History of the e-Bike
Believe it or not, electric bicycles and tricycles have been around since 1881. Though there are a few drawings of the earliest e-bikes originating in France, heavy batteries from that time needed three wheels such as the M. Trouve of 1881 or the 1892 Graffigny electric tricycle. It was 1895 when American inventor Ogden Bolton Jr. got a patent for the first e-Bike.
Ogden Bolton Jr’s 1895 e-Bike Drawing
Using a permanent magnet DC direct drive motor, Bolton designed a single rear wheel motor. His 130-year-old design ran on 10 volts and 100 amps, supplying nearly 1,000 watts of power. Ogden’s machine offered a new way for stylish folks to find their way around a Victorian clothed world by way of two wheeled liberation. Not many could order Mr. Bolton’s e-bike because the working class could not justify the price of $30-$60, equivalent to around $1,600 in today’s dollars.
Only one year later, Charles Theryc introduced his design for the planetary gear hub motor with a 5.6:1 gear ratio which is very similar to geared hub motors in e-bike production today. Near the end of 1897, Hosea Libbey tried his hand at the idea but preferred removing the motor from the rear wheel.
1897 Mid Drive e-Bike drawings attributed to Hosea Libbey
Mr. Libbey stuffed two electric motors inside the crankset hub, a popular concept that withstands engineering scrutiny throughout the years and is still in use today.
British Humber Tandem circa 1897
These were very formative years in the creation of the e-Bike, but not all the concepts were successful. For instance, the Humber Tandem with two riders and four accumulators never really caught on.
Scott Velocipede 1899
Soon after, Gordon Scott patented his electric “Velocipede” in 1898. Its pedals turned a series of dynamos resulting in nearly maximum inefficiency.
In 1900 Aebert Hansel was granted US patent 656323 for a non-hub left side drive e-bike and was also credited with creating a step-through-frame friction drive design.
Howard Hughes built his first electric bicycle in Dallas, Texas
At the age of twelve, famous aviator and billionaire Howard Hughes used parts from a 6-volt automotive starter motor (that belonged to his father) to convert his bicycle to electric drive. Apparently to eliminate the need to pedal. That was in 1917.
Netherlands’ e-Bike Frenzy 1930
The 1930’s began an electric bike frenzy in the Netherlands. As petrol engines became more popular, there were increasingly fewer examples of electric bikes seen on the roadways. They already had developed a reputation for being pricey but limitations for charging and atmospheric corrosion made lots of folks think early e-bikes were unreliable, even a bit wonky.
Not much was heard about them until the 1930’s when Phillips in the Netherlands teamed up with Simplex to create a 12-volt e-bike. The only aspect that came out of the Phillips factory was the rectifier, which was required for overnight charging. Local Dutch legislators feared that the roads would be soon clogged with e-bikes, which were usually faster than cars. An operators permit law was passed, and licensed drivers began choosing cars over e-Bikes.
Dutch Juncker 1933
The Juncker fascinated those who were well-heeled on the streets of Amsterdam, with its smooth riding girder front end suspension. Charging required an entire day and would yield the otherworldly range of nearly 25 miles (40km) which would take 2.5 hours at around 6 mph (9.6kph). Though many heads would turn to watch riders gently enjoying the gliding speed of a Juncker, only 100 of these bikes were made.
Front Wheel Drive?
In 1939 at the start of World War II, T.M. McDonald earned a US patent with a front wheel mounted hub induction motor, and low mounted battery. These innovations greatly improved handling, speed, and efficiency over many earlier designs.
Tucker introduced a stepped set of planetary gears for geared electric motors in 1950. Secondary reduction made the motor faster than previous single reduction motors.
Panasonic E-Bike of 1975
Known for modern electronics, Panasonic came out with 24 direct current volts of sealed lead acid batteries to power its chain driven electric bicycle that was the forerunner to the moped. Panasonic spent many years developing its Bottom Bracket drive designs.
Today’s e-Bikes
Moving closer to the modern era of e-Bikes, advancements in battery technology such as lithium instead of lead acid, and rare earth magnet Neodymium power have become normal as e-Bikes continue to be more rider friendly, efficient, green, and most importantly, require less time doing maintenance to allow more time for having fun.
Today, there are specific models for city use, trail or off-road use, commuting, delivery, utility and more. Each type of e-Bike exists to fill the very specific needs of different types of transportation.
The United States Department of Energy claims that e-Bikes may have a bigger positive impact on our environment and energy savings than electric cars. According to Statista, the e-Bike market was valued at 48.7 billion last year, reaching as high as 71.5 billion by 2030. There are currently over 250 different brands of e-Bikes in America with over 2,600 models available.
