London, United Kingdom — On October 8, the Cycle 2009 Show at Earls Court opened. There, the first frame e-bike in the UK was unveiled. (Sanyo has one in Japan.)

The Wisper is a technological marvel. An on-board computer with liquid crystal display provides diagnostic information on speed, performance, and power left in the battery. There are six power-assist modes. A front LED light – with automatic light sensor – runs through the battery system.

The Wisper 906xc Tourer retails at £2,399.

For complete details, see the article at Bike Biz.

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Irvine, CA – The PEDEGO tandem e-bike, which was introduced during the September 23-25, 2009 Interbike International Bicycle Expo, consists a beach cruiser design with two wide, cushioned seats, relaxed handlebars and a rear motor.

The bike has the same type of quality components as other PEDEGO bicycles, and operates much like a regular tandem. However, it has a parallel electric drive system that includes a 750 watt motor and 48 volt lithium manganese battery. The battery will last about 15,000 miles and costs less than 10 cents to recharge.

The throttle is controlled by the rear rider gently revving the right handlebar grip. (As such, the rider in front may want to give up the view for a while to be in charge of the throttle!)

Read the complete article at PEDEGO Develops World’s First Electric Tandem Bicycle.

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Germany – In early September, 2009, Eurobike was held in Germany, and electric bike manufacturers had their ware on display. The Yikebike – a pennyfarthing type of cycle, with no handlebars, was on display and was a great hit.

To see photos of the Yikebike and others, check out BikeRadar: Eurobike: E-bikes creating a buzz.

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London, England — Every street in any city has its own, official name – the name the city planners give it. And then there are the names that other groups give it – the cyclists, the roller bladers, the skateboarders – names that describe the features that these individuals care for most/

For example, in South London there’s a “Crafty Slope,” a long, subtly sapping stretch of terraced houses”; “Death Row”, a “steep road that skirts the cemetery”. And then there is “Cardiac Crest”, a South London cliff-like crest that puts riders in mind of a Pyrenean climb in the Tour de France.

Neville Hawcock, who writes for the Financial Times, recently got a chance to take the A2B Metro out for a test spin.

“In appearance at least, it resembles a chunky version of an old-fashioned shopper, minus the basket at the front and with a shoebox-sized battery at the back. The motor sits on the rear hub, and is connected via a chain to the pedals in case extra power is needed and via cables to a twist-grip “”hrottle””on the handlebars. The saddle is broad and comfortable, and there is front and rear suspension. It’s sturdy and solid. Built, I thought uncharitably, for comfort not speed.”

Read the rest of the article at Ultra Motor’s A2B Metro electric bike.

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If bending over to grasp the handlebars of your ebike gives you back aches, or causes your hands to get sore, consider riding a unicycle. Especially when you can get one that is electric-powered.

What’s also nice about the unicycle, is that it will recharge the battery as you ride it downstairs.

Read more at An Electric Unicycle that Recharges while Rolling Downhill.

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“Everything else on the bike operates the same,” he said. “When you want to use the electric motor, you just turn the switch on the handlebars.”

This was the final project for the advanced placement engineering class. In addition to converting the bike, the students had to evaluate how the energy went in and out, and how long they could travel on it before they had to recharge, utilizing the various engineering and physics principles used by the bicycle.

“The bike is 50 percent efficient, unlike cars that are from 2 to 5 percent efficient,” the teacher said.

The electric bike can travel approximately 20 mph and can be ridden for about two hours before the battery is exhausted.

Mr. Connell said the only parts to fix on the bike are the motor, the battery and the transformer unit, while a car uses so many different parts now that it is almost impossible to maintain a vehicle yourself.

In an attempt to show his students and others that the bike is a viable commuting option, Mr. Connell is riding the bike back and forth to school.

If you find an image of this bike please contact us

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These waterproof lights can be used with virtually any ebike setup. Unlike other systems, which require either an auxilliary 6V or 12V battery or a separate DC-DC converter, these units connect directly to the main ebike pack. Highlights include:

• Efficient and Bright The lights provide significant illumination and visibility with minimal power draw.
• Variable input voltage All of these lights are designed with an integrated DC-DC converter so that they can be plugged into any ebike battery pack, from 24V setups up to 72V or higher.
• Robust Construction The light housing is a single block of epoxy, rather than thin shells of die-cast plastic.
• Waterproof These lights are fully submersible. Prolonged water exposure means…nothig to fear.
• Made in Canada These lights are both designed and manufactured by us here in Vancouver, Canada.

Mounting

The moulded LED lights are designed so that they can be readily secured to the bike tubing with a pair of zip ties. The front light sits on top of the handlebar. The rear light is secured either to the seat post or rear rack.

Wiring the Power

These bike lights need to tap into your electric bicycle battery pack for power. A small amount of custom wiring is required to hook the light into the system. Instructions for a variety of methods will come with the lights.

Wiring Switches

The regular front and rear lights do not have a built in on/off control button, so you will want to wire up a switch in series with the power going to these lights, or terminate the leads with a connector that is easy to plug in and unplug. Again, this would be customized wiring.

Power from the Wheel

If you have a direct drive hub motor (Crystalyte, Nine Continent, Wilderness Energy etc.) the hub motor itself can act as a generator and power the lights up so that you aren’t riding in the dark.

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WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Athula Kulatunga, who is an associate professor of electrical engineering technology at Purdue University, has turned a tricycle into an electric powered, energy-testing machine, which he intends to use to help develop new technologies for green vehicles.

With the financial support of General Motors , Kulatunga has built a plug-in electric bicycle which is used as a learning platform for power electronics and applied research on controllers, charging devices, battery configurations and motor drives.

Kulatunga’s tricycle features a reclining seat, pedals in the front and handlebars on the side for steering. Kulatunga doesn’t believe the general public would be willing to ride it as is – it’s being used to conduct research only. The trike is powered by electric charge and can be ridden on its own or connected to a data-collection test stand, where researchers analyzes power usage and efficiency.

Kulatunga is assisted by graduate students Sandun Kuruppu and Jeremiah Dole, and undergraduates Robert Murphy, Fred Chou and Ryan Pickens.

The trike can travel up to 35 or 40 mph, because of its low center of gravity, and handles corners and turning easily. It’s run by a brushless DC motor attached to the back wheels,and powered bylead-acid batteries, located underneath the bike.

The trike is extremely energy efficient, because it is equipped with ultracapacitors, which help to capture energy that would typically be lost during such actions as braking.

An ultracapacitor “smooths out” and absorbs much of the energy, which can then be transferred to power the vehicle,” Kulatunga said. “If perfected, ultracapacitors can extend the driving distance of batteries.”

Kulatunga said further modifications to the tricycle will be made periodically as he and his students conduct further research.

Purdue’s International Rectifier Power Electronics Development and Application Lab, known as IR-PEDAL, which focuses on energy-efficiency-related applied research in three main areas: motion controls, power conversions and audio amplifiers, built the tricycle.

Current projects in the lab include working with American Electric Power to study how large power transmission fuses and capacitors behave and why they fail, developing devices to detect and communicate the failing components in the power grid, and research on how to improve the efficiency of brushless, electronically controlled DC motors that could eventually replace mechanically controlled motors.

Source: Purdue University

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OHM Cycles, a bike company based in Vancouver, Canada, announced on February 28, 2009 its next generation of hybrid electric-assist bicycles for 2009.

Four power packs are now available, each one designed to offer optimum power and range for every rider. According to OHM Cycles President Michael DeVisser, “The OHM Urban and Sport hybrid bicycles are a comprehensive solution for eco-friendly mobility.”.

The OHM hybrid e-bikes, which combine BionX drive technology with a Molicel Rechargeable Li-ion cell battery pack, are the first electric bicycles purpose-built for the North American market.

OHM Cycles can be ridden as a conventional bicycle ,or with pedal assist from the intelligent drive system. They have a center-mounted power pack which provides better balance and weight distribution and maintains a standard wheelbase. Because of its ightweight components and a customized power system, OHM “will send you racing up hills and around the city, with ease.”

For 2009, new features have been added:

• 4 Power packs available – 25 to 70 miles per charge with custom OHM Quick Connect system to easily remove and recharge
• Fast Recharge – 90% capacity in 20 minutes, fully charge in 3 hours, charge over 500 times without loss of capacity
• Intelligent Sensor – Patented BionX torque sensor automatically responds to the way the rider pedals and provides a smooth natural sensation
• Suntour Suspension seat post for a more comfortable ride
• Adjustable stem and handlebars to customize riding position
• Topeak rear carry rack with QuickTrack™ MTX

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‘Currie Technologies, the largest electric bike seller in the United States, is currently offering free shipping on their line of electric bikes (except for the Tricruiser, HG1000 and Sereno). This is a limited time offer (although they don’t specifiy how limited on their site!)

The bikes are shipped free only throughout the continental US, of course. They are shipped via UPS and will take an average of between 11 – 15 days to arrive.

Currie assembles, tunes and tests your bike before shipping. . It is delivered to you in a “Ride-In-Four format.”

Out of the box, you install the following components and will be ready to ride (after you charge the battery!):

1. Install Handlebars
2. Install Front Wheel
3. Install Seat and Seat Post
4. Install Pedals

They also, of course, include a detailed Quick Start Guide .

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