A city-based entrepreneur-turned electronics engineer on Sunday formally launched an electric bicycle driven by a motor, powered by Lithium-ion battery that is seen in cell phones and Boeing Dreamliner.
The city-based budding industrialist A. Mahidhar has launched five different variants of bicycles that that have a 24 volt Li-ion battery connected to an electric motor fixed to its rear wheel hub. Health freaks can pedal the bicycle one way and have an easy ride just pushing a red button and accelerating up to 25 km/hour or 35 km/hour depending on the variant.
With a single re-charge of battery for one and a half hours can take you up to 40 k.m. and is seen as an alternative to the mopeds/scooters or motorcycles for city commuting. The Andhra Chamber of Commerce and Industry president formally launched the cycle in the city on Sunday and at a press conference following the launch, Mr. Mahidhar said that they were importing the batteries from a South Korean company.
The parts of the bicycles were being manufactured as per specifications by different suppliers, while they were targeting at assembling 500 bicycles per month by March 2014. The battery has a 5-year life and can be charged 900 times.