Blog

Innovative electric bike, if you want something done you gotta do it yourself !

By Robert Stensson April 29, 2009

This is how Ian Thomson made his own electric bike.

This Montague paratrooper made into an electric bike using a Heinzmann electric bike kit. I asked Ian and he says its no cheap solution adding up to about £2000. Recovering from cancer and chemo therapy Ian needed an electric assisted bicycle to go with his friends on rides without holding them up. Building this easily folded electric mountain bike also allows him to carry the bike in the back of his Audi A3 and take it to the countryside. The electric system is activated through a handle bar throttle and powered by a 24V 9,5 Ah Lithium ion battery. The Heinzmann electric kit has a 200W rear wheel electric hub engine and a Torque sensor. When the electric bicycle kit is added to Ian’s Montague paratrooper the total weight is about 24kg.


18 Comments
 

Electric bike new standard in place EN 15194

By Robert Stensson April 28, 2009

The market for e-Bikes is about to change drastically. Beginning next year, it will no longer be possible to enter the booming e-Bike market in Europe by simply importing complete e-Bikes and/or components from China and selling them in Europe.

The new EN 15194 standard for EPACs (Electrically Power Assisted Cycles) is far more complicated than the CEN standards currently in force for conventional bicycles

That new standard is about to be implemented. The CEN Technical Committee TC333, with representatives from the bike industry and headed by Chairman Siegfried Neuberger from the German industry association Zweirad-Industrie-Verband (ZIV), expects the safety standard to be published beginning next year, along with an annex detailing EMC requirements. These Electro Magnetic Compatibility (EMC) requirements contribute significantly to the complicated and costly new safety standards for electric bicycles.

EMC requirements are already applied throughout Europe to all kinds of electric appliances and vehicles like cars, motorcycles and mopeds. Electro Magnetic Compatibility requirements are designed to, for instance, ensure the safety of people who use a pacemaker or hearing-aid when driving cars or e-Bikes.

Once vehicles that use electronics have passed EMC testing they will obtain a CE mark. By the way, the EMC requirements are already in force throughout Europe, including all the e-Bikes (pedelecs) that are currently on the market.

Pedelecs that are to comply with the new EN 15194 EPAC safety standard will have to be tested in the same way as cars, motorcycles or mopeds. That means that, as TC333 chairman Siegfried Neuberger points out: “Complete bikes and/or electronic/electrical subassemblies will have to be tested.”


48 Comments
 

Electric bike inner hub gear or derailleur?

By Robert Stensson October 29, 2008

Dear All Electric bike manufacturers, users and interested
As an electric bike manufacturer and promoter i am often asked which gears we find most suitable for and use the most on electric bikes. It is a difficult question because there is a dilema in this question. The best gear is the Shimano nexus inner 8 speed no doubt about it in my eyes but installing this component forces us to move the engine to the front wheel which is not as comfortable as having the engine in the rear wheel. Panasonic and Yamaha have made a solution to this problem by integrating the engine in the front crank which leaves space for inner gear in the rear wheel hub and gives a pleasant drive. The Panasonic electric bike system does though also add to the price and an electric bike supporting this system will be hard to find for under 3000 USD.

31 Comments
 

Petespeed new interesting gear

By Robert Stensson October 29, 2008

By posting this blog spot i hope we will be able to get a more detailed describtion of this very interesting new gear system.
Maybe we will be lucky enough to receive some coments from the Petespeed technicians who have tested this.
Introduction written by Petespeed 
The prototypes of this gear system are currently being tested on the road and in the demanding sport of downhill mountain bike racing.
The PeteSpeed has the potential to be used on various types of bikes. In the city, touring and in competition.
The advantages of the PeteSpeed include:
Protection against dirt and moisture.
As effective as a conventional derailleur, with lower power loss and no fragile parts to bend or break.
The gear housing is integrated into the bike's frame.
It has the ability to shift gears while coasting without pedalling.

14 Comments