IOLITE

REAL-TIME SWIMMING GUIDANCE

IOLITE User Manual

Version

1

IOLITE

User Manual

IOLITE

1712 Pioneer Ave • Suite 1924

Cheyenne, WY 82001

Phone 855-IOLITE-1 (855-465-4831)

Support@SwimIOLITE.com

Last Updated: January 8, 2015

The most recent version of this manual and the current software can be found at http://iolite.me

Companion manuals to this are the IOLINK User Manual and the T3 User Manual also found at http://iolite.me

1

Your IOLITE box contains:

One IOLITE Base Unit

One IOLITE Eye Piece

One insert box that shows:

o Basic Button controls on the top side

o Basic LED indicators on the bottom side

One USB adapter

One Goggle Attachment Strap

One curved goggle adapter

Three extra Eye Piece adhesives

One zip tie

IOLITE Warnings – PLEASE READ

Follow all normal safety precautions while swimming with or

without IOLITE

IOLITE is not a life saving device.

IOLITE does not replace the need to sight during open water

swims – you need to know where you are swimming

IOLITE may malfunction guiding you incorrectly

IOLITE does NOT remove the risks of swimming in dangerous

conditions including:

o Strong currents

o Animal bites

o Riptides

o Collision with boats or other vessels

o Fatigue

o Cramps

o Cold or hot water

o Hidden underwater obstacles such as coral

Learn how IOLITE works while on dry land before trying it in

the water

2

IOLITE Quick Start Steps

1) View the IOLITE base unit while in the packaging to

understand what the three buttons do

2) Attach the USB adapter to the IOLITE base unit

3) Plug the USB adapter into a computer USB port and charge

for 2 hours

! Always have the adapter attached to IOLITE when

plugging into or removing from a computer – odd USB

behavior may result otherwise

4) Attach the Eye Piece to the goggle of your choice

(see section “Attaching Eye Piece”)

5) View the bottom side of the box insert to understand the eye

piece LEDs

6) Turn ON your IOLITE and wait for a GPS fix

7) Attach your IOLITE Base Unit to your goggles

(see section “Attaching Base Unit”)

8) Short press BUTTON II to change the LED brightness

9) Short press BUTTON I to start a freestyle mode swim

! We recommend trying this while walking on dry land

before using in open water.

10) Start swimming in the direction you would like to swim

11) IOLITE will guide you in that direction lighting the YELLOW

and RED LEDs if you start swimming off course

12) IOLITE will automatically detect your turns and let you know

it does by flashing all the LEDs

13) Short press BUTTON I to pause and restart your swim.

14) Long press BUTTON I to end your swim

15) Repeat steps 9-14 if desired

16) Long press BUTTON II to turn off your IOLITE

(will also end your swim if you did not already do so)

3

Contents

Your IOLITE box contains: ........................................ 1

IOLITE Warnings – PLEASE READ .......................... 1

IOLITE Quick Start Steps .......................................... 2

IOLITE Buttons ......................................................... 4

ON / RESET ...................................................................... 4

BUTTON I .......................................................................... 4

BUTTON II ......................................................................... 4

BUTTON Notes .................................................................. 4

IOLITE Charging and Battery Life ............................. 5

IOLITE Placement While In Use ................................ 5

Attaching Eye Piece .................................................. 6

Attaching Eye Piece – Rounded Goggle ................... 7

Keeping IOLITE Water Tight ..................................... 7

Attaching Base Unit .................................................. 8

Understanding the LEDs ........................................... 9

Cadence LED ......................................................... 10

Speed LEDs ........................................................... 10

Knowing How Far You’ve Swam ............................ 11

IOLITE Settings ...................................................... 11

Turning On IOLITE ................................................. 12

Turning Off IOLITE ................................................. 12

Getting a GPS Fix .................................................. 12

Starting a Swim ...................................................... 12

Pausing a Swim ..................................................... 13

Resuming a Swim .................................................. 13

Ending a Swim ....................................................... 13

Recording Workouts ............................................... 13

Changing LED Brightness ...................................... 13

Directional LEDs .................................................... 14

Swim Modes ........................................................... 14

Freestyle Swim Mode ............................................. 15

Freestyle Swim Mode - Continued .......................... 15

Course Mode .......................................................... 16

4

IOLITE Buttons

There are three buttons on the IOLITE Base Unit:

ON / RESET

BUTTON I

BUTTON II

BUTTON I and BUTTON II both have a short press and a long press

feature. The ON button does not.

A short press is less than 1 second

A long press is longer than 1 second

Their locations are shown here in this picture:

ON / RESET

The ON / RESET button is a smooth rounded button on the left side

of the device. It has no markings on the surface. It is used to turn on

the device or reset the device to its just turned on state. After

releasing the ON button the Base unit will flash green after about 2-

3 seconds to indicate it has started.

BUTTON I

BUTTON I has a single vertical line on its surface and is located on

the bottom right of the device. A short press will start or pause a

workout. A long press ends a workout.

BUTTON II

BUTTON II has two vertical lines on its surface and is located on the

bottom left of the device. A short press will cycle through the LED

brightness settings. A long press will power off the IOLITE

BUTTON Notes

To prevent accidental button presses during the chaos of an open

water swim, the buttons must be pressed firmly. The Base Unit

glows green when a button is pressed. Please learn the firmness

required while holding the device prior to attempting to use it on the

back of your head.

5

IOLITE Charging and Battery Life

IOLITE takes 2 hours to fully charge using a standard USB

socket.

! Do not use a fast wall charger with IOLITE as it may

overheat. This would include items such as phone or mp3

player chargers

On a full charge IOLITE can last for 8-13 hours of continual

use

In order to keep the GPS unit with a loose fix IOLITE will

slowly lose battery charge.

It takes 10-12 days to lose a full charge while OFF

IOLITE Placement While In Use

When using the device for a swim the IOLITE Base Unit should be

placed on the back of the head either under a swim cap or attached

to a pair of goggle straps.

It should be oriented so that the cable comes out the side of the

Base Unit towards your Eye Piece on the right side is used normally.

The bump out (GPS Chip) should be at the top facing away from the

head. This will allow for the best GPS readings.

! If you tend to breathe to only one side, position IOLITE just off

center of your head, toward the side you breathe. This will keep IOLITE

in a better position even during your breathe rotation.

6

Attaching Eye Piece

The IOLITE Eye Piece needs to be affixed to you goggle before use. If

your goggle has a flat front, follow the directions here. If your

goggles have a rounded front, see “Attaching Eye Piece – Rounded

Goggle”.

1) Attach Eye Piece to base unit and turn on the device so the LEDs

light up

2) Clean the goggle front with alcohol to remove any grease or

debris

3) Determine which side you want the eye piece on. It is designed

to fit with your right eye, but can be used upside down for the

left eye if required.

4) While wearing the goggle, hold the eye piece against the face of

the goggle so that when you look straight the green LED is just

slightly below your line of sight, but directly below, not to either

side

5) Hold the eye piece in place while removing the goggle to observe

the location of the eye piece

6) Note the location, then remove the protective coating to the

adhesive on the eye piece

7) Affix the eye piece in the location previously noted

8) Here is an example of where we recommend you place your eye

piece:

9) Take the included zip tie, and loosely connect the cable to the

goggle strap as close as you can to the eye piece. The holds the

cable in place as well as keeps the eye piece from accidentally

being pulled from the google.

10) Here is an example of what the result looks like:

! Keep the IOLITE Eye Piece out of extreme temperatures like in the

window of a car as this can cause the adhesive to loosen

7

Attaching Eye Piece – Rounded Goggle

The IOLITE Eye Piece needs to be affixed to you goggle before use. If

your goggle has a rounded front, you follow all steps in “Attaching

Eye Piece”, except when you finish step 5 you have some additional

steps:

a. Use super glue to affix flat side of the Curved Goggle

Adapter to the eye piece after removing the

protective coating on the eye piece

! By leaving the adhesive on the eye piece when you glue it to the

curved goggle adapter, you can still remove it and use the eye piece on

another goggle later

b. Affix the eye piece with adapter to the location on

the google previously noted by using super glue on

the rounded side of the adapter

c. Continue with Step 8 of “Attaching Eye Piece”

Keeping IOLITE Water Tight

IOLITE’s most sensitive part to water (especially salt water) is the

connection between the base unit and the eye piece. Please follow

these warnings to ensure a long life to your product. Failure to do so

will void your warranty.

1) Never let the plugs into water while disconnected

2) If water gets onto the male connector let dry before use

3) If water gets into the female side, make sure you turn IOLITE

off immediately, then let dry before use

4) Always use the included water tight seal:

5) Wash off any salt water if there, then let dry

! Vaseline may be used around the seal if extra protection is desired

8

Attaching Base Unit

IOLITE comes with a goggle attachment strap. You may like to

simply place IOLITE under your swim cap, but you can use the

attachment strap to temporarily affix IOLITE to your goggle.

1) Lay the attachment strap on a flat surface, scratchy side up.

2) Adjust goggle strap such that any plastic parts have been

moved towards one side and not directly in the middle

3) Lay the center of the goggle strap across the center of the

attachment strap

4) Lay the IOLITE Base Unit onto the center of the attachment

strap on top of the goggle strap. It should look like this:

5) Next take the wings of the attachment strap and use the

Velcro to tightly hold the IOLITE Base Unit

6) The result should look like the following:

7) If not using a swim cap, make sure to tuck any loose cable

under goggle strap to keep it from getting in the way.

! If using a swim cap, we recommend placing it ON TOP OF IOLITE and

your goggle straps. This keeps other swimmers from accidentally

knocking off your goggles.

9

Understanding the LEDs

On your IOLITE packaging, the following image is provided:

This shows each LED on the eye piece and its basic function. Here

are the most importing items to know:

1) When the center GREEN LED is flashing IOLITE it attempting

to get a GPS fix

2) When the center GREEN LED is solid IOLITE has a GPS fix

3) When swimming off course, the GREEN LED remains lit to

give an easy reference to which direction you should swim

4) Default IOLITE settings are “SWIM TOWARDS THE LIGHT”.

This means if the slight left YELLOW LED turns on and stays

on you should make a slight correction by swimming to the

left

5) Don’t over-correct. Usually (unless there is a current, wind,

or waves) one or two wide arms strokes are enough to

straighten you out. Remember there is a slight delay

between the direction you are swimming and when IOLITE

can detect that direction

6) Short indications of the direction LEDs can be ignored

7) When both the right and left RED LEDs are solid lit, IOLITE is

currently NOT in a workout

8) When both the right and left RED LEDs are blinking, IOLITE is

currently paused.

9) If only one or less of the right and left RED LEDs are lit you

are currently in a workout (or course selection mode)

10) For information regarding the BLUE Cadence LED, see

“Cadence LED”

11) For information regarding the Speed/Pace LEDs, see “Speed

and Pace”

10

Cadence LED

The Cadence LED is a blue LED on the right side of the eye piece. It is

used as a metronome to time your stroke rate. It will give a steady

blink at a specific frequency to help with your timing.

For setting cadence target, see the manual for IOLINK, the desktop

software.

! We’ve found this can be a very effective way to slowing increase your

stroke rate. Many triathletes are trying to increase stroke rate as it

helps in the choppiness of open water swimming.

Speed LEDs

The RED and GREEN LEDs to the far edge of the eyepiece (closest to

the cable), are used for indicating your pace compared to a target.

For setting the target speed settings, see the manual for IOLINK, the

desktop software. At the completion of each split (100m), the speed

LEDs will indicate your pace for the split in the following way:

Too Fast? - The RED LED will light up solid for 5 seconds

indicating you should slow down.

Too Slow? - The GREEN LED will light up solid for 5 seconds

indicating you're falling behind.

Just Right - BOTH speed LEDs will blink 5 times to indicate

that you have just completed the split, and you were right on

target.

11

Knowing How Far You’ve Swam

There are two ways to have IOLITE give distance information during

a swim.

1) Enable the Speed LEDs. When enabled one or both the speed

LEDs will light or blink every 100 hundred meters.

2) If you are in Course Mode IOLITE flashes the direction LEDs

every time you hit a virtual buoy. If you setup your course to

have intermediate buoys along your course you can keep

track every time you hit a virtual buoy

IOLITE Settings

IOLITE has several settings you can use to customize your device. For

details on these items see the manual for IOLINK, the desktop

software. Settings are listed here so you know what is available:

Angle Sensitivity (increases or decreases LED notifications)

LED Inverse (If you want direction LEDs to light up opposite)

Cadence

Pace Slow

Pace Fast

Log Rate (change resolution of swim history)

Log Detail (to help us if your IOLITE is experiencing problems)

Auto-Start/Pause

Auto Shut Off

Your IOLITE comes shipped with the following settings set:

Angle Sensitivity: Medium

LED Inverse: False

Cadence: 0 (Disabled)

Pace Low/Pace Fast: 0 (Disabled)

Log Rate: High (about 2 hours swim time can be recorded)

Log Detail: True

Auto-Start/Pause: Off

Auto Shut Off: 15 minutes

12

Turning On IOLITE

The device is powered on by pressing ON/Reset. When starting the

device there is a 5-10 second delay while the device restarts its

firmware. After 2-3 seconds the base unit will flash green to let you

know it turned on

Turning Off IOLITE

To turn the device off do a long press on Button II. If goggles are

attached you should see the center green light turn off.

Disconnecting the goggles from the device prolongs battery life in

the off state.

If there are no button presses, and you have not started a workout,

IOLITE will turn off to save battery after 15 minutes and can be

configured for different durations using IOLINK

Getting a GPS Fix

IOLITE keeps its GPS chip in a low power state when IOLITE is off.

This improves the time it takes to get a GPS fix. In most instances it

takes less than 35 seconds to get a GPS fix if you are outdoors with a

clear line of sight to the sky.

Starting a Swim

Depending on your configuration (see IOLINK manual), you can start

a swim immediately, or use the auto-start feature. To start a swim,

use a short press on BUTTON I.

Auto-start/pause disabled - IOLITE begins the workout

immediately. Both RED LEDs will turn off but the center

GREEN LED will remain lit.

Auto-start/pause enabled - IOLITE goes into a delayed-start

(or paused) mode. Both RED LEDs will begin flashing to

indicate the swim is about to begin. When ready, or when

the cannon fires, simply start swimming and IOLITE detects

that progress began and begins the swim. You will know the

swim has begun when the 2 flashing RED LEDs turn off.

If center GREEN LED begins flashing during the swim it means the

IOLITE lost its GPS fix and you should ignore any LED readings you

get. If you do not have a solid GREEN LED (not blinking) indicating a

GPS fix, you cannot start an IOLITE swim

13

Pausing a Swim

While a swim is in progress, a short press of BUTTON I will PAUSE

the swim. Alternatively, if the auto-start/pause feature is enabled,

IOLITE will automatically PAUSE your swim after the configured

duration lapses and no forward progress has been made. While

paused, both RED LEDs will continuously blink

Resuming a Swim

While paused (blinking red lights), a short press of BUTTON I will

RESUME the swim. Alternatively, with the auto-start/pause feature

enabled, IOLITE will automatically RESUME your swim after forward

progression continues. Once again, the two RED LEDs will turn off to

indicate you are in swim mode once again

Ending a Swim

At any point, whether paused or in an active swim recording mode,

a LONG press of BUTTON I will END the swim. To indicate the swim

has ended, the two RED LEDs will light and remain solid.

Recording Workouts

IOLITE can record your swims at a very high level of precision,

storing coordinate points every second. This allows for about two

hours of swimming to be recorded. Using the IOLINK desktop

software, IOLITE can be configured to reduce the log rate to allow

for longer swim recordings. At the lowest log rate setting, IOLITE

can record up to 15-20 hours of swimming combined.

Once memory fills up IOLITE will start recording over old swims. If

you want to view/save your swims make sure you connect to IOLink

(see IOLink Manual) frequently to view workouts and clear the

IOLITE memory.

! Our desktop software (IOLink) will automatically upload your swims

to the IOLITE server to be available at T3 (our analysis website) if you

have IOLink running.

Changing LED Brightness

Any time your IOLITE is on, a short press of BUTTON II will change

the brightness of the LEDs to suit your preference and to help match

the conditions of the day. There are 3 brightness levels. Upon

startup IOLITE starts in the middle at brightness 2. Each short Button

I press cycles the brightness. After reaching full brightness of 3 it

will cycle back to 1 which is the dimmest setting.

14

Directional LEDs

By default, the directional LEDs will be enabled for every swim. The

center GREEN LED will always stay on – if flashing it means the

IOLITE lost its GPS fix.

When you veer off course, a YELLOW LED will light indicating the

direction you should turn. If you veer further off course a RED LED

will also light (both yellow and red stay on) telling you to that you

are swimming further off course. This is known as “follow the light”

where an off course light indicates the direction you should turn

(right side LED, yellow or red, indicates you should correct your swim

to the right).

! Angle sensitivity and LED direction can be configured using the

IOLINK desktop software (see IOLINK Manual)

When an LED lights up indicating you are off course, do not over-

correct. Usually one or two wide arms to that side should be enough

to correct a small amount. Remember that there is a slight delay

between the direction you are swimming and the direction the

device can detect. It may be necessary to ignore short LED

indications

Swim Modes

IOLITE has two swim modes: Freestyle Mode and Course Mode.

Freestyle mode is always available. IOLITE can hold up to five pre-

saved courses for use with Course Mode. To create and download

your courses see the IOLink and T3 Manuals.

To select a course in Course Mode, or to get back to Freestyle Mode,

complete the following steps:

1) Press BOTH BUTTON I and BUTTON II at the same time

2) To indicate you are selecting courses the BLUE Cadence and

RED and BLUE SPEED LEDS will light

3) Short press of BUTTON II will cycle between all courses

loaded on your IOLITE

4) The five direction LEDs indicate which course is selected from

left to right course 1-5. If no Speed LED is lit, this indicates

you are in Freestyle Mode

5) Press BOTH BUTTON I and BUTTON II at the same time to

save your selection

! IOLITE stays on the course last selected even when restarted. To

notify the user a course is selected, the corresponding LED will flash

three times every five seconds when not in a workout (both RED LEDs

are lit)

15

Freestyle Swim Mode

Freestyle mode should be used anytime the exact course cannot be

pre-programmed onto your IOLITE. This mode makes no

assumptions about where you intend to swim, or how many swim

segments there are. In this mode IOLITE automatically determines

your direction and guides you that way

Only after beginning a swim leg, can IOLITE determine which

direction you intend to swim

After swimming approximately 10 meters, it will analyze

where you began compared to your current position and

guide you in the direction of the shared line

IOLITE automatically detects turns

The slightest misreading of the GPS at the beginning of a

swim can lead to a larger variance at the end. IOLITE

accounts for this by updating the target line segment in

memory as you progress along the swim segment.

It is important to sight often at the beginning of the swim

segment to get an accurate target direction

! If you swim with the Yellow or RED LEDs on for a long time, IOLITE

assumes you intend to swim a slightly different angle and updates the

target direction. Realize this if you are swimming a course with a strong

cross current

Freestyle Swim Mode - Continued

After rounding a buoy, or intentionally changing direction, IOLITE

will flash all directional LEDs 3 times, to indicate a new line segment

has begun.

! Again, it's important to sight often at the start of a swim line

IOLITE determines a new direction when your actual bearing is off

from the target bearing over a period time.

The greater the deviation, the sooner IOLITE determines a

new direction was intended

For example, after making a >90 turn, IOLITE resets the

target direction after about 3 seconds. If the angle deviation

was only 45 degrees, it may take twice as long to reset. Even

very small deviations can cause IOLITE to reset the target

bearing - if the yellow LED is ignored for >15 seconds a new

course direction will be determined.

16

Course Mode

When a course is selected, IOLITE guides you directly to the virtual

buoys created from T3. This can be a very accurate way of using

IOLITE but it can be hard to know how well it is working if there are

no visual real life queues.

! IOLITE knows your direction based off of the last 3-10 seconds of

distance traveled. This means you have to be MOVING for IOLITE to give

you accurate directions

IOLITE in Course Mode blinks the all direction LEDs 3 time to

indicate when you are within just a few meters of your

virtual buoy

After reaching a virtual buoy IOLITE will guide you to the

next buoy

When you reach your final virtual buoy IOLITE will

automatically end your swim workout

If IOLITE thinks you missed a buoy it will guide you to the

next virtual buoy

! If IOLITE thinks you missed too many buoys it will reset into Freestyle

Mode. It indicates this by flashing all LEDs including the Speed and

Cadence LEDs