SOLAR BICYCLES: BEM® SAVITRÉ™ SOLAR ON
HABROK®
TATA® STRYDER 27.5ZEETA PLUS™
BEM® SAVITRÉ™ BICYCLE
TATA® STRYDER 26 ROWER™
The Netherlands' Model
Let's pledge to follow 'The Netherlands' Model' (Bicycle and Public Transport Model) and discard the 'US Model' (Private Car 'American Dream' Model).
The images on the left show the Google Maps and 'Street View' of two parallel roads namely 21 Beemdstraat and 12 Mahatma Gandhilaan, in Eindhoven, Nederland. While the maps show that the two roads have a separate bicycle trail, the street view shows cyclists using the bicycle trail and in numbers larger than automobiles.
Google Maps offers a 'biking' layer that offers four different categories of bicycling routes depending on the degree of bicycle friendliness. Solid green lines for paved bicycle trails, solid black lines for dedicated bicycle lanes, dotted green lines for bicycle friendly roads, and dashed green lines for dirt or unpaved bicycle trails. Solid green and solid black line routes are the safest for bicycling. Environmental friendly cities and countries can be identified by visualising the density of such lines. For comparison, we display below the biking layer (courtesy Google) for three different cities, Eindhoven in The Netherlands, Washington DC in the USA, and Gandhinagar in Gujarat, India.
Eindhoven, The Netherlands
Has the maximum density of bicycle trails and dedicated bicycle lanes. Bicycling is part of the Netherlands' culture. Citizens pedal to work, school or for grocery shopping. One of the most environmentally friendly countries.
Washington DC / Alexandria, USA
Washington DC has a reasonably good density of bicycle friendly lanes but fewer dedicated bicycle lanes. Alexandria has a few famous bicycle trails such as the Mt. Vernon trail. Citizens pedal for leisure and pleasure. It's not common to see them pedal to work, school or grocery mart. Less environmentally friendly.
Gandhinagar, India
Gandhinagar has just a couple of dedicated bicycle lanes. But absolutely no bicycle trails or bicycle friendly lanes or even unpaved/ dirt bicycle trails. Using the Google Map, 'bike' layer as a metric, India can be considered as the least environmentally friendly country and unlike other countries, has not begun, as yet, to explore ways in which the cities can be made liveable or safe for citizens/ children.
BEM® SAVITRÉ™ SOLAR BICYCLE REACHES AMERICAN SHORES
On World Environment Day, Sunday, 5th June 2022, Baroda Electric Meters Limited proudly dedicated its indigenously developed BEM® Savitre 'Solar Bicycles' and 'Solar Tricycles ' to India and to the world. Since then the assembly and roll out of the world's first sustainable human transport vehicle has commenced in its works located at Anand, Gujarat, India.
A brand new 26" regular or MTB bicycle from a reputed manufacturer of customer's choice retrofitted complete, with the basic configuration consisting of a 250W BLDC Hub Motor, Electronic Motor Controller, Rechargeable Li-ion Polymer 200Wh Battery, 40 W Solar Panel, BEM Savitre Solar MPPT Battery Charge Controller, Head Light, Tail Light cum Brake Light, Horn & other Fittings, and 3 operational modes (Throttle, Pedal Assist, Manual Pedal), is offered for an all inclusive (inc. GST) ex-works price of ₹25,200 (or USD$ 260 or EURO € 240) only! The price includes cost of a brand new bicycle and has no extra or hidden costs. Due to local demand, it is currenlty available only at the Factory Store.
Solar Bicycles and Tricycles are truly a novel and innovative concept. It is probably the only vehicle developed and commercialised so far that generates its own energy that it (the vehicle) consumes. As proud innovators and manufacturers of the solar cycles, we suggest that readers compare it with other vehicles (ICE vehicles or EVs).
To what extent are you willing to go in order to protect the environment?
Would you buy a new BS6 or EURO6 vehicle with ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) ?
Under the BS6 norm, the limit of pollution has been reduced - while the norm for Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) is reduced to 60mg/km, the Pariculate Matter (PM) has been restricted to 4.5mg/km (Actually the credit goes more to the BS6 fuel that contains less sulphur and NOx). Nevertheless internal combustion engines (ICE) do pollute, and more significantly cause global warming and deplete the planet of its scarce oil resources.
Would you buy a new Electric Car instead?
Our article on Solar Bicycles vs. EVs shows how you would be continuing to use fossil fuel to charge your Electric Vehicle (EV), and thus would be still responsible for pollution (in sharp contrast to the claims made by GEDA).
Are you willing to ride a solar bicycle (max. speed = 30 km/hr) to work?
At just 1% of the cost of an Electric Car, riding a solar cycle represents a shift to a healthy lifestyle.
BEM Savitre™ Solar Cycles and Solar MPPT Controllers
BEM® Savitre™ MPPT Solar Charge Controllers / Battery Chargers can be simply be attached to Solar Panels placed under the Sun to charge up rechargeable batteries at the fastest possible pace - i.e. in minimum battery charging time. These are 32 bit ARM Cortex microcontroller based chargers with true 'Maximum Power Point Tracking' (MPPT) algorithms that enable it to extract maximum power from a solar panel of a certain capacity (Beware of modules without tracking ability, or simple PWM modules, in the market, labelled as MPPT!) . The MPPT Solar Charge Controllers are particularly useful in remote areas for applications that need battery power far away from the electric grid. Different models can be used for charging Li-Ion Batteries for wide range of applications ranging from E-bikes or E-bicycles to Rechargeable Lanterns & Torches. BEM® Savitre™ MPPT Controllers have been designed with inbuilt protection and controlled operating modes for high reliability, quick charging and longer usage life of the rechargeable batteries.
Basic Configuration for All BEM® Savitré Solar e -Bicycles (No extra Cost):
Three Operation Modes:
Throttle Mode: Switch ON the Power by turning the key clockwise. Gently rotate the throttle handle anticlockwise to accelerate. Retain the position of handle rotation to cruise at the desired speed. Let go off the handle to allow it to get back to the original (zero) position to cut off battery supply to the motor and free wheel - cycle continues to move due to inertia. With a 5Ah Battery one can cover a distance of 15 to 20 kms in this mode
Pedal Assist Mode (PAS): Switch ON the Power by turning the key clockwise. Do not use the Throttle handle. Instead press your foot on the pedal. The Pedal Assist Sensor (PAS) will detect your pedalling speed and assist manual power with battery power. The PAS mode allows you to travel the same distance with less manual effort. Battery gets drained less in the PAS mode in comparison to the Throttle mode, thereby enabling one to cover larger distances. With a 5Ah Battery one can cover a distance of 25 to 30 kms in this mode.
Manual Pedal Mode: Switch OFF the Power by turning the key anti-clockwise. This would disable both PAS and Throttle modes. The bicycle gets transformed back to a human powered, pedal driven one. This mode is particularly useful to safely return back home, when you run out of battery power. The 5Ah Battery does not get drained in the manual pedal mode.
Tip: Apply brakes only when needed. Applying brakes unnecessarily wastes energy.
Brake Wire used to adjust the Tilt Angle of the Solar Panel for faster Solar Charging.
Solar Panel also works well as a Mud guard to prevent rider's clothes from getting soiled.
Specifications:
Maximum Distance per day: Assuming bright sunny days, the solar cycle can cover an average distance of 15 kms every day in Throttle mode, and 30 kms per day in Pedal Assist (PAS) Mode. By increasing the solar panel size and battery capacity, this distance can be increased - though not recommended since the panel is mounted on the bicycle.
Maximum Speed: Due to RTO restrictions, the maximum speed is limited to 30 km/ hour.
Time take for Solar Charge: Typically takes 6 hours under the sun to fully charge the battery
Time taken for Battery Discharge: Typically takes 1 hour to discharge the battery at maximum speed.
Additional Features for BEM® Savitré Solar e -Bicycles at Extra Cost
An LCD Display (instead of an LED display), that displays the Speed, Odometer - Total Distance covered in km, Trip Distance in km & battery charge status.
A 3 speed PAS (Pedal Assist) control switch that gives the rider an ability to choose the level of assistance that is needed from the Battery while pedalling.
Cruise Control: After twisting / rotating the throttle handle by a fixed degree and by maintaining a steady speed for a time duration greater than 5 seconds, the motor controller would enter the 'Cruise Control' mode (indicated accordingly by an icon on the LCD Panel). Thereafter, the rider is free to release the throttle handle while the motor controller takes over the function of maintaining the set speed or 'cruise control mode'. The motor controller would exit the cruise control mode when any of the following conditions get satisfied: (a) Any of the brake levers are pressed, or (b) The Throttle handle is again rotated, or (c) The Pedals are rotated.
A Strip LED Tail light and Brake Light mounted on rear solar panel for better aesthetic looks. Tail light goes ON when switch is turned ON, regardless of whether day / night, for safe riding in all weather conditions. When brakes are applied, bright brake light goes ON with increased lumen output for better visibility and increased safety.
Detachable plug and socket arrangement for the Hub motor for easy wheel removal in case of tyre replacement or puncture repairs.
Warranty of 12 months for motor and controller.
Bicycles of larger/ different frame sizes, or wheel sizes greater than 26" such as the 29", or those with front Shocker/Suspension instead of rigid front suspension, or ones with disc brakes instead of normal brakes, or ones that have no rear carriers or ones that need extra fittings, would cost extra.
If not already provided by the bicycle manufacturer, a light weight rear carrier would be fitted to mount the Solar Panel (at extra cost).
The Innovation behind BEM® Solar Cycles?
It has taken mankind two hundred years from the invention of the first human driven vehicle - a bicycle, to the development of a truly environmentally sustainable vehicle - solar cycle.
To convert an ordinary (human powered) bicycle into an environment friendly (motor powered) solar bicycle the major challenge is designing with the primary source of power - namely the solar panel. Due to the light weight (<20 - 30 kgs), size, and 'center of gravity' (CG) constraints associated with a bicycle, it is not feasible to fit an overly large sized solar panel on the bicycle. The BEM® सवित्रे™ Savitré - 2 Amps MPPT Solar Charge Controller, developed in-house, indigenously, gives an ability to a relatively smaller sized solar panel to charge the rechargeable battery at a fast rate. The BEM® Solar bicycle is fitted with a medium sized 40W, 12V Solar panel and yet, the charge controller is able to deliver approx. 1 Amp of charging current to the battery. A 32 bit ARM microcontroller that runs a Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) algorithm gives the charger an ability to extract maximum possible power from the Solar panel and feed the same to the rechargeable Li-ion battery.
Tip: Ensure that the solar panel is facing sun, avoid shadows, and keep the panel surface clean for best performance.
We have chosen Savitré as the name of the Solar MPPT Charger. Accordingly, we have name our rollout of Solar Bicycles as Project Savitré. The name Savitré originates from the Mantra (name of Surya or Sun God) - ॐ सवित्रे नमः Oṃ Savitré Namaḥ, meaning - one who produces everything. Savitré also has a corresponding Asna (Step) in Yoga - namely Padahastasana - a variant of Uttanasana or 'Standing Forward Bending' asana in modern yoga as exercise and as shown in the emblem alongside.
