Editing Profiles for Dummies

[smhagger707]

Any progress on the Boyd Profile Wizard?

[Gadget]

We're approaching the one year anniversary of this request. I'd gladly take a look at any draft document that's in the works.

[Velocomp]

In my opinion, we have come a very long ways on this. I'll see if I can persuade our software guru to give you a peek.

[cure]

would also like to see whats in the makings...

[whynotride]

What is the latest on this? I just got a new bike and the new battery life extender, did my cal ride and coast downs. The numbers (before analyzing) are way off and I want to make them better. I have a wired PT for comparison but would like to understand, and complete, the needed changes myself. Any hope?

[Velocomp]

Travis is working on this and we hope to release the "wizard" soon.

[smhagger707]

Travis is working on this and we hope to release the "wizard" soon.

Not to be a pest but do you have a target date? 'Soon' has been stated several times. Again, I mean this in a 'polite' manner and am just looking for something to keep me from continually pestering you about this particular item.

Thanks,

[bjrmd]

Short of a software change can you put out some guidelines or your thought process in adjusting profiles.

thank you

[whynotride]

Please, please, please issue something soon.
I was getting very good results last year with a G3 and handlebar mount. The device did what I expected and I was very happy. BTW, Boyd and Travis helped in getting the numbers where they should be.
Now I have the battery extender and have spent the last month chasing my tail trying to get back to that point. It is more than discouraging.
I understand that it is a very complicated device, and I am willing to spend the time and effort to get it right, BUT every time I "think" I have it right the next ride gives me results that simply are not close to reality.
The WS numbers are much higher than anything I have seen before which isn't a problem but I need to have some idea how to change numbers to dial it in closer. Numbers are just numbers, what they are does not concern me but how they work together does.
The first indication of a primer for "dummies" was 1/27/10. I would have to say that would seem to be enough time to get something issued.
If it isn't going to be issued, let us know that. Either way works but, I feel that in my case, something needs to be done.

[racerfern]

@whynotride

I can understand where you might have a problem getting back into the same ballpark of numbers although the difference shouldn't be that much. However, I don't see where you would have fluctuating results where I assume some wattage results are a lot higher and some a lot lower.

My email address is fernando.j.maldonado at gmail.com. You can send me some rides from before your changeover and some rides from after the changeover. If you have the calride after installing the battery extender that would help.

I'll do what I can to make sense of it.

[Avanti]

Travis is working on this and we hope to release the "wizard" soon.

Not to be a pest but do you have a target date? 'Soon' has been stated several times. Again, I mean this in a 'polite' manner and am just looking for something to keep me from continually pestering you about this particular item.

Thanks,

Yawn, Yawn it amazes me how many times the IBIKE crew have dodged this topic...Wait for it we will get another line soon saying something is in the works.

[racerfern]

I don't see this as being a critical need. As long as your calride to set wind scaling is good, the EST AERO function is your sanity check and hence your wizard. I think too many people (at times myself included) try too hard to determine if their capability is 210w or 215w on a specific effort; it doesn't matter. As long as you get consistent results there's not much more to do.

If you get fluctuating results where one day you average 150w and the next day some number out of left field on the same ride under the same basic conditions then no amount of wizardry will solve this problem.

I don't mean to suggest that some kind of wizard wouldn't be beneficial, it's just not the cure-all that some think it will be. Just my 2 cents worth.

[Gadget]

I'm the original poster from 15 months ago.

The reason I want (NEED) the usage guide is because there is far too much mystery involved with how the iBike works. You run the calibrations, send the profile to Boyd or Fernando, and they either bless it or send back a tweaked file saying "load this and you're good to go." This would be great if the edited profile works perfectly. But in my case it still feels like the effect of wind is overexaggerated (pedaling lightly into a headwind shows large wattage, and hammering with a tailwind shows small wattage). Sure, Boyd and Fernando are friendly and responsive, but it gets tedious to keep asking them countless questions. If we had the usage guide, we could just figure it out ourselves. I've been told in the past that my edited profile was good enough, and that I should get out on the bike and enjoy myself. While I'd love to be able to do this, any amount of doubt in the accuracy of data becomes a distraction to my training rather than a motivator.

I love the theory behind the iBike, I like the form factor, and the price point. But it seems way too finicky. If I count up all of the time I've spent wondering about the accuracy of the data, and the hours I've spent redoing calibrations (time on my bike, but not time spent getting stronger), then I start to think that I should just buy a mechanical power meter where I might get less data (i.e., no wind speed) but at least I will trust the data that I do get.

I think we're owed a comprehensive response with a real commitment date.

[still-chasing]

I second that.

[racerfern]

@Gadget and others:

I'm typing up a hopefully simple explantion of the wizardy that Boyd, myself or others use to "tweak" profiles. Unfortunately, I don't have the iBike software on the PC I'm at right now and I don't want to mis-type. So later on this evening or tomorrow morning as time allows, I'll post up something that hopefully will help in making sense of the numbers.

[Velocomp]

Folks, I agree that you deserve an explanation. Either an explanation that happens automatically in our software, or at least manually in a posting.

It really isn't that complicated and we have no intention to hide. In fact, it's kind of fun to know how to make all the pieces fit.

We are really, really busy (you have no idea) but I will do this personally within the next week.

[smhagger707]

Thanks John-we REALLY appreciate your efforts (and products). I hope some of my comments below may be of assistance to you to keep the scope down and make this a more manageble document to write...

One of the aspect I'm hoping to get out of such a 'guide' is the insight to be able to target which parameter(s) to review if I find things (while riding) like: 1. my power seems to 'hang' too high, or increase when I'm going down a hill while pedaling, but not nearly 'hard enough' to for the numbers being reported 2. my power vs. effort on the flats seems reasonable, but the power on the climbs seems lower than it should be for the effort (or vice versa) 3. my power seems to increase too much for the change in effort my legs are reporting (from how I was just pedaling) for a small or large headwind gust (or vice versa), 4. the power vs. effort seems about right for the perceived exertion, but it just seems too high or low overall, 5. I get a zero watt reading when I'm actually pedaling downhill, putting forth force through the pedals, etc.

Scenarios, or FAQs or the guide would be helpful if these 'style' of scenarios could be addressed by knowledge the guide gives. Answers could be something like: "for scenario 1, the main factor to take a look at is the 'X'-it is probabaly currently too 'high/low' and should be 'decreased/increased'. However, this is a very sensitive parameter and you should only make changes in .005 increments. If you have to adjust more than 0.030 in total and are still not seeing an improvement in the performance, you're likely trying to compensate for a poorly calibrated 'Y' factor-in which case, return 'X' to the calibration ride value and tweak 'Y' 'up/down' by 0.003, etc."

Obviously these are generic examples but they represent what I think would start to give some of the insight into the unit without delving too deeply into the calculations or anything too proprietary.

Please, if I'm out of line or off-base for what the group is hoping for, correct me (hopefully gently ).


Sean

[smhagger707]

You can add to that list of questions: what to adjust if your power seems fairly close (a little low) when riding at the front of a pack but reads about 1/2 to 2/3 the power reading of a DFPM when drafting in a pack...

[racerfern]

I don't want anyone to think I'm avoiding the posting I said I was going to put up but on Velocomp's request I'm going to wait for John to answer.

[still-chasing]

A tutorial or manual would be appreciated on using (editing) settings in the "tools" menu like Analyze wind, route etc. Example, Wind offset in the Analyze wind. Does the number in the offset needs to be 0 all the time. Don't quite get this feature.

Thanks.

[smhagger707]

I'm still having problems and would really like the insight this manual would provide. See here for details: http://www.ibikeforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=1954

Fern or any other Guru: I have parallel files showing the iPro data on one unit and PowerTap data recorded on my Garmin on another data file. Anyone care to take a look and help me figure out what to tweak and by how much? I was really frustrated when I was riding at threshold (conditions in the other thread) and my iPro was reading about 20W. I can upload the cal ride with this profile and an 'out and back' 12 mile ride. Then I can upload the data from both the iPro and Garmin (PT) from today's ride...

[racerfern]

@smhagger707

Send me files for the iPro and the PT to fernando.j.maldonado at gmail.com

[smhagger707]

@smhagger707

Send me files for the iPro and the PT to fernando.j.maldonado at gmail.com

Thanks Fernando: email sent with all files attached.

Sean

[cjonbike]

John back on April 12 you mentioned you would have a profile for dummies either software or write up out in a week! Any progress?

Thanks
Chris

[Velocomp]

I'm working on it!

[rruff]

One of the aspect I'm hoping to get out of such a 'guide' is the insight to be able to target which parameter(s) to review if I find things (while riding) like: 1. my power seems to 'hang' too high, or increase when I'm going down a hill while pedaling, but not nearly 'hard enough' to for the numbers being reported 2. my power vs. effort on the flats seems reasonable, but the power on the climbs seems lower than it should be for the effort (or vice versa) 3. my power seems to increase too much for the change in effort my legs are reporting (from how I was just pedaling) for a small or large headwind gust (or vice versa), 4. the power vs. effort seems about right for the perceived exertion, but it just seems too high or low overall, 5. I get a zero watt reading when I'm actually pedaling downhill, putting forth force through the pedals, etc.

1) Wind offset or scaling too high, or tilt too high.
2) Probably ok... unless you have your weight wrong. Errors on long climbs are usually small.
3) Pretty typical... I get some very wild swings in gusty winds, especially if my speed is high.
4) If that is for the whole ride, then check your data in "analyze wind". Net wind should be close to zero when you are riding alone and not drafting.
5) Wind scaling or offset too low, or tilt too low.

The tilt is automatically adjusted based on the barometric altimeter. IME it can get confused by rough roads, braking, frequent changes in grade, and sudden changes in barometric pressure. If it is off it will be most noticeable when going down hills. Same for the airspeed sensor. When you are going down hill fast the power exerted by gravity can easily be over 1000W, so errors are magnified and your input will be a relatively small fraction. The accuracy of these measurements can vary randomly. If you have your calibration right, they average out pretty well though... so I don't worry about instantaneous values. When I get home I take a look at the "analyze wind" function and see if it makes sense. If not I tweak it til it does... and then I'm done.

[ldmitruk]

So when can we expect the Dummies guide?

[Velocomp]

Some time in the next few days we will be releasing iBike 5.10. This includes a "setup wizard" that will help with initial setup.

When initial setup is done completely then iBike operation is excellent. The wizard's purpose is to make setup even easier, and profile editing unnecessary.

[cure]

can someone please tell me where i can see the video at the end of this wizard? my computer cant seem to install adobe flash...also when it asks me for the FTP, is this all brought to the wizard from the previous info i plugged in? my height was wrong but everything else seems correct.

we'd have to eventually redo the cal ride right? as well as wind cal and tilt?

is there more to the wizard than the quick inputs? sorry i haven't visited this site for a while... thank you

[boppthebutler]

I've been using my Ibike Aero for a year now with varying success. I've found it great in summer and in dry conditions. In cold and wet weather not so good.
I calibrated mine with a friends powertap. I recently noticed the power reading felt on the low side. When analysed my results the av windspeed versus av wheelspeed were way of e.g. 14mph wind 17mph wheel on an out & back. I did a new cal ride and my windscaling has gone for 2 to 3.5. If I use this as a profile to update the previous dodgy ride figures it makes them about right. What has caused this step chaenge? Same bike, mount, position i.e nothing has changed but the numbers.
Cheers
Bopp.