Neither Bike Nor Motorcycle: Start-up Builds First SUV E-bike

Electric cars and e-bikes show that well-known vehicle concepts can be successfully equipped with electric drives. But electrification can also be used to develop completely new concepts. This is what the makers of Evinci Mobility GmbH in Oberhaching near Munich did and developed the "Pike I". At first glance, the Pike doesn't fit into any known drawer. And that is wanted. Klaus Rohde, founder and managing director of the startup company, explains: “The Pike I is unique. It combines the easy handling and dynamics of a bike with the power of a motorcycle. And it gets along just as well in the field as in city traffic.”

Drive technology ensures “boost”

But not only the concept of what the developers call "SUV e-bikes" is new, but also the drive system. At its heart is an in-house development: the patented drive concept of the parent company LSP GmbH, which should combine low weight with high performance. The PM electric motor transmits the power via a continuously variable automatic CVT transmission, which shifts automatically under full load and thus ensures uninterrupted acceleration. The drive brings the bike and rider from 0 km / h to 40 km / h in 4 s. The Pike has a range of about 100 km - purely electrically, the range is 40 km.

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The start-up has also redeveloped the drive's operating concept. Rohde explains: "As with a motorcycle, the driver operates the throttle and can choose the driving mode freely - either he drives in electric mode purely motor-operated or he uses the pedal mode and can be assisted when pedaling as desired." As a "human-machine interface" a 3.2 "touch display with Bluetooth connectivity is used for operation.

New paths also in mechanical construction

When designing the Pike, the developers focused primarily on lightweight construction. Aircraft construction was the inspiration for the lightweight construction of the frame, swingarm and seat dome, and carbon is used as a lightweight material in addition to aluminum. This gives the bike a total weight of 33 kg.

NSK supported the designers in the selection of the roller bearings on the axles of the drive and chassis - for example on the swing arm, bottom bracket and wheel hubs. Your specific contact person was Oliver Conrad as the local NSK account manager. Grooved ball bearings from the 6000 series from NSK are installed at different points in the drive. They are made of high-purity steel and absorb radial and axial forces. Quality and performance should be guaranteed, since deep groove ball bearings are the most popular rolling bearing variant.

Depending on the application, the bearings are only equipped with cover disks or with a seal. "Since the Pike can be used off-road and is also out in the rain, the open bearings, for example of the bottom bracket, rear wheel hub and swing arm, have to be sealed very well," says Rohde. With the DDU seal, NSK has developed a labyrinth seal that combines good sealing properties with low friction.

Open NSK deep groove ball bearings are used for the internal bearings. A total of five different types and sizes are installed in the Pike I. Common to all is the smooth running and the compact design, which also means low weight - an important factor when selecting the drive components.

Great interest in the world's first "SUV e-bike"

"Working with NSK worked very well," says Rohde. "The quality of the bearings is very important to us: In principle, we only use high-quality supplier components because we place high demands on the finish, reliability and service life of all components." That is why the NSK rolling bearings and the brakes and the rear wheel suspension come from Magura.

Series production has meanwhile started and the first sales partners are registering great interest in Pike I. "From the start, the demand is gratifyingly high, even though the sales network is not yet complete," says Rohde. And the atomic number in the product name leaves scope for additional variants, especially since the Pike is constructed in a modular design. "We definitely have ideas for a Pike II or III. We want to expand the product range this year."

The standard version of the bike is available from € 8,600, the premium version starts at € 9,600. (kj)