 being common and 87 is normally open and closed when the relay coil is charged)
 
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For starters, the voltage over the momentary switch (flash to pass/ high beam circuit) is 12v when the low beams are on, and then goes to 0v when the high beams are on. This is slightly counter intuitive to what I originally thought would happen.
 

I assume you are measuring across the two terminals on the flash to pass switch-when the switch is open(not activated) you measure 12v, when the switch is closed(activated) you measure 0 correct? This actually means that 12v is flowing through the switch then activated, your meter measures voltage drops and not voltage if that makes sense. by wiring across the switch the relay will get power constantly (ignoring the capacitor that blocks flow once charged). When u push the flash to pass you "short" the relay discharging the capacitor and allowing the relay to pulse once more when the flash to pass is released.
 
It would work but it's not the ideal way to do it and if your capacitor shorts you won't be able to turn off your highbeam . I would use the "output" terminal of the flash to pass and a ground connection instead-this is actually the way your original link describes.
 
 
 
 
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fivefootthree
I assume you are measuring across the two terminals on the flash to pass switch-when the switch is open(not activated) you measure 12v, when the switch is closed(activated) you measure 0 correct? This actually means that 12v is flowing through the switch then activated, your meter measures voltage drops and not voltage if that makes sense. 

That actually makes perfect sense.. I forgot that I was actually measuring a voltage drop over the switch. 
As far as wiring from flash to pass output and then a ground connection, that would be ideal and was planning to test that but needed a connection that I knew went to ground and I didn't take the left side panel off to gain access to the 12v accessory connection (which has a definite ground connection).
 
In the link where I found most of the wiring information for this project, they were wiring directly to the headlight unit.  I wanted to avoid that due to the high amount current directly at the headlight connection.  I also wanted to use solder points vs splicing in wires so the project could be removed 100% if the bike were to be sold or something.
 
I can test and troubleshoot a hot from switch to "power in" on relay, ground to ground scenario vs the wired over a switch that I have currently.  Which would negate a potential lighting issue if the capacitor were to short as you said.
 
 
EDIT:  I went to test the assembly as stated above, but could not find the 12v accessory port/ cables under the left panels, so I hooked the power side of the relay to "RED" on the switch and directly to ground on the battery.  The side of the relay with the capacitor went to ground.  This did not work.  The lights worked as normal but the relay never triggered.  I then changed the polarity and still nothing.  I then wired it as I had originally planned, and it did not work as it had the last time I tested it with that orientation.  I'm not sure what happened any why, but I will test again/ rebuild if needed in the near future.
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fivefootthree
@fivefootthree did you come up with a final design? how did it turn out?
See edited post above. 
I'm going to work on this again shortly (hopefully this weekend), because I really like the concept that you gave me by doing this tutorial.  After I tested and it failed I was more concerned with getting the bike back together so I could ride with the EJK and new pipes to give it a full troubleshoot.  I like the simplicity of your design, but I am still hoping to get the integrated one to work if possible.  Kinda bummed I posted a lot of detail on a design that may not work I was just excited that it did work after 3 days of attempts and redesigns.  I guess all the bugs may have not been worked out.
 
I will update with further results.
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Couple tips:
-you can get a ground connection from a bolt on the frame also. there's a couple unused threads near the steering stem, you could find a bolt to fit and use that as your ground.
-the headlight connections are only powered when the bike is running(or stopped with the kill switch). This might explain some of your testing issues.
 
I will wire this up on a breadboard at work and do some testing for you.

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grahamfz07

Got my switch installed today, only problem is my son is loving his new toy to open the garage lol. Installed on the bracket for my windscreen, i think it worked out great
 
[attachment id=347" thumbnail="1]

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  • 3 weeks later...
fivefootthree

So, I got it all installed this afternoon. Come to find out when I dismantled the relay system, on of the wires had broken at a solder joint. Most likely due to the size of the jacket compared to the gauge of the wire, and I had wiggled stuff around a lot during the trouble shoot. I completely rebuilt the relay system with new materials any way tho.
 
They way it works: The door opener is triggered when the high beams are turned ON. The door opener is also triggered when the key is turned to OFF.
Hows its wired: So the relay system is constructed just as the diagrams show (I will refer to "+" as the lead that goes directly to the relay and "-" as the negative side of capacitor bundle that comes from the relay). In the previous diagrams I have "-" going to RED on the bike. I now have "+" going to RED and "-" going to YELLOW.
 
I tested both orientations and when switched (back to the way it is pictured in the diagrams ("-" to RED "+" to YELLOW)) the whole operation is flipped. The door opener is triggered when the bike is turned on (this time it is on engine start, not just the key) and then when the lights are turned OFF (so you would need to turn the highs on for a sec or 2 then flip off to trigger the door).
 
I'm really not sure what happened from when I completed the first round of trouble shooting to when I attempted a few weeks ago and now. I have the wiring and operation written down from the way it was posted the first time in multiple places stating that it was correct. Now it seems I had it backwards?
 
It turns out this was not a straight forward as I had hoped and now seems to have a varying degree of repeat-ability. So I guess take it as you will and use what you can from this, but bear in mind it may need trouble shooting.
 
Anyway, its fully installed on the bike and I can update in time on its continued operation or failure.

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  • 2 weeks later...
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This is a great idea, I planned on doing it too, but thought I'd use that empty slot on the left handlebar where the rubber plug is, I guess it's for an accessory, so I'll make it my GD opener!

Peace..
 
-----
I.AM.
-----
 
-Burtacus

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  • 1 month later...
fivefootthree

Quick update.. on the relay design I was working with. I had it working good (operation described in previous post) and haven't run into further issues besides the relay triggering when turning the key to off (turned out to be not as annoying as I originally thought it would). It ran many times since its install, but last night I installed my new cyclops LED H4 bulb and the whole system stopped working. I changed nothing besides the bulb.  I was able to rewire it in a way to have some usability, but I was only able to make it so you had to flash the highs on off on again to be able to operate the high beams without the relay and remote being constantly on.
 
I will work on building a new system in the future as it was very handy to have, but for simplicity it may just be a standalone button maybe with a simple relay as described in the very original post.  I may just delete all my posts regarding building this as to not confuse people since this design is clearly flawed.

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  • 3 weeks later...
fivefootthree

I have edited/ deleted most of my original post regarding this design as to not cause further confusion for anyone that would like to try to make this.
 
So I went ahead and re-did the design again. As it turns out, I had the diode wired in backwards. I was using a wiring diagram that I had found via the “instructables” page: link but apparently that had the diode in wrong, because the correct way to wire a +12v constant input to +12v momentary output is found at link. I am not a professional when it comes to electronics so I’m not surprised I messed this up a few times.
 
As described in previous posts this was originally done with a stock bulb and worked, but when installing a LED bulb it stopped working. This now works with the LED and I’m pretty sure it is actually wired correctly and not just in a way that happens to work (as I had previously done), so this “should” work for any headlight situation.
 **I have since replaced the stock bulb for testing and it does work with stock as expected and in the same manner**
 
This design "presses" the door button for 1.5-3 sec ONLY when the high beams are turned on (previous design mentioned in earlier posts "pressed" on high beams on and again when turning key off).
 
 
Items needed:
- Door opener
- Iron + solder
- Wire
- Electrical tape
- Shrink tubing (recommended)
- Quick connects (recommended)
 
- 12VDC/125VAC 10A SPDT Mini Relay
- 1000 microfarad 35V Electrolytic Capacitor (axial or radial)
- 10K ohm 1/2W 5% Carbon Film Resistor pk/5
- 1A 1N4003 Diode
 
 
First you will want to open the left thumb switch housing and disconnect from the bars and let dangle. There are 2 screws.
Inside you will see that there is only one switch on the back side.. the flash button; there are 2 exposed solder points as shown below.
Note that there is a RED wire and a YELLOW/WHITE wire.
You will want to solder a lead wire onto the YELLOW/WHITE wire.
0bI6UVxl.jpg
 
I then ran that lead though the headlight assembly and over to the relay cluster that is located on the front left part of the bike under the large plastic panel. There is a small shelf in there that is perfect for holding the electronics bundle that is about to be made.
 
Next you will want to build the momentary relay bundle. Below is a modified/ commented version of the relay found at link
URRmQZPl.png
 
Here is the actual relay you are to use:
GvcVpEIl.jpg
 
I don’t have any actual pics of the relay wired and not covered in electrical tape because the only ones I took of this stage were in my previous and incorrect wiring, but here a graphic of the correct wiring.
 
Wiring schematic for the relay (fixed):
MpXsbuSl.png
 
Be sure that you have the diode and capacitor in the correct directions.  The resistors are non polar.
 
Once wired and all the connections are shrink wrapped and or insulated with electrical tape, and the whole bundle taped up for water proofing all that is left is to connect it to the leads. I left the leads for the remote long so that I could run them to the back of the bike and the ground lead turned out to be long enough to go to the (-) battery terminal vs a grounded bolt on the frame close by.
2V2Zg5vl.jpg
 
Attach the ground wire to the battery or any grounding point and the wrap it all up and tuck it away. I ziptied it in that little shelf area.
Cc8WurEl.jpg
OKhcrkXl.jpg
 
Lastly take apart your door opener and wire it as described by cndnmax.
 
An image of the door remote:
LR6H803l.jpg
 
Door remote connected to the leads from the relay and tucked away in the back of the bike:
KFZDU0cl.jpg
 
Works great and is really handy to have.  Haven't run into any troubles and I have been using it almost every day for 2 weeks.  I hope someone else is able to try this and get working as well with the new (fixed) design.

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That is a much better design than your original, this one is wired parallel with the headlight and not in series like your original (this was probably your issue all along).
looks like you have the diode connected accross the two coil terminals. that diode is completely useless btw any current will flow through the coil with or without that diode there. Simplify your design even more and ditch it.

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fivefootthree

I did try to wire the relay like this with my old relay bundle (diode going the other way) after you suggested wiring one lead to ground and I could not get it to work with +V in from either RED or YELLOW wires, but wiring like this in parallel does make much more sense now tho. The diode is across the coil as all of the constant to momentary relay wiring diagrams I found show and what my electrical engineer buddy said. I do not know enough about electronics to dispute if the diode is 100% necessary, but I think it would prevent current from going across the coil in the opposite direction if that were to happen? not sure. This does work tho and for any bulb so I do not plan to remove the diode to test that situation even if it may work and in the same manner.
If someone else wires one of these up they should try it with out the diode and see. It wouldn't be any harder to wire with or without the diode.
Happy to have gotten this project sorted out and working good tho. Opening the door with the keypad was such a hassle after I had used this for a while haha.

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The diode is used to allow current backflow for a spike in voltage when the coil is de energized. These relays are so small it's not necessary and wiring the diode the wrong way would short out the coil making it not work. getting rid of it just reduces the chance of mistakes without affecting the way it works.

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