Performance Evaluation of Electric Bicycles

A. MUETZE, Y. C. TAN
Electrical and Computer Engineering Department
University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI 53706, USA
E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]

Abstrac—Electric motor powered bicycles (short: “electric gives a summary of the different results that can serve as a
bicycles”) have been making their way into the U.S. market for roadmap for such improvements. This summary includes
about two decades. Such electric bicycles can be used for a both market trends and regulations, and technical-science
large variety of purposes. This paper gives a systematic, com- related aspects (Section IV). Different paths of further re-
prehensive, theoretically and experimentally based characteri-
search that can build on the presented work are out-lined in
zation of electric bicycles, and reports on the different perfor-
mance requirements. Thereby, the needs and challenges in de- the conclusion (Section V).
signing electric bicycles with improved overall performance are
identified. For example, generally critical issues such as heavy, II. EVALUATION OF THE STATE-OF-THE-ART
bulky batteries and high drive costs can be addressed. Further-
more, the overview can be used for comparison of existing A. Basic configuration of an electric bicycle system
drives in a thorough, technically meaningful way. The basic configuration of an electric bicycle drive
consists of a controller that controls the power flow from the
Keywords—power-assisted bicycle, direct drive, battery,
efficiency, performance evaluation battery to the electric motor. This power flow acts in parallel
to the power delivered by the rider via the pedal of the bike
(Fig. 1).
I. INTRODUCTION
Electric motor powered bicycles have been making their Pedals Gears
way into the U.S. market for about two decades. In the U.S.
such bicycles can be fully powered by a motor. In other Rider Drive
countries such as Japan, electric motor powered bicycles are input wheel
required to operate with 50% human pedal power for up to
Motor
12 mph, and an even higher percentage of human power is control
Motor
required above that speed. Such bicycles are commonly
known as “Pedelecs” (Pedal electric cycle). In this paper,
the term “electric bicycle” is used to describe “electric motor Battery Vehicle
charger Battery
powered bicycles,” including both fully and partially motor assecoires
powered bicycles. Electric bicycles can be used for a variety
of purposes, for example, as a vehicle for police or law en- Fig. 1: Parallel Hybrid Schematic Diagram [13]
forcers in cities where parking and traffic are a problem, as a The rider of an E-bike can choose to
guide bicycle during bicycle races, as a park ranger vehicle, 1. Rely on the motor completely.
and for leisurely rides and commuting purposes. In the U.S., 2. Pedal and use the motor at the same time.
electric bicycles are currently used most commonly for short 3. Pedal only (use as a conventional bicycle).
trips to grocery stores or for leisurely rides.
First, the paper gives a systematic, comprehensive B. Overview of electric bicycles worldwide
classification of electric bicycles that includes an overview of Electric bicycles have been gaining increasing attention
today’s commercially available electric bicycles [e.g. 1-12] worldwide, especially in China, Europe, Japan, Taiwan, and
(Section II). The overview is given by means of tables that the United States. In the following, the most distinguishing
convey the information in a clear manner. Next, using aspects of electric bicycles in these countries are summa-
knowledge from the field of professional bicycling as a rized, based on the authors’ own studies and Frank Jamer-
starting point, the technical performance requirements on son’s Electric bikes worldwide 2002 [1].
electric bicycles are identified. The results of the theoretical Today, China is the largest manufacturer of electric
approach are confirmed with measurements that have been bicycles, exporting the majority of the electric bicycles, but
carried out in the context of “real-life-applications” also meeting a strong local demand. According to China’s
(Section III). From the results of Sections II and III, the key Electric Bike General Technical Qualification GB17761-
parameters, needs and challenges in improving the perfor- 1999 [9], Chinese electric bicycles may not exceed 20 km/h,
mance of electric bicycles are identified. Then, the paper and may not be heavier than 40 kg.

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In Europe, most electric bicycles are manufactured in TABLE II
PERFORMANCE RANGE OF COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE ELECTRIC BICYCLES
Germany and in the Netherlands, and Pedelec-type electric
bicycles are more common. Speed
In Japan, most electric bicycles are produced by the Average speed 12 mph 19 km/h
Maximum speed**) 20 mph 32 km/h
automotive industry, and electric bicycles are required by Travel range (Full charge) 10-50 miles 16-80 km
law to be Pedelec-type bicycles. Electric bicycles produced Batteries
in Taiwan are mostly exported to Europe. Charging time 2-6 hours
In regard to the United States, electric bicycles are not as Cycles of charge/discharge Up to 400
Power
popular as in the other mentioned countries, and most electric Power consumption
bicycles are imported. In some states, the federal law and the 100-500 Wh
(each full charge)
state law for electric bicycles are different. On-board power supply 12-36 V
Torque
C. Aspects favoring the use of electric bicycles Hill climbing ability up to 6 % slope
A number of different aspects favor the use of electric bi- Weight
Electric bicycle kit excluding
cycles in different situations. These include lower energy original bicycle weight
10-50 lbs 4.6-22.8 kg
cost per distance traveled (1 %…2 % of going by car when Price range
going by electric bicycle) for a single rider, savings in other Electric bicycle kit only $250-$800
costs such as insurances, licenses, registration, parking, im- Electric bicycle kit and bicycle
$800-$2600
(Custom built electric bicycles)
provement of the traffic flow, environmental friendliness,
**)
and the health benefit for the rider (Table I). Sec. 2085 of the federal law [14] defines a “low-speed electric bicycle” as
“a two- or three-wheeled vehicle with fully operable pedals and an electric
TABLE I motor of less than 750 W, whose maximum speed on a paved level surface,
ASPECTS FAVORING THE USE OF ELECTRIC BICYCLES when powered solely by such a motor while ridden by an operator who
weighs 170 pounds, is less than 20 mph.”
Averaging, costs*) are
• $7.1/100miles = $4.4/100km for going by car, E. Criteria for classification of electric bicycles
Energy costs but only
• $0.12/100miles = $0.7/100km for going by electric Criteria for classification of electric bicycles have been
bicycle determined such that they are independent of the country and
Generally, no insurance, license, registration, and the purpose of use. These are the bicycle kit type, motor
Other costs
parking are needed.
type, motor assembly, assist type, throttle type, motor
Most states allow electric bicycles on bicycle paths:
Traffic flow
avoidance of traffic jams placement, and battery type (Table III). The assets and
Environmental drawbacks of these criteria are shown for each sub-category
Zero-emission vehicle
friendliness in Table IV through Table X.
Incorporation of exercise and longer distance
Health benefit TABLE III
commuting
CRITERIA FOR CLASSIFICATION OF ELECTRIC BICYCLES
*)
Sample cost calculation for a 100 miles trip on a 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer:
• Gas tank capacity: 28 miles/gallon [13] • Custom built
Bicycle kit type Table IV
• Approximate gas rate as of November 2004: $2/gallon • Add on
• Brushed DC machine
• Costs for 100 miles: 2 $/gallon / (28 miles/gallon)⋅ 100 miles = $7.1 Motor type***) Table V
• Brushless DC machine
Sample cost calculation for a 100 miles trip on an electric bicycle: • Gear
• Power to travel at 10 mph: 120 W (experimentally obtained, see Fig. 4) Motor assembly • Hub Table VI
• Duration: 100 miles/10 mph = 10 hours • Friction
• Energy usage: 1.2 kWh • Fully assist
• Madison Gas & Electric rate as of November 2004: $0.1/kWh Assist type Table VII
• Half assist
• Costs for 100 miles: 1.2 kWh ⋅ 0.1 $/kWh = $0.12 • Thumb throttle
Throttle type • Twist throttle Table VIII
• Push button
D. Performance range of commercially available electric • Front wheel
Motor placement Table IX
bicycles • Rear wheel
• Lead acid
Table II gives an overview of the performance range of Battery type Table X
• NiMH
commercially available electric bicycles today according to • Others
the authors’ market research. ***)
At large, both brushed and brushless dc motors are used by most electric
The specifications of electric bicycles vary according to bicycle or electric bicycle kit manufacturers. As far as the authors know,
the bicycle design and the riding conditions for which the induction motors and synchronous motors are rarely used in commercially
electric bicycle is designed. The influence of several factors available electric bicycles, and thus they are not discussed here.
and parameters on the different criteria is elaborated in
Section III.

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TABLE IV TABLE VIII
ASSETS AND DRAWBACKS OF DIFFERENT BICYCLE KIT TYPES ASSETS AND DRAWBACKS OF DIFFERENT THROTTLE TYPES
BICYCLE KIT TYPE THROTTLE TYPE
Custom built Add on Thumb throttle Twist throttle Push button
Assets: Assets: Asset: Asset: Asset:
• High end bicycles • Comparatively inexpensive • Reduced risk of acci- • Feels like moped/ • Inexpensive
• Good appearance • Mounting flexibility dental acceleration motorcycle
• Safety features • Suitable for different bicycle Drawback: Drawback: Drawback:
• Little/no installation required types • May be less comfort- • Throttle can be • Need to push button
• Bicycle can be re-converted to a table than other types turned accidentally repetitively for more
conventional bicycle (personal preference) precise control
Drawback: Drawbacks:
• Comparatively high costs • Installation needed TABLE IX
• Connections may not be robust ASSETS AND DRAWBACKS OF DIFFERENT MOTOR PLACEMENT TYPES

TABLE V MOTOR PLACEMENT TYPE

ASSETS AND DRAWBACKS OF DIFFERENT MOTOR TYPES Front Rear
Assets: Assets:
MOTOR TYPE • Comparatively easy installation • Best for light weight vehicles in
Brushed DC motor Brushless DC motor • Good weight distribution general, including bicycles
Asset: Assets: • Suitable for lowland and hilly • Better traction for hill climbing
• Simple controller • Higher efficiency than brushed regions with good roads • Suitable for mountainous re-
motor gions and poor ground conditions
• Reduced size when compared Drawback: Drawback:
with brushed motor • Front wheel slides are more • Comparatively complex instal-
Drawbacks: Drawback: dangerous than rear wheel slides lation
• Lower efficiency than brushless • More complex controller than
motor brushed DC motor TABLE X
• Brushes increase the motor size ASSETS AND DRAWBACKS OF DIFFERENT BATTERY TYPES
and can increase the difficulty of
BATTERY TYPE
mounting the motor into the fork of
Regenerative
the bicycle Lead acid NiMH Others
braking
TABLE VI Asset: Assets: Assets and Assets:
ASSETS AND DRAWBACKS OF DIFFERENT MOTOR ASSEMBLY TYPES • Inexpensive • Light drawbacks • Recovered energy
• Good perfor- depend on increases the bi-
MOTOR ASSEMBLY TYPE mance type bicycle performance
Gear Hub Friction Drawback: Drawback: Drawback:
Asset: Asset: Asset: • Heavy • Cost • More complex
• Reduced risk of acci- • Feels like moped/ • Inexpensive controller than non-
dental acceleration motorcycle re-generative type
Drawback: Drawback: Drawback:
• May be less comfort- • Throttle can be • Need of repetitive
table than other types turned accidentally pushing of the but- F. Performance evaluation of electric bicycles
(personal preference) ton for precise con-
trol In a similar way, as with the previously specified criteria
for classification of electric bicycles, criteria have been de-
TABLE VII
ASSETS AND DRAWBACKS OF DIFFERENT ASSIST TYPES
fined to evaluate the performance of electric bicycles. These
are technical performance, practicability, design, environ-
ASSIST TYPE
mental friendliness, and cost and economics (Table XI). The
Full assist Half assist
Choices of modes of operation: Choices of modes of operations: sub-categories of all criteria except for the technical perfor-
• Pedaling only • Motor assistance is only avail- mance, and cost and economics are commented individually
• Motor operation only able when the user is pedaling in Table XII through Table XIV. The technical performance
• Pedaling and motor operation in • Level of assistance is deter- characteristics such as power, torque, and speed have been
parallel mined by the user input
investigated both theoretically and experimentally and are
Assets: Assets:
• Increased number of choices of • Meets the law requirements in discussed in Section III. Cost and economics have been
modes of operation more countries than the full assist discussed above in Table I.
type
Drawbacks: Drawbacks:
• Not in all countries legally • Rider always has to pedal
allowed

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TABLE XI TABLE XIV
CRITERIA FOR PERFORMACNE EVALUATION OF ELECTRIC BICYCLES ASPECTS OF THE DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENTAL CRITERIA
• Power ENVIRONMENTAL CRITERIA
• Torque Pollution
Technical
• Speed Section III • No gas emission
performance
• Efficiency Noise
• Distance/charge • 55-60 dB compared with fuel/gas vehicles at 65-70 dB
• Technical maturity
• Battery charging
Practicability Table XII III. INVESTIGATION OF TECHNICAL PERFORMANCE
• Operating condition
• Service/maintenance REQUIREMENTS
• Ergonomics
Design • Safety Table XIII A. Theoretical background
• Battery
• Pollution The total power Ptotal required to drive the bicycle is
Environment Table XIV
• Noise given by the sum of the power to overcome the air drag Pdrag,
• Unit price the power to overcome the slope Phill, and the power to over-
Cost & economics Table I
• Other costs
come the friction Pfriction. Equations (1) through (4) show the
TABLE XII relationships as discussed in [6] and [8], where the symbols
ASPECTS OF THE DIFFERENT PRACTICABILITY CRITERIA for the parameters, their units, along with some remarks are
PRACTICABILITY CRITERIA summarized in Table XV.
Technical maturity Ptotal = Pdrag + Pthill + Pfriction (1)
• Technical performance is improving, yet more work is needed to be
Cd ⋅ D ⋅ A (2)
competitive with other vehicles Pdrag =
2
( 2
⋅ v g + vw ⋅ v g)
• More research is needed on the durability/lifetime of electric bicycles
Battery charging Phill = 9.81 ⋅ G ⋅ vg ⋅ m (3)
• Long charging time: Typically 4 hours compared with 4 minutes for a
gasoline fueled vehicle Pfriction = 9.81 ⋅ m ⋅ Rc ⋅ vg (4)
• Sparse availability of charging stations: Re-charging can often only
be done at home TABLE XV
Operating condition SYMBOL AND PARAMETER DEFINITION
Assets: SYMBOL PARA- UNIT REMARKS
• No age limit METER
• Generally no license required Cd Drag - The drag coefficient is small for
• Easy to operate coefficient aerodynamic bodies. Typical
Drawbacks: values are: Passenger car: Cd = 0.3,
• Weather dependence recumbent bicyclist: Cd = 0.77,
• Not winter/wet weather/ rain friendly upright cyclist Cd = 1 [6], and
Service / Maintenance Cd = 0.5 for a cyclist [3].
Asset: Conventional bicycle parts can be serviced by a conventional D Density of kg/m3
bicycle shop air
Drawback: After sales service and maintenance are not well A Frontal area m2 The frontal area is the area of the
established today. mass encountered by the air.
Typical values are: A = 0.5m2 [3],
TABLE XIII A = 0.4m2 [6]
ASPECTS OF THE DIFFERENT DESIGN CRITERIA vg Ground m/s
DESIGN CRITERIA speed
Ergonomic vw Head wind m/s
• Bicycle size is small. Parking is easy when compared with other speed
bicycles G Slope grade - The slope grade is rise/run.
• Honks, headlights, and disk breaks can be added for safety purposes For steep grades, G should be
Safety expressed by arctan(rise/run).
Asset: Not as explosive as fuel vehicles (accidents) m Weight****) Kg
Drawback: More tests on general road safety and crash tests on Rc Rolling - The rolling coefficient depends on
electric bicycles traveling at high speed are required coefficient friction effects. For example,
Battery compacted gravel and smooth
• Significant component to increase the electric bicycle performance asphalt paths have different rolling
significantly. coefficient of 0.004 [3] and 0.014
• Lighter weight, higher energy density batteries are needed. [6] respectively.
9.81 Gravity m/s2
acceleration
****)
Rider and bicycle, including accessories

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The three cases that can be distinguished according to
Wilson’s Bicycle Science [8] correspond to the following ri-
ding conditions:
• Case 1:
At speed greater than 3 m/s (≈ 6 mph) the majority
of the power is used to overcome the air drag
→ Flat ground, high speed:
→ Pdrag ↑↑, Phill, = 0, Pdrag > Pfriction
• Case 2:
At speed less than 3 m/s (≈ 6 mph) and at level sur-
faces, the majority of the power is used to overcome
the rolling resistance.
→ Flat ground, low speed:
→ Pfriction ↑↑, Phill, = 0, Pfriction > Pdrag Fig. 2: Electric bicycle test set-up used for the experimental investigation
• Case 3:
On steep hills, the power required for overcoming
air drag and rolling resistance is small when com-
pared with the power required to overcome the
slope.
→ Hilly ground, low speed:
→ Phill ↑↑, Phill > Pdrag, Phill > Pfriction
B. Design of experimental evaluation of the technical per-
formance of electric bicycles
Two types of measurements were designed to experi-
mentally evaluate electric bicycle performance during “real-
life-applications:”
(1) The requirements in terms of power P versus ground
speed vg with respect to the influence of the load m, slope
grade G, and head wind speed vw are experimentally
Fig. 3: Power Tap hub used for the experimental investigation
determined.
(2) The riding profiles in terms of power P, torque T, and
ground speed vg during riding intervals of different riders, D. Experimental investigation of power requirement as a
where the bicycle is used for a short leisurely ride, grocery function of load, speed, and headwind
shopping, or commuting.
For these experiments, different riders rode the test
C. Test vehicle description and instrumentation bicycle without using the hub motor (see previous section)
For the experimental investigation, an electric bicycle under different riding conditions. The experiments were
with a brushed dc motor installed in the front hub, a conducted for speed up to 12 mph (19 km/h) which is typical
controller, thumb throttle and battery pack is used (Fig. 2). for city rides. The air density is approximated to be constant.
The hub-motor is not used during the measurements, yet, Furthermore, based on the theoretical results, rolling and
using this bicycle, the actual set up of an electric bicycle is drag coefficients are assumed to be almost constant and are
represented. The torque and speed are directly measured in not investigated in detail. Three series of measurements
the hub of the rear wheel of the test bicycle, using a Power were carried out:
Tap hub (Fig. 3) [15]. The measurement information is (1) Total power Ptotal versus ground speed vg as a function
transmitted to the Power Tap CPU through the receiver. of load m (Fig. 4).
Furthermore, the relative head-wind speed as seen while (2) Total power Ptotal versus ground speed vg as a function
riding is measured by means of an anemometer. The head- of slope grade G (Fig. 5).
wind speed is then obtained from the difference of (3) Total power Ptotal versus ground speed vg as a function
anemometer and power tap speed. of wind speed vw (Fig. 6).
In the following, the measurement results are discussed
subsequently.

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Power (W) 154+20 kg
linearly with the slope grade G. For approximately an 80 kg
300 75+20 kg
weight of rider and bicycle, 320 W (47 Nm torque) are re-
64+20 kg
quired to climb up a reasonable slope of 4% at 10 mph.
250 With electric bicycles rated at the maximum power
61+20 kg
(Rider + bicycle)
allowed by federal law of 750 W, the maximum torque capa-
200
bility at 10 mph is 110 Nm. As a result, the steepest slope
150 electric bicycles can climb at 10 mph ground speed is 8%. It
is important to note that unless riding in a hilly terrain, city
100 rides usually need high torques only for a short period of
time. Therefore, motors designed for city rides can have ra-
50
ted power below the federal law provisions.
0
Power (W)
5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Speed (mph) 100
90
Fig. 4. Influence of the weight of rider and bicycle influence on the power
versus speed curve; no wind, constant slope G ≈ 1% 80
70
The series of measurements for total power Ptotal versus 60
ground speed vg as a function of load m illustrates equations 50
(3) and (4): For a given ground speed vg, small variations in 40
load result in small variations in power requirement (20W 30 1 mph
difference of required power for 15 kg load variation). For 3 mph
20 5 mph
doubled load, twice the power is required, as is illustrated by 10 6 mph
comparing the curves for (64+20) kg and (154+20) kg load. 0
Generally, a heavier rider also has a larger effective area A 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
that increases the power needed to overcome the air drag (2) Speed (mph)
and accounts for the non-linear increase from the curves
Fig. 6. Influence of the head wind on the power versus speed curve; no
obtained for (64+20) kg and (154+20) kg load. wind, weight of rider and bicycle m = 81kg, all head wind speeds taken as
An addition of 10kg to the bicycle systems requires average
additional power of approximately 10 W to 15 W. Thus,
The measurement results for total power Ptotal versus
there is not a significantly larger amount of energy needed to
ground speed vg as a function of head-wind vw are in line
propel the bike if the load difference is less than a few kilo-
with equation (2): With increasing vw, the power require-
grams.
ment increases. However, due to the very stochastic nature
of wind, this experiment only provides a rough idea of the
Power (W) 4.0% 3.9% trend. Furthermore, crouching or an upright position affects
350 2.4% 1.0% the frontal area A. Yet, at the relatively low ground speed
300 this does significantly effect the power requirement, notably
with flat ground and at small headwind. Future work to
250
obtain accurate results could be done by using wind tunnels.
200 It is important to note that headwind does not seem to be
150
a major criterion for city-ride electric bicycles, given the
usual profiles of city rides.
100
E. Experimental riding interval analysis
50
For the second group of measurement, four riders rode
0 the test bicycle around the city of Madison, WI, for 16 to 26
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 minutes. The average and maximum total power require-
Speed (mph) ments Pave / Pmax, torques Tave / Tmax, and ground speeds vave /
Fig. 5. Influence of the slope of the path on the power versus speed curve; vmax are summarized in Table XVI. For illustration, Figures
no wind, weight of rider and bicycle m = 81kg, all slopes taken as average 7 and 8 show exemplarily the power versus time profiles of
The series of measurements, total power Ptotal versus the two rides of Rider 1 and Rider 4. These two rides
ground speed vg as a function of the slope grade G, visualizes represent the two extremes in terms of power requirements
the correlation of equation (3): For a given ground speed vg, that are covered (Same scales on both figures by intention.).
Pfriction is constant, but Phill is directly proportional to the It should be noted that the maximum speed of the ride of
slope grade G. Thus, neglecting the Pdrag, Ptotal increases Rider 4 exceeds the speed limit for low-speed electric
bicycles according to U.S. law of 20 mph (Table II).

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TABLE XVI but consumes less than 50% of the energy, because of the
RESULTS OF INTERVAL RIDING ANALYSIS
lower weight of the rider. Even with assuming an efficiency
Rider 1 Rider 2 Rider 3 Rider 4 of the drive of 50 %, the energy requirement of the rides of
Rider weight [kg] 50 75 85 95 Riders 1 through 3 could be met by a laptop-size battery.
Pave [W] 35.6 133.9 66.3 179.0 Such an energy source could be easily put on and taken off
Pmax [W] 204.0 389.1 368.6 857.0
Tave [Nm] 4.7 8.2 5.9 9.9
the bicycle and the bicycle be recharged in a similar way as it
Tmax [Nm] 27.9 40.8 26.4 50.2 is today common with cell phones.
vg,av [mph] 5.4 12.7 7.6 13.0
vg,max [mph] 9.2 20.9 18.3 24.2∆) IV. SUMMARY OF PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS
vg,av [km/h] 8.7 20.4 12.2 20.9
vg,max [km/h] 14.8 33.6 29.4 39.0 Drawing from the previous discussions, the electric
Interval time [min] 18 16 22 25 bicycle performance evaluation is summarized in terms of
Energy [Wh] 11.9 35.7 24.31 77.6 different key parameters. These include market trends and
∆)
Above the speed limit for “low-speed electric bicycles” according to U.S. regulations, opportunities for improvement by special-pur-
federal law (Table II) pose-design to attract customers, identification of possibly
Power (W) over-sized components and reduction of over-sizing, and
900 identification of areas where further research is needed
800
(Table V). In a similar way as before (Section II), the sub-
categories of the different areas are commented individually
700
in Table XVIII through Table XXII.
600
500
TABLE XVII
400 SUMMARY: ELECTRIC BICYCLE PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
300 • Demand
Market trend Table XVIII
200 • Publicity
100 • On-road law
Regulations Table XIX
• Bicycle assembly
0 • City bicycle
0 5 10 15 20 25 • Hill bicycle
“Special-purpose bicycles” Table XX
Time (min) • Distance bicycle
• Speedy bicycle
Fig. 7. Power versus time profile of Rider 1 (Same scales as Fig. 8 by inten-
Reduction of possible • Motor
tion) Table XXI
over-sizing • Battery
Power (W) • Battery
Research & Development • Technical Table XXII
900
• Regenerative braking
800
TABLE XVIII
700
COMMENTS ON MARKET TRENDS
600
MARKET TREND
500 Demand
400 The market demand for electric bicycles might increase if non-green
vehicles are banned. For example, in Beijing, Tianjin, Guangzhou
300 municipals banned the sales and operation of fuel-assisted vehicle.
200 As a result, in the first half of 2000, sales of electric bicycles sales in
Shanghai increased 99.14%, compared with the same period in the
100
previous years.
0 Publicity
0 5 10 15 20 25 More publicity is needed to introduce the public to electric bicycles.
Time (min)
TABLE XIX
Fig. 8. Power versus time profile of Rider 4 COMMENTS ON REGULATIONS

The four riding profiles cover a broad spectrum of Pave, REGULATIONS

On-road law
Pmax, Tave, Tmax, vave, and vmax. Neglecting the athletic figure
U.S States have different law for electric bicycles, particularly as re-
of Rider 4, a maximum torque of 30 Nm, along with a gards to the licensing aspect. Releasing electric bicycles from licen-
maximum power of somewhat less than 400 W and an sing would favor an increase of popularity.
average torque of 6 to 8 Nm, along with an average power in Bicycle assembly
the order of 100 W, reflects the requirements of an average A uniform standard/guideline for designers/manufacturers of electric
bicycles would avoid the quality of electric bicycles to be
ride. It is noticeable that the ride of Rider 1 is shorter than compromised.
the ride of Rider 3, and about as long as the ride of Rider 2,

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TABLE XX
SPECIAL-PURPOSE DESGIN OF ELECTRIC BICYCLES V. CONCLUSIONS
“SPECIAL-PURPOSE BICYCLES” An important criteria for addressing the generally
City bicycle assumed issues with high electric bicycle costs and weight
Fast acceleration, frequent stops that include battery, controller, and motor are the possibilities
Average power 150 W
Average speed 17.6 km/h (11mph) offered by custom-designed drives that are most efficient
Hill bicycle over a given operating cycle. These include “city bicycles,”
High torque capability, “hill bicycles,” “distance bicycles” and “speedy bicycles.”
Maximum power 300 W at 12.8 km/h (8 mph) for a short time The results can serve as a platform to improve electric bi-
corresponding to a (4 % slope grade)
Distance bicycle
cycle performance if new drive systems are designed by
Designed for traveling at constant and comparatively low speed, but for revealing the key parameters that will result in improvement
a longer distance of the system performance. Furthermore, they can be used
For example average speed 16 km/h (10 mph) at average power 100 W for comparison of existing drives in a systematical, compre-
Speedy bicycle
Fast acceleration capability
hensive, and technical way.
High speed capability 29km/h (18mph),
Average power 200 W REFERENCES
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Maximum power according to federal law: 750 W at 20 mph speed Proceedings of 2002 IEEE Industry Applications Society Annual
This is much more power than is normal required with electric Meeting, October 13-18, pp. 384-389, 2002.
bicycles. [4] A. Muetze, A.G. Jack, and B.C. Mecrow, “Brushless-dc motor using
Electric bikes in the current market generally do not exceed 400 W. soft magnetic composites as a direct drive in an electric bicycle,”
Drawing from Fig. 4 and Fig. 5, this value is a good guideline for Proceedings of the 9th European Conference on Power Electronics and
general design. Applications (EPE), paper no. 350, Graz, 2001.
Battery [5] A. Muetze, A.G. Jack, and B.C. Mecrow, “Alternate designs of
In a similar way that with the motor, careful selection of the battery brushless-dc motors using soft magnetic composites,” Proceedings of
could reduce the heavy battery weight. For example, drawing from the 15th International Conference on Electrical Machines (ICEM), paper
Table XVI, a laptop-size battery that could be easily put on and taken no. 237, Bruges, 2002.
off the bicycle would be sufficient for short rides up to 30 minutes. [6] W.C. Morchin, “Battery-powered electric bicycles,” in Proceedings of
Then, the bicycle recharging would be handled in a similar way as it is Northcon’94, October 11-13, pp. 269-274, 1994.
today common with cell phones. [7] H. Oman, W.C. Morchin, and F.E. Jamerson, “Electric-bicycle
propulsion power,” Proceedings of WESCON'95, November 7-9, pp.
TABLE XXII 555-560, 1995.
COMMENTS ON RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT [8] D.G. Wilson, J. Papadopoulos, and F.R. Whitt, Bicycling science,
Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 2004.
AREAS OF FURTHER RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
[9] NASA http://gltrs.grc.nasa.gov/reports/2001/TM-2001-210972.pdf
Battery
• Further investigation is needed to examine how improved battery [10] United States Code http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/#SECTIONS
technology could improve the performance of electric bicycles [11] Extra energy http://extraenergy.org/main.php
• Further investigation on the importance and influence of battery [12] China’s Electric Bike General Technical Qualification [in Chinese],
density and charging time on electric bicycles is needed http://www.wxetc.gov.cn/article.php/127
Drive [13] 2002 Mitsubishi Lancer mpg obtained from the United States Fuel
• The motor should be designed to be most efficient over the operating Economy Guide http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/noframes/17596.
cycle. shtml
• Further investigation is needed on the assets and drawbacks of [14] United States Code http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/#SECTIONS
different motor types and controllers. [15] Power Tap is by Graber Products, Inc., 5253 Verona Road, Madison,
Regenerative braking WI USA. www.cycle-ops.com
Regenerative braking will be more useful in hilly areas or when
braking is used often as in city rides. Future work needs to identify the
percentage recoverable energy, the impact on efficiency, cost, and
reduction of dependence on battery technology.

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