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[Richard230]

This looks like an interesting concept for swapping electric motorcycle batteries by a company in Brazil. They appear to have their battery swap station located in front of an existing gas station, which is likely a more secure and convenient location than something just sitting along side of a roadway:


More information here:  https://electricmotorcycles.news/origems-mission-is-to-accelerate-and-democratize-the-access-to-electric-mobility-in-latin-america/

[wavelet]

There nothing here.
If the battery is light enough to lift by hand, then the motorized opening is superfluous.
Such modular individual batteries are already common in electric urban scooters used for commuting & deliveries (the scooter itself can carry 2 batteries, some models 3, and  they are charged at home and/or at the delivery depot (restaurent, usually)).
Vending machines--type manual swap has existed for several years now, and the economics work out for urban use.

However, motorcycle-sized batteries are typically 100 pounds or more, so not going to be lifted by hand. Automated machinery to do it is going to get quite expensive, as you'd need ot get multiple manufacturers on the same standard, and given the technical constraints, it's not going to be easy at all.

Aside from that' the economics also don't work for a motorcycle -- for touring, sport touring or adventure touring, you need swap stations on backroads, not just along freeways, because most long-distance bike trips aren't done for transportation appliance purposes.

[DonTom]

Not a bad idea if it can also be charged on the bike at 6KW or above.


-Don-  Reno, NV

[princec]

It's just so ... pointless when all it takes is a few minutes of patience, on the very rare occasions anyone actually needs to charge up on one of these mythical long journeys.

Cas

[Crissa]

American cruising standards are pointless to map to this technology.  It's not in the US.

Why would it need to carry a heavy charger, when it has access points?  Having patience also means having access to a powerful, expensive charger.

Just being heavy doesn't mean the automated latching/plugging isn't useful.

-Crissa

[princec]

I think, fundamentally, Tesla has shown the way here.

High voltage DC, for short charging times. Tethered cable so no faff or extra weight. Vehicle itself needs minimal electronics on board as it's all in the chargepoint. All you need is flap that opens and a socket.

Cas

[Crissa]

That's definitely the way forward, but it's not cheap. Yet.

-Crissa

[Richard230]

BTW: The impression that I received from reading the article is that the batteries would be leased to the owners of the bikes - if not the entire motorcycle.    I just liked watching the way the system worked and I also like the idea of being able to "recharge" by visiting an established gas station. But that does not mean that I would want to invest in an Origem motorcycle, or the company, for that matter. 

[flynnstig82r]

This is just a more complicated and unproven version of Taiwan’s Gogoro model, which also locates battery swap stations at gas stations. Gogoro has been doing this since 2015 and previous iterations of swapping date back to at least 2008 in Taipei. It works well for dense urban environments and scooters or motorcycles that typically see speeds up to 50 MPH, but it would be a poor fit for Zeros, Energicas, and Livewires for a number of reasons already mentioned here including heavy batteries and far-flung stations that could not be financially viable to operate.

The only way to make in work in US cities would be for a fleet of shared electric scooters to use the BSS’s for swaps and operate the stations for its own customers as well as privately owned scooters, thus solving the chicken-egg problem of lack of sales <-> lack of stations. I’m certain that this is the best business strategy because it’s the one that Gogoro pitched to Scoot while I was working there c2019, but Scoot went out of business before it could ever come to fruition.

[Crissa]

Yeah, it's clearly a shared-vehicle and urban solution.

-Crissa

[DonTom]

I think, fundamentally, Tesla has shown the way here.

High voltage DC, for short charging times. Tethered cable so no faff or extra weight. Vehicle itself needs minimal electronics on board as it's all in the chargepoint. All you need is flap that opens and a socket.

Cas

On a Tesla, to open the charge port, turn on the mic and say "OPEN BUTTHOLE". I doubt if most Tesla  owners know that will work to open the charge port.


-Don-  Reno, NV