Posted: 11 Aug 2015 06:30 AM PDT
Proposé jusqu’au 12 août sur Kickstarter, A-Bike Electric se veut être le vélo électrique le plus compact mais aussi le plus léger. Pouvant se plier et se déplier en quelques secondes, ce projet déjà financé a été pensé afin d’optimiser les efforts à produire pour son utilisateur, sa facilité pour le transporter et son gain de place, proposant notamment une batterie amovible de 24V qui peut permettre de rouler 25 km.
source: fubiz.com
| Taking to the streets with the Dyson Hard Tail electric bike (Credit: Loz Blain/Gizmag.com) I'd always been hesitant to make the switch to an electric bike. Would that little nudge along eat away at my poor but hard-earned fitness base accumulated through cycling with nothing other than leg power? Would I be able to return to those grueling two-block city ascents without the luxury of an electric motor? Putting these concerns to one side for a couple of weeks, I climbed aboard the electrified Hard Tail, the flagship model from Australian company Dyson Bikes. And though it wasn't a dramatic enough leap to make a return to a conventional two-wheeler entirely unpalatable, the well-polished bike perfectly demonstrated the benefits of a little electrical assistance while whizzing around city streets. For the most part, electric bikes conjure up images of freaky frames with bulky batteries conspicuously latched on, resembling more a quirky DIY project than your regular pushbike. Dyson was very conscious of this in building its top-of-the-line model, aiming to offer commuters an easier transition to powered cycling. "Looking at the Hard Tail it seems just like a normal bike," Dyson Bikes co-owner David Metzke tells Gizmag. "It's a minimal design, so it doesn't look like you are riding a science experiment." It is kind of hard to disagree on this point. Aside from the sizeable girth of the downtube aside (this is where Metzke and his team have placed the removable Sony 36 V 11.6 Ah battery), the Hard Tail looks and rides much like a normal mountain bike. Its aluminum alloy frame is painted black with a satin clear coat finish and rolls on 26-inch alloy rims with Kenda tires. There's also Suntour NEX front fork suspension for when the streets get a little rugged, and a Shimano Alivio 9-speed gear set. These are parts not normally associated with high-performance bicycles and as such, we wouldn't recommend gearing up for serious off-road endurance racing, but they performed just fine in moving around the city. The law in Australia means that the legal maximum power output for an electric bike is 250 W, as it is in much of the world. Some countries and states in the US allow for electric bikes of up to 1,000 W, but these would be considered motorbikes Down Under, bringing on a whole other set of regulations. Motor assistance on the Hard Tail therefore cuts out at 25 km/h (15 mph). The pedal assist engages pretty much instantly and intuitively, giving the bike great acceleration off the mark. In two full weeks of riding it in place of my regular bike, and commuting around 10 km (6 mil) up and down hills everyday, I never once had to really exert myself physically. And in a pleasant departure from my typical arrival at the office in the mornings, I entered entirely free of sweat, something that didn't go unnoticed by my colleagues. The battery life came in just shy of the claimed 60 km (37 mi) range, though taking into account the hills and frequency of traffic stops this wasn't all that surprising. The battery can be monitored via a large backlit LCD display mounted on the handlebars, which also displays speed, power output, power consumption and allows you to flick between the six levels of motor assistance. On the negative side, 25 km/h just ain't that fast. The easy acceleration of the Hard Tail will bring you to this speed very quickly, possibly after just a few pedals depending on which gear you're in. I quickly came to realize how regularly I travel faster than this – pretty much any time I am going downhill or on uninterrupted stretches of road with time to build up momentum. So although the Hard Tail required much less energy to get me to my destination, it also actually took a little more time. And while you are free to keep pedaling beyond this point, it becomes progressively difficult after the motor cuts out, where the direct drive creates a small but still noticeable drag. This is of course completely out of Dyson's hands, as the company is simply adhering to the laws surrounding street legal electric vehicles. But for those that like to ride in the fast lane, something lighter might be more to their liking. Electric bikes come a lot heavier than the Hard Tail, which tips the scales at 23.2 kg (51.14 lb), but lighter options can be sniffed out. The US-based ProdecoTech offers 31.8-lb (14.4-kg) titanium-framed options, while English e-bike builder Cytronex offers modified Cannondales weighing as little as 28 lb (12.7 kg). Made from more expensive materials, these will come with a higher price tag (or more bizarre shapes) than the Hard Tail, but this is where Metzke believes he has found a sweet spot. Priced at AUD$2,000 (US$1,455), this e-bike is certainly on the cheaper side, and is not a world away from what could easily be spent on a high quality road bike or commuter. So for people who aren't in a rush and looking for a gentle, super-comfortable way to catch some fresh air on their way to work, we reckon the Hard Tail from Dyson Bikes might fit the bill just nicely. Product page: Dyson Bikes
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| BMW's electric truck can cover 100 km on one charge BMW's electric truck has been let loose on the Munich roads, ready to take up service delivering materials between supplier SCHERM and BMW's manufacturing plant. The 40 ton (36 tonne) truck has a range of 100 km (62 mi), allowing it to work all day without needing a charge. Based on the Type YT202-EV 4x2 from Dutch manufacturer Terberg, the all-electric truck takes between three and four hours to charge and will complete the 2 km (1.2 mi) trip between SCHERM and BMW eight times a day, for a total daily commute of just 16 km. While the distances may be relatively short, the trucks are doing some seriously heavy hauling, and the environmental benefits of not using diesel powered trucks on that route are significant. How significant? BMW has committed to charging the trucks using only electricity from renewable sources, which contributes to a saving of 11.8 tons of CO2 every year compared to a standard diesel truck. That's the same amount of CO2 as a 320d would use if you were to drive it around the world three times! The initial project for the electric truck will last one year, but both partners will look to extend the project if it proves successful – and both will be hoping it is a big success, because of the six figure investment each made in the project initially. Source: BMW
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| The Zoom allows people with limited mobility to venture off the pavement Just because you have difficulty walking doesn't mean that you should be limited to the smooth sidewalks and asphalt paths of the world ... at least, not according to folks at Sweden's Zoomability. Their Zoom 4-wheel drive electric vehicle can be operated entirely by hand, allowing people with limited mobility – or anyone else – to get in some off-road action. The vehicle has a unique steel frame design, that keeps all four aluminum wheels in contact with the ground at all times. Those wheels are clad in 16 x 2.5-inch pneumatic all-terrain tires and feature hydraulic disc brakes. Two 48-volt lithium-iron-phosphate batteries provide power to four 1,000-watt hub motors, one in each wheel. This results in a combined torque of approximately 120 Nm (88.5 ft lb) and a top speed of 12 mph (19 km/h), which can be reached in under two seconds. Charging takes from two to four hours, with a full charge providing a range of 25 to 35 miles (40 to 56 km) depending on use. The Zoom in its element (Photo: Peter Venema) The vehicle tips the scales at 150 lb (68 kg), and can accommodate riders weighing up to 220 lb (100 kg). It has a tire-center-to-tire-center track width of 26 inches (66 cm) and a ground clearance of 7 inches (178 mm). The Zoom has actually been sold in Sweden, Spain, Italy, The Netherlands, Finland and Germany for about three years now. It has also been available to wounded US Army veterans via the The Independence Fund, although Zoomability is now in the process of launching a network of independent US sales reps, selling vehicles directly to the general public. The company also plans on expanding into other markets in the next couple of years. Other powered off-road "wheelchairs" include the HexHog, UNiMO, Tomahawk and Ziesel, although they're all considerably more tank-like than the Zoom. Prospective buyers can locate the closest agent by contacting the company via the first link below. The Zoom is priced at US$12,000, and can be seen in action in the following video. Source: Zoomability via Veicoli Elettrici News
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Thu, 02/12/2015 - 11:35amAssociated Press This file photo taken Tuesday, May 13, 2014 shows a row of Google self-driving cars outside the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, Calif. California's Department of Motor Vehicles will miss a year-end deadline to adopt new rules for cars of the future because regulators first have to figure out how they'll know whether "driverless" vehicles are safe. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)The small hatchback will be based on the Chevrolet Bolt concept car shown at the Detroit auto show last month. GM has said it would be built starting in 2017. The price does not include a $7,500 federal tax credit. The car, which hasn't officially been named, will be made at a factory in Orion Township, Michigan, and sold in all 50 states. It's designed to compete with Silicon Valley automaker Tesla Motors, which plans to start selling a 200-mile-per-charge car about the same time. The price of Tesla's Model 3 including the tax credit is likely to be well below $30,000. The Bolt looks like a cross between a Volkswagen Golf and BMW's funky electric i3. Designers said it will have SUV-like cargo room and a high seating position, two attributes that have made small SUVs popular in the U.S. "We are moving quickly because of its potential to completely shake up the status quo for electric vehicles," GM North America President Alan Batey said Thursday in a statement. GM said it hasn't determined how many jobs the new car will bring to the factory, which now has about 1,700 hourly workers who make the Chevrolet Sonic subcompact and the Buick Verano compact. Source: Associated Press
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Members of the Sunswift team and the eVe after it's record-breaking run (Photo: Sunswift / Daniel Chen)
The world record for the fastest electric vehicle over a distance of 500 km (311 mi) claimed by a group of engineering students from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) earlier this year has now been officially homologated by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA).
The world record, which was set on a 4.2-km (2.6-mi) track at the Australian Automotive Research Centre in Victoria, saw the Sunswift team's eVe travel 500 km on a single charge at an average speed of 106.966 km/h (66.465 mph), smashing the previous record of 73 km/h (45 mph) that had stood for 26 years.
"It's not often you can confidently say you made history before you even graduated,” said Sunswift’s project director and third-year engineering student Hayden Smith.
The record-breaking eVe is the fifth vehicle built and raced by the Sunswift team since its founding in 1996 and joins the Sunswift IVy in the record books. Having achieved the world record, the team will now begin modifying the eVe to meet Australian road registration requirements, with a chance it will be registered and on city streets within a year.
Source: UNSW
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Darren's love of technology started in primary school with a Nintendo Game & Watch Donkey Kong (still functioning) and a Commodore VIC 20 computer (not still functioning). In high school he upgraded to a 286 PC, and he's been following Moore's law ever since. This love of technology continued through a number of university courses and crappy jobs until 2008, when his interests found a home at Gizmag. All articles by Darren Quick
