The team at Impossible Technology is using Kickstarter to fund their Impossible Bike, an electric bike that folds down small enough to fit into a backpack. The funding period ends on December 25, 2014 and the project has already raised more than five times its humble $55,000 goal.
Using a battery pack with ten 10 Ampere 3.6 Volt 44.5 gram batteries the bike can travel at around twelve miles per hour for forty five minutes. The estimated range is 15.6 miles of travel. During the design phase the team developed their own brushless motors to meet the tight constraints for both power and weight.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1181257820/impossible-0
Based on the current bill of materials the Kickstarter page says that around forty percent of the parts can be customized. This will go a long way to draw different users to the bike once the design is out of its Kickstarter phase and released to the general public. Ideas are also being solicited for further customizations beyond just color and shape options.
Reading about the design considerations made for this bike between the Kickstarter campaign and the company’s website give great insight to the design process. Carbon fiber and a few pieces of steel make up the majority of the frame. The structure uses circular elements wherever possible to absorb loading and avoid one long beam component.
Total weight for the bike is currently spec’ed at 180 pounds. This makes me wish I was back at high school weight but also makes me question the factor of safety built into the design. Other parts of the design are still fluid, with an update on November 30 showing that some components planned to be built from aluminum will now be made from a magnesium alloy.
Impossible bike is definitely a leap forward in foldable bike technology based on current product and the small size that the bike assumes when folded. Most of the campaign video shows the folding and riders using the bike in different settings. Backer reward bikes are scheduled to ship in August 2015 and I’m completely excited to see whether or not this project can fulfill its ambitious goals.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1181257820/impossible-0