Check out the latest in wheel technology from MIT’s SENSEable City Lab.
The “Copenhagen Wheel” somehow stores energy from braking and saves it for when cyclists need a boost.
From Wired Magazine: (article by: David Banks)
“During the climate conference in Copenhagen on Tuesday, MIT’s SENSEable City Laboratory announced a new project for bicycles that uses an energy recovery technology similar to a program used in Formula One racing.
The project, called the Copenhagen Wheel, is a regenerative brake that captures kinetic energy created under braking and stores the power in batteries for use later, similar to the KERS program used by some Formula One teams. The stored power is controlled by the bike’s operator, via a smart phone. When facing a climb (or when feeling tired or just lazy) the cyclist can release the energy to attain a limited power assist. The wheel can be retrofitted to any bike and – via the smart phone interface – also provides traffic and road conditions, exercise data and miles logged.”
Read the whole article here.
and this one, in the NY Times.
Video:
[...] December 30, 2009 by newyorkoutdoors It’s Biking 2.0? Biking with an Energy Boost [...]