If you want to pedal, but would like the assistance of electricity whenever your own energy starts to lack, you have limited options. You can either get an all-electric bike, which often looks bulky and tends to be heavy. Or you can try to retrofit your current bike with an often inelegant conversion system that requires lots of tools, and once installed, makes everything look very DIY, and weekend-tinkerer-y. The Rubbee fixes all that. It simply attaches to your seat post with a basic clamp, and a motorized rubber wheel then rests atop your own bike’s rear wheel for propulsion. A 20,000 mAh battery provides up to 800W of power, propelling you at up to 25 km/h (15 mph) for one hour. That means it’s got a range of 25km (15 miles) incidentally, just in case your arithmetic isn’t up to snuff. The battery can be recharged in two hours, and is rated for up to 2,000 cycles without loss of range, which is a full charge a day, every day, for 5 years. The entire system weighs 6.5kg (14 lbs) and is controlled via a throttle that must only be installed once. Everything is waterproof, so yeah, you can take it out in the rain as well.
This seems to be a pretty comprehensive solution for anyone looking for some electric boost in their cycling efforts. Of course, it’s not cheap, currently undergoing funding on Kickstarter with a pledge of $1,225 USD getting you your own Rubbee.
[ Project Page ] VIA [ CoolPile ]
