If this thing is for real, the fact they can fit everything but the throttle into a hub motor is quite remarkable. A123 makes the batteries.

"MIT trades bike tires for power generation, storage and propulsion system"

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29259226/wid/18298287/?gt1=45002

This little thing could be a big deal. Not so much in the US but for other parts of the world. Still needs affordable batteries.

Still trying to establish the veracity of this thing: seems the throttle is Bluetooth wireless, frikin cool. It'd be hilarious to pair up to some dude's bike and hit the juice while's he's taking a leak :p

http://jcwinnie.biz/wordpress/?p=4504

misslexi, Thanks for pointing out the article.

I like the idea of electric bikes. Bikes, in general, are about as effective as transportation can be. Consider the commuter car... 3000 lbs to move a 200lb driver. Most of the energy goes into moving the car; very little is actually required to move the driver. What a waste!

A bike is typically less than 50 lbs, so most of the energy actually goes into moving the rider. Of course, the downside is that it's human-supplied energy.

An electric bike has most of the efficiency of a bike with the convenience of getting the energy without sweating for it. A vehicle of 50-75lbs to move a 200 lb rider... not too bad.

The one-piece hub is a nifty idea but it means that the whole thing goes out the window when the battery is dead. There's not much downside to a separate battery pack, which can be removed and taken to charge in the house/office when the cycle's not in use. Or, for the well-heeled, carry two packs and double your range. Or just an easy pack replacement when the original dies.

I like the idea behind these:

http://www.ohmcycles.com/ourbikes/

This bike has several advantages over some others I've seen: lightweight frame (some e-bikes are built like mo-peds - heavy), rear-wheel drive, disc brakes (disc brakes give you awesome stopping power on a bike and with a large rider - me - and the extra weight of the electric components, stopping power is important) and regenerative braking (claimed - I'm not sure how effective it is - I really like this feature).

Still, there's the price, which is daunting. I called a local shop that does carry these and they're something like $2400. Ouch. There's not that much to an e-bike. It seems to me that someone should be able to build, in quantity, a quality unit with lightweight frame (remove the removeable battery and it's nearly a regular bike just for exercise), discs, regenerative braking, decent power and decent range (regen braking helps) for notta lotta money. I'd happily pay $1200-$1500 and I wouldn't use the car most of the spring/summer/fall. And I wouldn't arrive at work all sweaty.

It would be worth it.

Just curious, dag55 . . . do you want a vehicle that needs bike lanes, or do you want a vehicle that can use the whole road?

$2400 is expensive if you are just buying a bike for occasional recreational use. You can spend twice that amount for a reasonably good human-powered mountain bike. $2400 is not expensive if you are buying a vehicle for commuting and everyday use - heck, it's chump change.

Electric bike shlametric bike...big deal.
My friend Tonya has a bike that makes smoothies.

Thanks for the Ohm link dagwood, I'd not heard of those. Their system sounds similar in concept and price to the BionX, another Canadian company.

Depending on cost, it may be practical to have one of these self-contained hubs on each wheel, using one as a standby, or as a boost when really needed for a steep hill, strong headwind etc. I'm sure their future sales force will love that idea.

I'm in the process now of adding a front hub to my recumbent to compliment the rear chain drive system. The chain drive is the ultimate in efficiency and strength as it gets to share the bike's gearing, it is however noisy IMO, interfering somewhat with the complete zen experience :cool:. A front hub that shares the same battery pack with the chain drive may offer me the best of both worlds, hill climbing ability and cruising in silence.

Neat idea. Love the simplicity of the all in one hub. It's really hard to believe that there is all that much room in there for much battery capacity to power bike for 25 miles. I wonder if that is electric alone or do you have to pedal as well to get that range? I also doubt a retail price of just a few hundred dollars. Closer to $500 would be my guess. Of course the Chinese will copy it exactly and have them for sale over there three months later at half the cost. I can see lots of people using these world wide if it all turns out as hoped.

Just curious, dag55 . . . do you want a vehicle that needs bike lanes, or do you want a vehicle that can use the whole road?

I'd prefer a bike lane but there are none along my commute. A trail would be even better, of course.

Why do you ask this particular question? I'm not offended by it or anything but I'm not seeing your train of thought.


$2400 is expensive if you are just buying a bike for occasional recreational use. You can spend twice that amount for a reasonably good human-powered mountain bike. $2400 is not expensive if you are buying a vehicle for commuting and everyday use - heck, it's chump change.

What can I say? I'm just cheap! :-)

I'm looking at what a reasonably good, reasonably lightweight, reasonably high-quality contemporary hybrid costs (mine with discs, was about $650) and working up from there. Allow $300 each for the battery and motor and I figure $1250 should do it.

I do know people with $4K+ bikes but I just recently replaced a very nice Raleigh road bike from the '70's and I was very satisfied with what I could get for $650.

And, let's bear in mind, I'm describing a commuter bike that has a motor to help out. There's no need for ultimate lightness, reasonably light will do and fairly tough is probably necessary. You need to be able to attach racks, bags, lights, air horns, radio, 75mm cannon - oops - getting carried away here, and so forth.

Also, the motor is a safety feature. If it can help you move faster or move faster than you would under challenging conditions (uphill), it helps to keep you closer to the flow of traffic. More time for motorists to overtake and pass you means more time for them to see you.

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Of course, I'd like to see more bike trails. Allowing smallish electric motors on bike trails would probably help to move people out of cars and onto cycles. We've got a few nice trails in this area that get to either of the downtowns. Weather and use of surface streets at either end of the commute probably inihibits some people from cycling. Wider availability of electric bikes and tweaks to the rules for bike paths would probably increase ridership.

I find it slightly amazing that about 2K people are estimated to bike, year-round, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. And I really mean year-round. I've seen people on cycles when it was -5F.

I'd prefer a bike lane but there are none along my commute. A trail would be even better, of course.

Why do you ask this particular question? I'm not offended by it or anything but I'm not seeing your train of thought.

No real reason - I was just asking. I was thinking along the lines of once you put a motor on something, it has the capacity to go faster than you could on your own. At what point does it stop being a bike and start being a vehicle? Does it need licensing and registration? Would there be age limits on the user? A driving test? You know, the old human propensity to complicate things unnecessarily . . . ;)

Altazi: "I was thinking along the lines of once you put a motor on something, it has the capacity to go faster than you could on your own. At what point does it stop being a bike and start being a vehicle? Does it need licensing and registration? Would there be age limits on the user? A driving test? You know, the old human propensity to complicate things unnecessarily . . . "

I hear you. Still, they're good questions and I have thought a bit about them. The paths are also used by pedestrians. Add in the human propensity to occasionally be jerks and 750watt e-bikes could start to become a real hazard. To themselves and everyone else.