VeloOne Cargo prototype
Descriptions of VELOONE CARGO PROTOTYPE
Our team has constructed the VELOONE CARGO PROTOTYPE during the year 2019-2020. The PROTOTYPE is made of aluminium tubes’ frame, aluminium seat, stainless steel front and steel rear chassis. VELOONE CARGO has front wind shield and top roof. The top roof opens upwards and the front wind shield opens towards the frontal part of the vehicle. VELOONE CARGO PROTOTYPE has 150×74×96 cm (L×W×H) size cargo box made of aluminium. CARGO BOX opens from one side with double side doors. VELOONE CARGO is driven by human power via chain transmission and rear wheels and it has two hub motors installed in front wheels. Hub motors are of 250 W power.
Technical information of VELOONE CARGO PROTOTYPE:
- Length is 316 cm with cargo box, width including big mirrors is approx. 85 cm and height is 152-160 cm (adjustable roof height). Weight with cargo box is approx. 100 kg. Maximum curb weight is 280 kg (restricted by tyres, not the construction). Permitted cargo weight is 80-100 kg, depending on driver’s weight.
- Driving range with electric power assistance and normal pedalling is approx. 30-35 km with one battery or 60-70 km with two batteries.
- Chain transmission has 3 front + 7 rear speeds, 21 speeds in total.
- 2 front hub motors are 250 W power each and work as electric power assistance system (EPAC cycles), active only when pedalling.
- Batteries used are 2 Li-ion batteries, 10.4 ah 36 V and 374 Wh power each. Total power of two batteries is 748 Wh. It is possible to switch from the empty battery to the full one with one touch.
- The seat is made from aluminium and is approximately 30 cm wide, it has special foam and mesh fabric padding. Seat is of recumbent type.
- Steering is carried out with two steering bars next to the seat. Steering and seat makes ergonomic and comfortable working zone. Steering bars feature brakes, speed switches and turn signal switch.
- All wheels are of 20-inch diameter, with spokes. Front wheels have hubs with embedded electric motor and disk brakes, rear wheels are equipped with drum brakes. All brakes are mechanical. Rear wheels have parking brake.
- Front wheels have wide mudguards and integrated hand grips on the top.
- The front part of the vehicle has the main light and two turning lights on the safety bumper. The rear part has side lamps, two turning lights and stop light on the special bar. Besides, velomobile has white and red side lamps on the front wheels’ mud guards’ hand grips. All lights work with main batteries, the system has 36 to 12 V inverter.
- VELOONE CARGO PROTOTYPE has full 4-wheel suspension with springs and specially designed dumpers and stabilizers.
- Top roof is made from stainless steel frame and PET-G plastic glass. It is approx. 70 cm wide. There ire electric assistance system displays mounted on the roof.
VELOONE CARGO PROTOTYPE driving experience
The velomobile is very comfortable and safe to drive. Driver sits on the recumbent seat and holds the steering in ergonomic position which is not tiresome and does not produce any pain after a long drive. It is a safe vehicle as much as it is possible: because of the design of the suspension it is almost impossible to turn over even under high speeds. During the test we have reached 29-30 km/h speed, with a lot of effort and good weather conditions. But normally 25-26 km/h speed is easily approachable because of electric power assistance system. VELOONE CARGO PROTOTYPE has a lot of reflectors and lights so other drivers see the velomobile on the road. It is quite easy to get in and out of the velomobile, of course, it takes a little effort and time to find the best way to do this and get used to the new transport. The best access is via gap between the front wheel and bumper, simply moving forward the front wind shield and opening up the top roof. The box opens with side doors, because it is the fastest way to reach box’s inside for couriers, and it is the safest position to work on the side walk or regular street and road as well. The PROTOTYPE can legally drive on roads, side-walks and bike paths, so the driver can choose the best and fastest driving path.