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I know there are now cars, and mopeds that run on compressed air, and I know that some people inaccurately call mopeds scooters, but this is really a little bit different.
Folding scooters have a lot going for them: They're easy to store, you can carry them with you, and the "No skateboards, no bicycles,
no skates, no roller blades" signs don't apply to them. Nor do the helmet laws, if it comes to that. For these reasons, they have become very popular on college campuses.
Unfortunately, they don't help much if you want to go very far. Motorized versions have their own limitations. Electric versions generally weigh over 30 pounds, and rarely get you farther than 8 miles before you need to spend eight hours charging it up again. Gasoline ones are lighter, and cheaper, but noise pollution, and emissions laws are often against them, and authority figures frown on storing flammable liquids in rented property. If you happen to be an orthodox Jew, using gasoline, and sometimes even electricity is not allowed on the sabbath. Of course, chain driven motors tend to be a little tough to disengage for the freewheeling style needed in foot pedaling, so hybrids of these are hard to find.
Thus, Virtucom introduces the hybrid compressed gas, and foot powered folding scooter. Orthodox Jews are free to operate it on the sabbath, college students are free to store it in their rooms (Possibly needing to empty the canisters first, but whatever.) If it dies, you can push it easily to get a little further. The vehicle itself produces no emissions, and anyone with an air compressor (Isn't that a normal thing for people to own?) can charge it up as often as they want for freewheeling around near their home.
Schools with a good autoshop will likely give students with that course free access to compressed air, thus making the most car-minded invididuals the most likely to also make use of this device, allowing for a reasonable cut in emissions. With the proper adaptors, the rest of us who do not have our own compressors can probably fuel up the compressed air folding scooter with a few quarters at the local gasoline station, so a large infrastructure to power the devices should be well in place. The folding nature of these devices allows them to be carried when not in use, and therefore, they can suppliment mass transit routes as well. Our long-range versions will be equipped with a special adaptor, and a backpack-mounted air reservoir.
Air powered moped
http://blog.makezin...MP=OTC-0D6B48984890
for some reason, this moped is described as a scooter, causing extensive confusion to the general public. [ye_river_xiv, Mar 23 2009]
Folding Scooters
http://www.razor-sc...azor-Scooters-1.htm
You'll note the collapsible handlebars, flat deck for standing on, and hinge that lets these fold up. [ye_river_xiv, Mar 23 2009]
Electric scooters
http://www.electric...campusscooters.html
Notice how everything labeled scooter has either no seat, or a removable seat. Also consider the range, and weight. No fun getting stranded with one of these! [ye_river_xiv, Mar 23 2009]
Up to 10 miles per charge
http://www.neoscoot...x500ElectricScooter
[21 Quest, Mar 25 2009]
16.5 lbs, up to 20 mile range
http://www.neoscoot...2DMotorboard&cat=83
[21 Quest, Mar 25 2009]
[link]
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[+] and regenerative braking is very easy to do. |
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I've never really seen an easy regenerative breaking scheme diagram. Perhaps you could link to one. It would certainly improve range. |
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I'm no expert, but strikes me that compressed air as a fuel is just as reversible as electricity in regenerative terms e.g. brake, pump air back into cylinder. Maybe not, brake balance could be a problem. |
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I was guessing that including a pump onboard to add pressure to an already pressurized device would require considerable added complexity. After all, a forward air powered scooter just needs to make the wheels rotate one way faster. A blower and some fan blades would work, although I suspect somewhat more effective methods also exist. Regenerative breaking involves making the wheels rotate one way slower in exchange for adding power to the system. Surely that would require the braking mechanism to involve a lot of gearing, which could interefere with pushing it by foot, and is a bit more complex thanthe current scooter brake, which is operated by stepping on the mud guard. |
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You could provide regenerative braking by simply using valves to alter the motor's connections... |
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Drive: inlet to tank and outlet to atmosphere (I guess throttling would be via an intake throttle valve) |
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Regen: inlet to throttled atmosphere and outlet to tank. |
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I'd be worried about the compactness/range tradeoff (the 18mph given by the moped seems reasonable, but that size of tank only gives 7 miles!) |
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In regards to your third link, ye_river, the one that includes the following in your description: |
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//Notice how everything labeled scooter has either no seat, or a removable seat.// |
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That's not what I noticed at all. The very first one, at the top left, has no seat, and no option to add a seat. The two below it also come without seats. Yes, the seats can be added, but that's not the same as a removeable seat. You only get the seats if you pay extra. |
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Note that the default selection for the seat option is "No, thanks." |
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My point here was just that your link description is inaccurate. |
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As to the actual idea... I have a few questions. First, how far can you go on one of these things before filling up? The air tanks on that moped in your first link are huge and probably heavy, thus far from ideal for a Razor Scooter. You're going to need a considerably smaller air tank for a scooter, thus you're probably going to have to fill it up quite frequently. I'm thinking probably every few blocks. This is fine for a college campus, if you have free air available. |
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But for those of us who are not in school and don't have access to a free air supply, paying 75 cents to fill up every few blocks is going to get expensive in very short order. I live in a large city, approx. 7 miles from most of the places I would use this to get to, and much of that is uphill. |
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For those of us with air compressors (and I don't have one) that is of little benefit since you can't conveniently take it with you on a Razor Scooter. |
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Also, given that the I-Ped electric scooter uses lithium-ion batteries, what prevents you from simply carrying spares in a backpack? |
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Edit: I found an electric scooter, seat is optional but included free, that gets up to 10 miles per charge and comes with 4 batteries. It folds and locks in folded position. |
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Edit: Regarding this comment: |
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//Electric versions generally weigh over 30 pounds, and rarely get you farther than 8 miles before you need to spend eight hours charging it up again.// |
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Found another one that weighs only 16.5 lbs, has a range of up to 20 miles with an additional battery upgrade, and charges in 2 hours. Goes up to 15 mph. |
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Not having access to an air compressor or wanting to shell out 75 cents every few blocks, I think I'll go with the 2000XR+ Motorboard (see my second link) which gets 20 miles per charge and only weighs 16.5 lbs. Fully foldable. Only takes 2 hours to charge, and with that range I can get anywhere I need to go and back on a single charge, and if needed can recharge it at work, while I work. I don't see any advantages that your idea has over that. - |
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(please note, I'm not MFD'ing this, because I don't think the model I found is widely known to exist; it took me several creatively-worded Google searches to find it. But, the technology *does* exist, and it exists in a very convenient form, so I cannot bun this, either.) |
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With regards the second link, I'm not sure what you're getting at. What I was getting at is that scooters are devices which can be operated via a standing platform, without the need for a seat, as opposed to "Mobility scooters" or mopeds, which for some reason are refered to as scooters as well. I've had to clear that one up several times with previous scooter ideas. |
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The 16.5 lb one has the battery upgrade included already, that's what allows it to get 20 mph. Quite the find though, too bad it's out of stock, or I'd get one myself. It is however, still battery powered, not powered by compressed air. |
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The Air powered moped is capable of traveling 7 miles at a top speed of 18 mph. However, our air powered scooter is quite a bit smaller, and therefore probably lighter weight. I'd also suspect it could get by with a somewhat lower top speed, and the moped is clearly a retrofit, All new parts would likely make it more efficient. |
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Range could indeed be a concern, but I'd suspect that instead of a staight steering tube, we might be able to expand the tube, and put a cylinder about the same size as one on the moped right there. Four to six miles should be a reasonable range then, and for people interested in fast refills, who cannot use gasoline, the device might be somewhat competitive with the majority of electric scooters... for now. |
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I also mentioned the possibility for a larger back mounted air reservoir. I've had some experience with air tanks, and I'm fairly certain that if need be, two such tanks could be mounted on one's back, which would certainly give this air scooter a range equal to the seven miles of the air powered moped, and quite probably significantly more. |
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Then again, this is to be a hybrid scooter, which can be powered both by compressed air, and by pushing if it's got no air. Since college students around here are more than willing th use the ones that run just by pushing with their feet, I'd assume that we could sell a few air powered ones if they were cheap enough. After all, they needn't add the air all the time, just when they want to go a little farther than usual. |
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