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I guess we've been holding out long enough...

D

Dirt-E-Dan

1 W
Joined
Jan 25, 2009
Messages
62
Hey guys and gals,

VRDubLuv(Tommy) and I have been working on a project on the weekends for several months now and it's time to show our progress. I'll give a little background for it first.

It all started when a student at Elon University found Tommy's website (http://www.ffrtrikes.com) and contacted him about a fundraising project. The project is to build a tandem electric recumbent that has a hub motor and uses solar power to charge. They are going to ride across the country on it in an effort to raise money to buy some solar panels for some universities Sri Lanka so they can consistently power their few computers.

I know it's not a "Non-hub Motor Drive," but I figured it would be greatly appreciate here.

The website for the project is http://www.wix.com/trivelo/the-trivelo-project

We started with two KMX trikes and now we have this!

Anyways, enjoy the pics!

IMG_0208.jpg

IMG_0207.jpg

IMG_0206.jpg

IMG_0205.jpg

IMG_0204.jpg

IMG_0203.jpg

IMG_0202.jpg

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Way, way cool!

Looks like you could make it a little cleaner looking if you change the way the seats attach in the back. You could come out of the square holes there at the cross piece and go up. Then you'd have two larger supports instead of 4 smaller ones and you wouldn't need that extra little pipe running across the frame...you'd have that whole triangle for cargo.

I guess you could always add a rack over the rear wheel if you needed more cargo space too...so, yeah..I love it! later
 
Hey Dan,

Looks good. :)

I wish you guys were coming a little closer to me. I would bring my big yellow trike down by you guys and ride along for a few miles.

I am looking forward to more pictures as the trike progresses.

Matt
 
How wide apart are the front wheels ? tire size ?

wheel base ?
 
Dirt-E-Dan said:
I know it's not a "Non-hub Motor Drive," but I figured it would be greatly appreciate here.

Well.... there could be a "Non-hub Motor Drive," model ... right guys ???

Could even have a SRAM DD ... hint hint
Click to expand...
 
I had about given up on you guys posting anything about this project. It is looking good!!! You have made a lot of progress since I last visited the shop. Hope I can give it a test ride before it leaves the area.

Bubba
 
It has 20" wheels all around. It weighs in at around 83 lbs. It's about 53" wide, 80" from the front of front wheel to rear of back wheel, and about 93" from the rear of the back wheel to the tip of the boom. It's pretty big and long! We have been pedaling it around and have had some traction issues in the gravel, but we don't have all of the weight on it yet. However, we capitalize on the traction issue... who doesn't like to slam the rear brake and do a 180?

I'm not sure exactly which Crystalyte motor Tommy is planning on purchasing, but I'll see if I can get him on here to give some more specific details.

There's a video of us pedaling it on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=679272495608&oid=314654064610. I don't know how to post that video directly on the page, so I hope you guys can see it!

Bubba, come down anytime and we'll ride it around a little bit. Tommy and I rode about 10 miles on it the other day and it performed great!

Daniel
 
That is one wide trike excellent job fellas!

I too noticed the seat supports looked a lil 'rushed' or 'tacked on'
Here's a lil photochop that would free up more room for
cargo/panels etc

IMG_0202.jpg

Best of luck with your fund raising and a safe trip..

KiM
 
Might be nice with a light weight integrated roll cage

Any plans for a body ?
 
That does look good! That really smooths the flow of the trike. We wanted to use the existing tubes on the seat to maintain adjustability, but if we could figure out a way to rig it up like that and keep it adjustable, we just might have to. Maybe on the next tandem - RC powered one :twisted: .

We are a little rushed :( . This thing has to be ready by June 7th, the start of the trip. I work full time and Tommy is a full time student 90 miles away. I will definitely think about that though.

We don't have any plans for any sort of a roll cage, however, the solar panel will be mounted over top of the trike. We are trying to get a 440 watt solar panel from a company called ASP in Florida. It will cover the footprint of the trike and weigh about 60 lbs. We'll have to have some serious bracing for that, so the outcome may pretty much be a roll cage.

Daniel
 
Maybe an X5 in a 24" rim ? .......


DIY stealth uses 5304 in 24"

http://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=17371



stealth fighter uses 5305 in 24"

http://www.stealthelectricbikes.com.au/ ... ghter.html>
> lectricbikes.com.au/stealth_fighter.html

How fast have you had it with just pedaling ?

Do you plan to pedal at 30mph ?
 
Sorry I didn't respond to your post, Matt! I won't be one of the riders of the trike when it goes across the country. Tommy is trying to talk me into riding my Trek 830 across though... Can't decide.

We'll be sure to keep posting up pics as we make more progress though! By the way, I really want to ride the yellow trike (I'm pretty sure everyone on this forum would)!

jmygann,

I'm not sure how fast we've had it pedaling yet. Probably around 20. We have some more decisions to make about gearing and probably some adjustments to the location of our common shaft to fit a larger sprocket (the one that drives the rear wheel).

That Stealth Fighter bike looks cool! I had not seen that before. I'll figure out which motor is going on it soon.

Daniel
 
My thought would be to use a 24" hub motor and 20" wheels in front like the KMX Cobra

http://www.ffrtrikes.com/electric_trikes
TransitionOne4.225224829_std.jpg


Not sure on how many watts of solar panels will be needed but would be nice to incorporate them into an aero body like this ... which is the approx the same dimensions

4503937788_48769cfcce_o.jpg


but at 30mph maybe aero is not that necessary


OR maybe a trailer like the "SOLAR TAXI"

http://www.citris-uc.org/solartaxi
 
Who wants to be stuck in a sweaty wedge with another dude for 2000 miles??!! :roll: Lil cone pods up by the feet might be cool and do enough to make it worth it. How come you guys don't ask for help around this forum, we have specialists in all aspects of this project and I'm sure more than a few will help you accomplish this noble task? I would like to assist somehow, but I don"t know what you guys need.

Considering Solar panels, It would seem that the wattage rating is for directly pointed at the sun, maybe design a tilting adjustable mount so that it can be changed for best angle and also for high winds (that would be my biggest concern). I like the trailer idea, that could keep it really low, a solar panel on top could blow you straight into oncoming traffic. Maybe practice with a sheet of plywood in windy conditions to make sure before you commit.

I really like your trike though, side by side keeps everybody honest in the pedaling department. :lol:

Maybe Matt can pull you through Illinois. :mrgreen:
 
They have gotten much advice. I have been talking to Tommy about this for some time. Bubba has done some work on it, if I remember correctly. They have not been posting about it, though. :)

Matt
 
We definitely do appreciate all advice and help. We have only really been working on the mechanical aspect of the trike so far, and have put a lot of thought into the solar panel as well. We're going to try to make it tilt down towards the left a little to get the most direct sunlight in the summer sun. I didn't even consider the wind pushing us around though! Thanks for that advice. I know Tommy is wanting this thing to be a self contained vehicle, so he wants to avoid a trailer. However, for safety reasons that might be necessary.

Bubba helped us figure out an integral part of the steering, but we still have to tweak a few things. I've never spoken with Matt on the phone, but I know he and Tommy talk semi-regularly, or at least before bed every night. :lol: He's been a big help so far with his machining experience, knowledge of motors, batteries, strengths of different materials, choosing materials, etc.

Please keep the concerns and advice coming!

Daniel
 
I'd like KMX to make one ... (sociable tadpole)

Take back the urban streets and country lanes that bicycles are legally entitled to.

What is the distance center to center of the seats ... same as center of crank to center of crank ?

24" ??
 
etard said:
Who wants to be stuck in a sweaty wedge with another dude for 2000 miles??!! :roll: Lil cone pods up by the feet might be cool and do enough to make it worth it.

Maybe adjoining pods similar to this ...

product1.jpg


http://columbiacycleworks.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=frontpage&Itemid=1
Click to expand...
 
Some updates!


I went ahead and placed the order from Elite Power Solutions for the 48V 60Ah LiFeMnPO4 battery with BMS, charger, and LCD Display. That will put us right at 3 kWh of capacity. With 80% DOD, with will have a usable capacity of about 2400 wh. We're hoping for about 50 wh/mile, so that would put us at 48 miles with no solar or pedaling input. In good sun, we're thinking that the 400 watt input from the panel could almost double our range, to nearly 100 miles. That would allow for about 5 hours of riding at an average speed of 20 mph with no stops. With some stops to let the panel soak and our legs rest, some pedaling, and an occasional plug in, we hope to ride about 150 miles per day.
EG-100-16web2.jpg




Next week Justin from Ebikes.ca is getting some more Crystalyte 5303's back in stock, so I plan on ordering a 5303 laced in a 20" wheel from him next week, along with a 40A Infineon. I wish we could get the 5303 and wheel in black :( But it will work all the same! :D
M5303RD20.jpg

C3640-NC.jpg




On Friday, I'm supposed to hear from ASP solar as to whether they will sponsor us by providing their 440 watt Monocrystalline Solar panel (the ASP 440). We are really banking on it, so it's making me a bit nervous.

Here's a link to the Spec sheet for the ASP-440: http://www.advancedsolarphotonics.com/docs/Solar%20Panel%20Spec%20Sheets/ASP440_Specsheet_Web.pdf



Dan's working on getting a Aluminum skidplate made from a local sheet metal place. It will support our batteries and allow for the weatherproof mounting of the controller, solar charge controller, battery charger, and possibly a small inverter.

Dan's also working on getting us a set of custom front wheels built using Alienation Runaway rims. http://www.alienationbmx.com/parts/rims/runaway We plan to lace them up in a 3X pattern which should be plenty strong, especially with the center cross lacing pattern on the rims, which adds lateral stiffness. It's sure to be a lot better than the shoddy 1X wheels that are currently on the trike, you can actually see and hear them flex around the corners.

For tires, I'm leaning towards the Schwalbe Marathon Plus. They are a very popular touring tire, not the lightest in weight, but awesome for durability. We don't want to be flatting left and right, especially when we get into the nasty goathead thorns that are apparently waiting patiently for us out west. :shock:
schwalbe_marathon_plus.png



Our next planned work weekend is not this weekend, but the following weekend of Friday the 7th. Hopefully we will have received a good deal of parts by then. Also we want to begin building the mounting hoop for the panel. Using a piece of plywood to test it is a great idea! We'll probably do that until we get the panel.



We're only 39 days away from our planned departure from the Outer Banks, it's coming way too quickly!!
 
What is the distance center to center of the seats ... same as center of crank to center of crank ?

24" ??
 
Sorry, but I just got a chance to measure that for you yesterday. We have them seats at 23" apart on center. That gives us more than enough shoulder room. It could probably be .5" to an 1" narrower and be almost, or maybe even just as comfortable.

Daniel
 
thanks ... keep posting on the progress

What you are doing is of great importance
 
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