EUC anti-theft features ?

[flass]

1 hour ago, Philip W said:

They report the wrong dimension. That thing is no way 2 inch thick. Even their customers pictures showed it's really small. So there is another company selling the same thing:

Real Time Portable Mini GMS/GPS/GPRS Tracker https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001FYQO3W/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_dSeozbRGVH8K6

The real dimension is 46x64x17mm. This size is still a little to big for the tiny space left inside my EUC, but I will take out the circuit board, the battery will be in different place. In this way it should fit.

A tracker with those dimensions will almost fit, yes. I wish you good luck, and don't forget to post an update when you have made a try! I am curious regarding what tracker you decide to use and where you would put it, how it works, and so on.

[Philip W]

10 minutes ago, flass said:

A tracker with those dimensions will almost fit, yes. I wish you good luck, and don't forget to post an update when you have made a try! I am curious regarding what tracker you decide to use and where you would put it, how it works, and so on.

I just ordered 2 of them: one for my car and one for my EUC, plus 2 h2o wireless SIM card. From the user reviews it seemed like a tough setup, many had failed, which is exactly what I like. I will post the photos once I've done it, for bragging right of course, but if you can't find me, then you know I fail. 

[esaj]

3 hours ago, Philip W said:

Scratch my previous plan. Now I see that my King Song's power switch is not a on/off, but just a contact button.

You could still place an ignition lock or a hidden latching kill switch on one wire of the button, so it prevents the button from working. Of course it's easy to bypass if the thief carries the wheel away (which probably is much more likely than them riding it away), and does it elsewhere after opening the shells, but at least no-one could power it on easily on the spot.

[Philip W]

11 minutes ago, esaj said:

You could still place an ignition lock or a hidden latching kill switch on one wire of the button, so it prevents the button from working. Of course it's easy to bypass if the thief carries the wheel away (which probably is much more likely than them riding it away), and does it elsewhere after opening the shells, but at least no-one could power it on easily on the spot.

Yeah, I had thought of that, but the hidden switch won't work if someone just snap it and jump on a car/bus/train. They will figure out the hidden switch eventually. However, a hidden tracking device is much more difficult to detect and works much longer. I can catch the guy with my wheel as long as he stays in the North America. Each month $3 is really cheap for the ability to track it.

Also, when I catch the guy I have the evidence to prove that the wheel is mine, by simply open it up and show police the tracker!

[Mono]

I left my EUC once in a wardrobe which I thought was guarded but wasn't, at least at some point in time. There were not too many portable items left when I learn that thieves had raided the space. They stole my bag that had covered the EUC. The EUC they left alone. I am still hoping for the better times, where EUCs become a more desirable item to own and sell.

[Hatchet]

9 hours ago, LanghamP said:

The biggest problem with normal GPS devices is getting enough power to the GPS over a long time but since an EUC already has a giant battery that could power a GPS for weeks/months then just stick a GPS tracker in it, and let the cops recover it.

Problem with this is, GPS trackers require a sim card, and only 2g or something sim cards will work. So you have to buy a plan with a network and pay ( maybe what, $100/year?) for text (I believe) so you can "call" the GPS.

This is just my understanding from a rudimentary look into the subject, I maybe off base.

[Philip W]

17 minutes ago, Hatchet said:

Problem with this is, GPS trackers require a sim card, and only 2g or something sim cards will work. So you have to buy a plan with a network and pay ( maybe what, $100/year?) for text (I believe) so you can "call" the GPS.

This is just my understanding from a rudimentary look into the subject, I maybe off base.

Yup, you are not off at all. The SIM card cost almost nothing from H2O (You need to buy something else from Amazon though).  The $10 you add will last 90 days, so basically it's $3 every month. In theory I can call that number, and it will automatically send back a text message containing the coordination of the location. Hope it works.

33 minutes ago, Mono said:

I left my EUC once in a wardrobe which I thought was guarded but wasn't, at least at some point in time. There were not too many portable items left when I learn that thieves had raided the space. They stole my bag that had covered the EUC. The EUC they left alone. I am still hoping for the better times, where EUCs become a more desirable item to own and sell.

I am glad that those thieves are idiots! Or maybe the EUC itself is heavy for anyone who doesn't know how to ride it. It's an anti-theft device by itself!

[dmethvin]

15 minutes ago, Philip W said:

I am glad that those thieves are idiots! Or maybe the EUC itself is heavy for anyone who doesn't know how to ride it. It's an anti-theft device by itself!

Nobody knows how to ride an EUC around here. If someone stole it I would just tell the police to be on the lookout for someone with a bad back and a hernia.

 Even if they could ride it they would draw a lot of attention they didn't want. It's cosmetically not nice enough to sell. 

[kasenutty]

Same here. I've never run into another wheeler in the wild.

[Adel]

53 minutes ago, dmethvin said:

 Even if they could ride it they would draw a lot of attention they didn't want. It's cosmetically not nice enough to sell. 

Even Better maybe the wheel would cutoff on them while they're making their getaway 

[Hatchet]

21 minutes ago, kasenutty said:

Same here. I've never run into another wheeler in the wild.

We're a small, but proud people. Though we suffer the horse poop and bicyclists, the "WTF is that?" and yes, the dogs.. we persevere. 

I think we qualify for tax-exempt status.

 

[dmethvin]

12 minutes ago, Hatchet said:

I think we qualify for tax-exempt status.

Electric cars in some areas can use the express lanes at no charge. I think EUCs should get their own lanes too. Stealing an EUC should be a capital offense. EUC riders should get a free coffee from Starbucks every day. Other than that they should just treat us like any other person.

[Hatchet]

Super-down with the free coffee. I can't seem to enjoy a ride without a nice coffee in my hand. It makes the ride more ..civilized.

I've taken several pictures of my wheel, including the serial number, but I just never really have it out of my hands/sight unless it is under my desk at work. If it's stolen I hope my home insurance will help, though the deductible may make that not feasible.

 

[Dingfelder]

Actually if you want your establishment to have the cachet of looking hip and cool, I think having someone on an EUC riding around the parking lot would probably do it.  

If I had a hipster coffee shop, I'd consider giving someone a free coffee and a pastry for wheeling around out front in the parking lot for 15 minutes or so during prime times.  Heck, I might even ask him to wear a T-shirt with our corporate logo while he's doing it.  

I bet you'd have a lot of people driving by in their cars turning their heads to take a look.

[Frode]

Isn't the point about an EUC that you can bring it with you wherever you go (except on a plane). There is no point in an "ignition key" (on/off button with key) on an EUC since you can just carry the whole EUC with you and remove the lock when out of sight. All you need is a screw driver and maybe some electrical tape. A cheapo bicycle lock that attaches the handle to a pole is probably more effective as it will prevent "opportunity theft" where the EUC is stolen just for the fun of riding it for a while, and where it is available without any hindrance.

Remember that an EUC is so easy to carry with you that a thief probably first will steal it and carry it away before later inspecting it to find out if it can be turned on, or hacked so it can be turned on again. If found unusable it will probably just be thrown away. So if you need your mobile phone to activate your EUC you will also need a GPS tracker on the EUC so you can recover it. On the other hand, letting the EUC depend on a workable mobile phone? I don't know. What if you loose your phone? Or you fell of your EUC and the phone broke? Or what if you decide you want a new phone and the new phone won't run your code app that is compatible with your aging EUC? Or you forget your code? I wouldn't want such a dependency between my EUC and my phone.

 

Just my 16,9 øre (which equal 2 ¢ with today's exchange rate)

[The Fat Unicyclist]

1 minute ago, Frode said:

Isn't the point about an EUC that you can bring it with you wherever you go (except on a plane). There is no point in an "ignition key" (on/off button with key) on an EUC since you can just carry the whole EUC with you and remove the lock when out of sight. All you need is a screw driver and maybe some electrical tape. A cheapo bicycle lock that attaches the handle to a pole is probably more effective as it will prevent "opportunity theft" where the EUC is stolen just for the fun of riding it for a while, and where it is available without any hindrance.

Remember that an EUC is so easy to carry with you that a thief probably first will steal it and carry it away before later inspecting it to find out if it can be turned on, or hacked so it can be turned on again. If found unusable it will probably just be thrown away. So if you need your mobile phone to activate your EUC you will also need a GPS tracker on the EUC so you can recover it. On the other hand, letting the EUC depend on a workable mobile phone? I don't know. What if you loose your phone? Or you fell of your EUC and the phone broke? Or what if you decide you want a new phone and the new phone won't run your code app that is compatible with your aging EUC? Or you forget your code? I wouldn't want such a dependency between my EUC and my phone.

 

Just my 16,9 øre (which equal 2 ¢ with today's exchange rate)

A key switch won't stop someone walking away with your wheel. 

And a bike lock won't stop someone passing the button to see what "that thing" does (leaving a bit of a scene).

Combining the two is a great solution and a deterrent to opportunists!

[Frode]

5 minutes ago, The Fat Unicyclist said:

And a bike lock won't stop someone passing the button to see what "that thing" does (leaving a bit of a scene).

Didn't think of that. A locked EUC trying to get loose, like a dog that tries to escape its leash. Definitely worth watching.

[The Fat Unicyclist]

1 minute ago, Frode said:

Didn't think of that. A locked EUC trying to get loos, like a dog that tries to escape its leash. Definitely worth watching.

Exactly... I commute to work on my EUC (about 3 miles each way), with the diversions and "longer routes" that I think we all choose. And in my backpack there is always a bike lock, so that of something unexpected happens I can secure my wheel and keep walking...

But I continually think that, should I happen across this wheel thing chained to a tree, I might wonder what that button is for. Hence my thought that adding a key switch would be a handy thing. 

And I will do it (when I get time) - not something that I need to use everyday, but an option to "disable" my wheel should I need to!

[Frode]

3 minutes ago, The Fat Unicyclist said:

might wonder what that button is for. Hence my thought that adding a key switch would be a handy thing. 

Just to be explicitly clear: I totally agree!!! Someone will definitely be tempted to press that button - just to see what happens...

[Hatchet]

3 hours ago, Frode said:

Just to be explicitly clear: I totally agree!!! Someone will definitely be tempted to press that button - just to see what happens...

If i saw a strange electric-looking object like a wheel chained out somewhere in this day & age and had no idea what an EUC was, the last thing I'd do is go push buttons on it. Haha.

[EricGhost]

As GPS are so cheap for us they should be cheaper for a wheel maker that buys in stocks of thousand. As the wheels price are not so cheap they can add it by default to our branded wheels, and leave to us customers just the SIM card purchase 

[Philip W]

1 minute ago, EricGhost said:

As GPS are so cheap for us they should be cheaper for a wheel maker that buys in stocks of thousand. As the wheels price are not so cheap they can add it by default to our branded wheels, and leave to us customers just the SIM card purchase 

They do everything to save a few bugs. I opened my Kingsong and found out they have a fully functional USB port on the circuit board but not using it to save a dollar. The GPS anti-theft is way more expensive than a USB port.

However, that unused USB port gave me some wild wild options to play with, like the anti-theft device I already ordered, or a wireless on/off button, or a Rasberry Pi Zero or arduino controller... So much can be done with that one port.

49 minutes ago, Hatchet said:

If i saw a strange electric-looking object like a wheel chained out somewhere in this day & age and had no idea what an EUC was, the last thing I'd do is go push buttons on it. Haha.

We are not worried about the law-abiding citizens like you, but the teenagers who just saw you zipped passed with a fancy wheel that was straight out of a sci-fi movie. They will definitely touch the button.

[EricGhost]

44 minutes ago, Hatchet said:

If i saw a strange electric-looking object like a wheel chained out somewhere in this day & age and had no idea what an EUC was, the last thing I'd do is go push buttons on it. Haha.

That's because like for ks16 you do not have a separate BT button so that the switch on button could be subjugated to the BT phone code&wheel firmware and it can be on/off by my choice, so when I park it or leave for some time I deactivate the Switch on button and reactivate before the run and leave it active as long as I like it and with same safety margin than today

[esaj]

1 hour ago, Philip W said:

They do everything to save a few bugs. I opened my Kingsong and found out they have a fully functional USB port on the circuit board but not using it to save a dollar. 

They used to have the ports in the shells, but they were removed at one point (Did @Jason McNeil actually request this from them?), probably to make the shell more watertight. I was wondering if the pins were still on the boards, good to know it's still there.

 

 

[Philip W]

9 hours ago, esaj said:

They used to have the ports in the shells, but they were removed at one point (Did @Jason McNeil actually request this from them?), probably to make the shell more watertight. I was wondering if the pins were still on the boards, good to know it's still there.

 

 

I didn't think the case was water-tight. Now I look again, yeah there is a very thin rubber line running on the edge, making the cover water-tight. Gotta be careful with it.

There is no pins, only holes left. Actually more convenient for me to solder wires. It will only turn on if the Bluetooth light is on, or the EUC is on. So most of the time it's not working.