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[protomech]

Thin film is very light, but low power and very expensive.

Powerfilm makes some of the best folding or rollable thin film solar panels.

Powerfilm R28 rollable panel is $285, 15V up to 1.8A. Unrolled size is 2.0m x 0.37m or 6.6' x 1.2'. Weight is 1.8 lbs.

A series configuration of 5 panels would probably be appropriate to charge a 65V battery like the 2012 Zero bikes. Cost is $1425, unrolled size 6.6' x 6.0', weight 9.0 lbs. Under direct sunlight you should expect to charge around 120W, which would give you about 1-1.5 miles of additional range per hour charging.


Here's an example monocrystalline (rigid) configuration.

Power Up BSP40-12 is $132, 17V up to 2.4A. Size is 2.3' x 1.75', weight is 11.8 lbs.

A series configuration of 4 panels would be appropriate to charge a 65V battery like the 2012 Zero bikes. Panel cost is $528, rack size is 3.5' x 4.6', panel weight is 47 lbs. Under direct sunlight you should expect to charge around 156W, which gives you around 1.3 - 2.0 miles of additional range per hour charging.

A multi-point power tracking controller could boost charging power by 10-20% .. but good luck finding one designed for the lithium batteries in our bikes.

[Jiminy]

I currently ride an A2B Metro electric bicycle which is pretty much an electric scooter. I charge it solely on solar power to make my 9.2 mile daily commute. My range is about 16 miles being conservative with my lipo batteries.  I charge at home with a deep cycle 12V sealed lead acid battery. The 12V battery is charged from a MPPT charge controller from Morningstar and a 135W Kyocera solar panel perched on the roof of my garage. I charge the bike's batteries with an iCharger 3010B R/C charger that pulls from the deep cycle battery. My bike runs at 72volts so I have two 36V packs run in series after they are charged from the iCharger.

Here is an overall picture:



Here is a look at the bike at the charging station. I have a Morningstar Sunsaver MPPT charge controller mounted on an aluminum plate on the left. This gets power from the solar panel. It is super efficient and I've seen up to 121W worth of charging from my 135W panel. In the middle on the ground is the iCharger 3010B which feeds both of my 10S battery packs in parallel. I try to charge in the daytime when the solar resource is greatest and the charge controller can pump out the juice. Finally, I have one big 100Ah Sears Diehard deep cycle battery with two smaller UPS batteries in parallel to store the solar power.



The solar panel stores electricity from about 8 hours of good sun. I don't think that portability is possible even for the 32wh/mile riding that I do. I think a fixed charging station and a decent on board battery storage is the only way you can ride on solar, especially at the motorcycle level. I am interested in the Zero XU to replace the A2B Metro and solar will be how I charge. My solar charging station will certainly need to be upgraded to 24V with a bigger 240W panel(s) for sure!

Th setup I have cost about $1000 after shipping. I am as much into solar as I am into the bike.
 

[manlytom]

we dont have XUs or other 2012 bikes over here, mostly 2010 or older and couple of 2011 S/DS. from the specs I read and in terms of riding a motard style bike with fun i would prefer the 2011S over a XU 2012. similar specs - and pricing likely same/same....

[Jiminy]

I was thinking that the lower weight of the XU would be nice. I'm also 5'7" and the lower seat and general narrowness of the XU is preferable. My local dealer wasn't too interested in talking lower numbers for the 2011S he had on the showroom floor. If it was my dealership I'd be aching to get rid of it.

[DarrelBoyd]

Thin film is very light, but low power and very expensive.

Powerfilm makes some of the best folding or rollable thin film solar panel.

Powerfilm R28 rollable panel is $285, 15V up to 1.8A. Unrolled size is 2.0m x 0.37m or 6.6' x 1.2'. Weight is 1.8 lbs.

A series configuration of 5 panels would probably be appropriate to charge a 65V battery like the 2012 Zero bikes. Cost is $1425, unrolled size 6.6' x 6.0', weight 9.0 lbs. Under direct sunlight you should expect to charge around 120W, which would give you about 1-1.5 miles of additional range per hour charging.


Here's an example monocrystalline (rigid) configuration.

Power Up BSP40-12 is $132, 17V up to 2.4A. Size is 2.3' x 1.75', weight is 11.8 lbs.

A series configuration of 4 panels would be appropriate to charge a 65V battery like the 2012 Zero bikes. Panel cost is $528, rack size is 3.5' x 4.6', panel weight is 47 lbs. Under direct sunlight you should expect to charge around 156W, which gives you around 1.3 - 2.0 miles of additional range per hour charging.

A multi-point power tracking controller could boost charging power by 10-20% .. but good luck finding one designed for the lithium batteries in our bikes.

Very impressive thought but I am not sure it is worth to have solar charger or not.. I am worried about output which is very low in dark weather.