Opticon-toting driver gets $50 fine for changing traffic light
By Marc Perton 
posted April 18th 2006 10:34AM
posted April 18th 2006 10:34AM
We hate waiting for traffic lights to change as much the next driver (or pedestrian -- we have to cross streets,
too, you know), but we doubt we'd ever try to take things into our own hands like Jason Niccum of Longmont, Colorado,
did. Niccum picked up an Opticon -- an infrared light used by firefighters and other emergency responders to trigger
traffic signals -- on eBay for about $100, and has been using it to cut his commuting time. That is, was using
it, until local cops busted him after they noticed a consistent pattern of traffic-light disruptions at certain
intersections. They nailed Niccum, and the town now plans to change the frequency used by traffic lights to block
unauthorized signals (until, that is, someone comes out with a next-gen model). Niccum, despite getting stuck with a
$50 fine, isn't exactly remorseful. "I guess in the two years I had it, that thing paid for itself," he told
a local newspaper.
#37 Obviously you haven't seen pictures of the "old" 350z, otherwise you would know that the old 350Z the one they didn't copy from Audi was actually orginal. The new one is a total rip-off. Like I said before Women buy knockoffs, because their cheaper, the same is true with the 350z and the Audi TT. It sad that you have an IQ the size of an ANT and resort to profanity when you can't even explain yourself properly, of course I shouldn't be hoping for to much you are the moron that thinks the new 350z is orginal...lol
I like cars and stop lights.. my commments are awesome.. 350z ect.. yeah i drive an acura so what.. other people have cars and other people have traffic light adjusters its a miracle anyone is left alive.. they should change that.. i agree with the above comments and you shall too.. no sense is the best way to comment on these walls because it makes everyone happy.
how come I can't find any info on this device on either ebay or google?
I have a strong feeling that my city gives more green traffic light for the factory side street, than our resident side street.
Our and their streets are both 2 lane street, and connected to same main street in parallel, but when I wait for the greet light to turn into the main street, it alsmot takes 2 minutes while it takes about 30 seconds for factory side street and even there are no trucks or cars coming out of there, their green light stays alot longer than ours.
I'm guessing that's because those factories (although there aren't lots of car coming out of there) pays lot more taxes than us.
So, if I have a chance to get one of those device, I will definitely use that against our unfair,tax-related traffic light.
actually #49, Porsche only own 5% of VW and don't share the same designers, they just co-designed the Cayenne and Toureg.
350z has similar lines to a 911, TT and their orignal 240z. Nearly all carmakers "borrow" design features from the competition.
oh BTW, Audi TT and VX New Beetle are designed by same designer. So you can't complain their similarity.
Same guy will now design a car for Ford, so expect some cool looking car that's similar in design with TT and Beetle.
49: I'm aware of that. I'm just trying to make the point that there are rarely truly "original" designs/ideas these days.
How did he get caught? It's simple if the city have a centralize system that monitor the health of the traffic signal. Everytime a signal gets a call from one of these devices, it triggers an indication on the master system.
The newer versions of these have unique ID associate with it. You may still be able to trigger the traffic signal, but it will be obvious to the central system if the trigger source don't have a ID or has a ID not listed in it's database.
#54 is actually 20%
Volkswagen owns:
-Audi
-Bentley
-Bugatti
-Lamborghini
-SEAT
-Skoda
-Volkswagen
-Porche owns 20% of VW
#56 I agree
I need one of these. My motorcycle isn't massive enough to trip most sensors. This would solve my red light running problem.
"I myself am a firefighter that has used this device in the past and present. I will continue to use it on the job and off the job for myself."
thank you. I also love it when cops flash cherries to go through lights because they need to get to Denny's 45 seconds faster.
Using the police helicopter to pick up donuts is also a valuable use of taxpayer monies.
#51: "#37 Obviously you haven't seen pictures of the "old" 350z, otherwise you would know that the old 350Z the one they didn't copy from Audi was actually orginal. The new one is a total rip-off. Like I said before Women buy knockoffs, because their cheaper, the same is true with the 350z and the Audi TT. It sad that you have an IQ the size of an ANT and resort to profanity when you can't even explain yourself properly, of course I shouldn't be hoping for to much you are the moron that thinks the new 350z is orginal...lol"
old 350z? Do you mean the 300zx? As far as I know, there was no "old" 350z. The 350 model of the "z" line from nissan was introduced in 2002.
I have to assume that you're implying that aesthetically, the 350z is SIMILAR to the audi TT. I think you're correct in that as they do share similar stylings. In most other aspects, I'm sure you would agree that the cars are completely different. When it comes down to it, all cars share a lot of similarities.
But keep in mind, there are people that like every kind of car out there, and the "women buy knockoffs" thing is really fortunate. After all, I'm sure that one day, you're going to want a woman, and I'm sure there will be a woman out there looking for a knockoff of a real man that would be happy to have you.
ps - punctuation is AWESOME.
Man, If I were the judge I'd court order him to ride around with a Opticon that make it turn red. Where's Judge Judy when you need him...her...it.
At first I thought the term "Opticon" was an intentional pun, but seeing it mentioned again and again, makes it obvious that the writer meant 3M's Opticom Priority Control System. GIYF.
btw Alcaron, your excuse of "late night speeding" doesn't work, as many people die from "peckerwoods" (thanks 47/Thesaurus) with a "lead foot" on the highways, whether it be losing control and crossing the median or simply plowing into another car (slower or another racing/speeding peckerwood.)
Simply, both types (Opticom/MIRT users like Tonezilla and lead footed drivers like Alcaron) are selfish, although statistics show your type (Alcaron) of selfish actions cause more deaths.
Isn't double jeopardy great? He's received his slap on the wrist and now he can really let people know how he feels about this with no legal repercussions.
Rile up the populace and maybe they'll get off the couch and do something about it- call their local politician, go to a town meeting, whatever.
Now, changing the frequency is taking a technological approach to solving an enforcement problem. Increase the fines (add even jail time, points on the license, etc.) use car-mounted detectors and make a profit now that people think they can get away with it :)
Alfred installed one of these a while ago, and I've got to say it's quite handy. It's saved my cape on several occasions chasing criminals, rushing to crime scenes, and even on those late night beer runs!
I find it funny that Alcaron shuns comparing a 350z and a X-runner when it was done many times before by car magazines and even Toyota's engineers. Yes the 350 is faster, but the truck surprisingly handles about as well. Small auto-x courses see surprisingly similair times between the two. However, larger auto-x tracks, road courses and drag strips are where the 350z would shine, as they're both kind of out of their element on a small track.
And if you compare the 350z roadster to the X-runner, you'd only be about 175 pounds lighter in the 350 with the same amount of torque as the truck. That race would come down to gearing;
-X-Runner-
3.15:1 axle ratio
Rear limited slip differential
Manual six-speed transmission with 4.17:1 first gear ratio, 2.19:1 second gear ratio, 1.49:1 third gear ratio, 1.19:1 fourth gear ratio, 1:1 fifth gear ratio, 0.85:1 sixth gear ratio and 3.61:1 reverse gear ratio
-350z-
Gear Type 6 Speed Manual
Final Drive 3.54:1
1st Gear Ratio 3.79:1
2nd Gear Ratio 2.32:1
3rd Gear Ratio 1.62:1
4th Gear Ratio 1.27:1
5th Gear Ratio 1.00:1
6th Gear Ratio 0.79:1
First gear would be close, with possibly the truck getting the initial jump. Second is where you (Alcaron) would start to pull. The numbers speak for themselves.
Don't shoot the messenger.
Alcaron,
How did I guess making fun of your car would aggrevate you? The minute you started to brag about your 350z (a car that can be out-handled by a Tacoma Xrunner), and your "driving style" (lead foot), you've shown everyone that you are one of those geeks who takes up two stahls by parking their leased-overpriced-crappy-wannabe sports cars in the far end of a supermarket parking lot.
Look, we get it, you work hard to make the lease payment on a base model 350Z... you want to show it off... since you can't get any respect in a parking lot, you figured you brag about it here... hey, whatever floats your boat.
350zSucks
#43:
So you think your subjective moral judgements make flying down the highway at 2 am 'safe' and 'ok'? Because YOU'RE not weaving in and out of traffic. And YOU almost NEVER speed on local roads. How is that any safer than what Mr. Light-Changer was doing? What would you do if someone was on the on-ramp and forgot to turn their lights on (it happens a LOT, trust me). They're doing 60ish, trying to enter the highway. And here you come, blazin' down the road at, well, let's say 80 (if you even drive that slow). Since YOU think no one's on the road at THIS hour, no hazard could POSSIBLY 'pop up' now huh? :P
Trust me, you, me, and everyone else who speeds at WHATEVER hour are no better than this guy. Get off your high horse and join the rest of us with questionable judgement and morals.
Attention Everyone:
Apparently, Alcaron can break the speeding law RESPONSIBLY; don't mistake him with the irresponsible traffic violators. You see, he has strong morales when it comes to driving with a lead foot in his 350Z. He wants everyone to know that he ONLY speeds when he is LATE, and that is not RECKLESS at all. If you should worry that he is driving fast when people are AROUND, please COUNT on his concern for the SAFETY and WELFARE of everyone around HIM.
HE also likes to EMPHASIZE by typing in ALL CAPS.
gimmie a break, 350Zsucks. Have you ever driven above the speed limit? even 1 mile above? dont try and act like you're perfect and criticize others if you're not
Audi TT ... isn't that car designed for the Broke Back Mountain crowd?
There is no such thing as speeding ... it called going with the flow of traffic.
Lease payment? Who cares! The 350Z is classic car at least more classic than the new mustang, IMHO.
In VA where even radar detectors are illegal, he would have been put in jail.
Wasn't there some news lately about how they incorporated traffic signal changers into the new patriot act to make it a federal offense? I remember because I think there was some hackaday or other blog with a link to instructions and I was totally psyched to build a homemade one. .. but then all this buzz about "new federal law" yadda yadda
BTW, if you want to see the patent schematics from US Patent Office, lookup patent 4,016,532
Me again, some more fun patents to cruise through to see how these things are put together:
Search here:
http://patft1.uspto.gov/netahtml/PTO/search-bool.html
For any of these:
4016532
4162477
5202683
5602739
6326903
That's nothing new. You can flash your brights repeatedly at a lot of traffic lights and have the same effect.
You can build one for $10 the instructions are located
http://www.i-hacked.com/content/view/176/44/
He should be sentenced to 80 hours community service directing traffic in his city's busiest intersection while wearing a sign that says "I'm a selfish prick."
Re: #76
Not true. Opticons require a specific IR beat frequency and have other encodings for security. Headlights don't even transmit (barely) in the IR!
FYI, it's Opticom, and it's been around since the 70s.
There are IR versions and visible (strobe) versions.
Most modern implementations log each use, and are even coded to the community, so if you're from a distant city or 'burb your light may not do diddly.
Wow, just $50 fine. Thats less than the usual triple digit fines I get for speeding a mere 10 mph, stupid Po Po. I won't get one, but when I am in a rush and that stupid light seems to be red for eternalty, i'll sure wish I had one.
well in Canada those clearly work different then in the USA. In Canada you wouldnt want one, especially to cut your commuting time.
In Canada when an emergency vehicle aproches a light the sensors detect this and turn ALL lights red, that way no one moves, and the truck can fly through the intersection without hitting anyone.
what a nice birthday present...to see someone commit a white-collar crime in the town I was born in.
3 comments
1) (how they caught him) The City signal system logged when preemptions occurred. They identified a pattern of preemptions and verified with emergency dispatch that no authorized vehicles were in the area. They then used video cameras to tape each morning for five mornings. They then matched up the time on the tape with the time of preemptions shown in the logs and looked for the common denominator -- which, in this case turned out to be a white ford ranger pickup. Day six, they waited for him to go through, verified that he preempted the signal and the police pulled him over.
2) Preemption IS potentially dangerous. If an approach is supposed to have a green light for 40 seconds but someone on another approach steals the green say after 5 seconds. Even with proper yellow clearance drivers on the shortened green approach may not be expecting short green. This can lead to rear end accidents or running the red accidents.
3) Preemption causes serious delays. Again, taking the green away from an approach leads to backups on that approach. During busy times (this guy was going through during the morning rush hour), this can take numerous signal cycles to overcome. The result is excessive delays for many many people for a prolonged period -- all so one guy can get through faster. I'm in agreement with everyone that said that this is an incredibly selfish and self centered attitude. I would have liked to see the fine steeper.
heres a guide on building a MIRT. Really cheap, cost me about $15 tobuild, though i did get the IR leds from ebay (30 for $5) http://www.i-hacked.com/content/view/176/44
I would pick one up. I drive around alot a night, it would be nice to have for thoes read lights when no one is around.
Hey Cullen #38, the 350 was NOT out more then 10 years ago (The 350Z debuted in 2003). The 350Z was a interpretation of the orginal 240Z. That was the 300ZX. And before that was the original 240Z/260Z/280Z starting in 1969. Where you even alive in '69? Quit talking out your poo hole and do some research.
Oh whoever said the 350Z was a knock off of the Audi TT (A pile of shit coming from someone who owned one) here's a pic of a 1969 Datsun 240Z. It was a blatent ripoff of older Porsche's. So there. Suck it:
http://www.channel4.com/4car/media/100-greatest/03-large/30-datsun-240z.jpg
50$ fine?
I think they should have fined him 50.000$ or something so people will learn.
To 350zsucks,
No, you have it all wrong. It is you who actually sucks. And I mean gay porn sucks. So, get off of alcaron's genitals and comment on the friggin' story!
to poster 87 (man from texas),
take it easy "man from texas", you must be one of them cowboys who frequent brokeback since you are so familiar with Alcaron's genitals, how about do what you say, and contribute to the story yourself?
Damn shameful to see Alcaron hiding behind another alias... thats brokeback man.
That firefighter guy that said he uses it in his personal time really made my blood boil. I just keep imagining if even 10 people in my neigborhood had the device. I would be so angry if I had to sit at a red light for 15 minutes.
This has nothing to do with taxpayer "payback" for inefficient traffic signals, it's all about egocentric "me-me-me-me-screwyouall" behavior.
All you selfish peeps who either have one of these devices or want one can rot. Since apparently you think taking a big dump on the society you are a part of is "okey dokey" maybe we'll just toss you into a pit of rabid dogs and see how you fare "on your own".
I am in prison but I do know one thing. 350z's blow! My brother has a turbo bug and it kicks the snot out of a 350z every single day of the week. Who are you turds kidding? You girls dont have a clue.. You ALL should move out of your mum's basement.
Isn't it sad how he only got fined $50 for that but if you get caught parking in a handicapped space you get fined almost four times as much and you are ten times less likely to be risking someone's life.
I saw how they caught him on CNN. They put a video
camera up next to the light. It went into record mode only when the MIRT was triggered. This way they didn't have to sit and watch all day. Sure enough they saw the same white car each time the MIRT was triggered. It was then a simple matter to run his plate number. Personally, I would build one just to see if it worked, then put it away. I'm more interested in the design considerations. I built a radar speed "adjuster" and some other things, but never used them to gain an advantage.
I dont think using this device is ethical, but if the goverment sees that people are using this devices, is because, they havent done enough effort to mantain efficiency in their system, like when you have a stop, and theres no one on the other side, or from 1am to 5am, that the lights last the same as it was 4pm, people are never gona be 100% satisfied, but at least the goverment is gonna try to improve the system, so that less people, feel like taking action on their own hands.