Comments on: News Report “Man Motors On Hybrid Bike”

By: upcycle

upcycle — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:24:08 +0000

it may be possible …
it may be possible to recapture some energy when braking or going down hill. However, the reclaim of energy, with existing consumer products, to my knowledge, is a minimal percent, and much less when driving at optimal speed with no stopping, such as freeway style driving.

A more interesting source of energy while driving is from solar photo voltaic panels on bike or on trailer towed by bike. I have seen reports of bikes configured with solar panels running completely off energy from sun.

By: upcycle

upcycle — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:24:08 +0000

Thanks for taking a …
Thanks for taking a look at the video and your comments. If you or any others have some other good electric bicycle videos pleas share with us.

By: upcycle

upcycle — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:24:08 +0000

Mentioning it as a …
Mentioning it as a comment is appropriate. Mentioning it in the 3 minute video would be minor to the issue of electric assist compared to non-electric assist bicycle. And I suppose as people become more familiar with the concept of electric assist hub motors for bicycles they may be able to distinguish between brushed and brush less motors, direct assist compared to pedal assist, etc. That may be similar to fuel injection compared to carburetor and turbo assist in car engines. Comment more.

By: crookedtool

crookedtool — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:24:08 +0000

That’s true… …
That’s true… Gauges, sensors, etc are not necessary and are very minor. However, that’s hardly comparable to a regenerative braking feature. And while not the focus of this story, it would contribute greatly to the efficiency or range, and as a reporter, you would be stupid not to at least mention it. So obviously, it doesn’t have this feature.
Don’t get me wrong, though. Any electric bike is an invaluable tool.

By: TakeThatHill

TakeThatHill — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:24:08 +0000

Great video, I …
Great video, I can’t believe some of the stupid comments though. Thanks for posting.

By: upcycle

upcycle — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:24:08 +0000

Thanks for your …
Thanks for your comments. It is worthwhile to speak of the topic of regenerative braking and it’s merit with e-bike kits.

The bigger part of this story is having an electric assist hybrid bicycle that can save people money on their transportation. The regenerative braking, is a minor element and low on priority for this story. Other elements that are also minor include a digital guage to monitor watts, motor/battery temperature, odometer, and maintenance of this e-bike, in 3 minute news story.

By: crookedtool

crookedtool — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:24:08 +0000

I see. …
I see. Regenerative braking is a huge feature (such as the Avanti Electra wheel kit at ev-power(dot)com(dot)au) so I really doubt it has it since it wasn’t mentioned.

By: crookedtool

crookedtool — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:24:08 +0000

I understand what …
I understand what you are saying, but I disagree. Couldn’t a hub with this feature be slowly charged with braking alone? If so, that’s not such a minor feature. Also, they reported numbers like range/efficiency which would be incredibly variable if it actually had regen braking. But aside from all of these things, its a $150 hub, so its highly unlikely that it does.

By: mikeaccord

mikeaccord — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:24:08 +0000

I think this is a …
I think this is a great idea, and I’d line up to get a hold of one of these bikes if I weren’t currently in new york city (where I can get anywhere by mass transit).

My only concern would be safety as he’s going pretty fast without much to protect his body. A crash at 35 miles/hour would pretty much wipe him out for a few days, if not weeks and months.

By: upcycle

upcycle — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:24:08 +0000

Theft issues can be …
Theft issues can be minimized. And there is new technology that allows for gps tracking of bikes that are stolen. the tracking unit is hidden in part of the frame. And it may be possible to also incorporate a video cam on the bike, that can send pictures back to the owner.