UK bike commuter Stephen Britt has invented a prototype pair of Power Pedals that will give you power assistance as you ride. By simply swapping out the bike pedals on your regular bike for the Power Pedals, you will instantly have a cheaper, lighter alternative to an e-bike.
Stephen is a technician for the School of Education at Brighton University. He came up with the Power Pedals idea while sitting in his car on the way to work, stuck in stop and go traffic. He wanted a way to beat traffic by using a bike but ease the struggle of climbing the hills on his route.
Stephen's Power Pedals system includes a battery, motor and a gearbox to continuously propel your bike for a maximum distance of 10 miles before the batteries need recharging. As you pedal, sensors detect how much assistance you might require to get you up that hill or push through the headwind. If you don't feel like receiving any help, simply flip over to use the other side of the Power Pedals.
These pedals can be retrofit within minutes on any existing bike, giving you an instant e-bike without the extra weight and cost. These lightweight pedals allow the full range of gears on your bike to be used, making it efficient and easily capable of climbing hills.
The Power Pedals provide up to 200W of assistance, similar to standard e-bikes. When you get back from your ride, simply unclip the pedals and slot them into a power charger.
With Stephen's new company Fast Forward, he hopes to make a range of low cost, environmentally friendly gear for cyclists. Stephen recently won the Graduate Innovation Award at Brighton University for his Power Pedals and is now looking to win money from Forbes for further product development.
So if you think the Power Pedals are a cool idea, vote for Stephen and help him win £50,000 to commercialize his invention.
(via road.cc )
