In the
earlier parts of this series, we saw some real crazy bicycles like
those made
from cardboard, bamboo
and hemp. In another part, we saw custom
made bicycles from Singapore. The crazy bicycle that I am going
to describe to you here is made like any other conventional bicycle
with the only difference that it need not be peddled around. It
actually runs on solar power.
Jesper
Frausig is a Danish solar-energy engineer, who works for Gaia Solar,
a solar-energy integration company based outside Copenhagen, where he
lives. Like most of the Danes, Jesper is an avid biker. As per
Government data, 90% percent of Danes have their own bikes and almost
36% of them use them to pedal to work every day. Frausig was always
interested in electrically powered bicycles as they are completely
pollution free. But normal electric bikes did not excite him at all
because they are very heavy and not built for young people.
With
his job as a solar engineer, Frausig had much specialised knowledge
of how solar power systems work. He decided to put this in use and
tried to come out with a bicycle that could be solar powered. He
says that his knowledge of solar power facilitated him to design a
bike with lightweight custom made components instead of what was
available readily in the market, but decided not to change the basic
two wheel design of a bicycle.
Frausig
started by mounting a 500-watt electric motor on the pedal assembly.
This would be powered by a lithium-ion battery pack, housed in a
tubular container, which was mounted on the main frame of the
bicycle. He decided that relying only on solar power to charge the
batteries would be impractical as sunlight sometimes is not available
for days in Denmark. He therefore provided a socket so that the
batteries could be charged from a household electrical outlet.
Main
solar panels to charge the batteries were fitted in form of
disc-shaped arrays mounted inside the wheel spokes. Each wheel is
capable of collecting 25 peak watts of solar energy on a sunny day.
Although in the present version, it is possible to do it only when
the bicycle is at rest. A lacuna, which Frausig wants to change in
future versions. Another problem faced by present version is because
of the solar panels having been integrated only on one side. This
puts a restriction on panels that they can receive direct sunlight
only on one side. In the present version, it can take five days to
fully charge the battery, depending on sun conditions.
Because
Frausig's bicycle has wheel mounted solar arrays, the wheels look
similar to the disc wheels used by indoor track cyclists. The main
problem with such disc wheel bicycles is that they are extremely
sensitive to crosswinds. Frausig wants to overcome this by increasing
the density of the solar cells on the rear wheel and eliminate them
completely from the front wheel.
Frausig's
bicycle is a single gear ratio bicycle that can run at 30 mph under
optimal conditions and the bicycle can run about 40 miles on a fully
charged battery. The desired speed can be set on a handlebar-mounted
control. Sensors fitted in the pedals adjust the speed of the motor
so that the motor is always supplementing the pedal power.
Frausig's
bicycle would not be available at present for customers, who might
wish to buy one. He feels that the bicycle needs lots more
improvement and wants to further improve it, before it can be made
commercially and sold to people. One thing is for sure. His bicycle
has generated much interest for two things; first being it's sporty
design with only about 19 Kg weight instead of typical e-bikes
weighing around 35 Kgs. Perhaps the most important reason for
interest of people is that it is solar powered and that is why
people stop Frausig any time, when he is riding his bicycle, and ask
him, what is he riding?
(This
article is based on a write up published on BBC website)
7th
May 2015
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