biker2010

Dear all,

When you want to go on a bike ride and bring your iPod or mobile phone with you, but it has no power... do you reluctantly leave your device at home or do you delay your bike ride? Do you commute to work on your bike and want to charge a mobile device while you ride?

We (a few students at Columbia University) are developing a new product (tentatively called "iCharge") that attaches to your bike to harness the energy of wheel rotation to charge your mobile devices. We would appreciate if you can go to (link removed) and fill a 2-minute survey to share your preference on product development. Thanks a lot in advance!

The options we would like you to consider for the iCharge are:

A) Number of mobile devices (i.e. iPod, mobile phone, GPS) that can be charged at the same time: 1 or 2

B) Color: Black or Matches color of bike

C) Conventional cycling device such as front and back light, speedometer, odometer, rpm, cycling time

D) Weight: 1lb, 1.5lb, or 2lb

E) Price: $100, $150, or $200

thenomad

No contraptions wanted on my bike. Just make a nice strong solar charger I can clip to my bag that charges my accessories while I ride. No more dead phone. I could take that thing darn near anywhere.
And make it inexpensive.

Sirrus Rider

Sorry fella, but it's been done already. It's called a Bush and Muller E-werk.

slcbob

Cool! Thanks, Sirrus Rider (link) I've been waffling between my Android phone's good map functions but battery gobbling GPS mode, and maybe buying an Edge or Colorado GPS. This is really neat option to help cement my indecision.

Biker 2010 -- I'd like 4 devices, a nice selection of pearl metallic powdercoating, I'm good for lights and cyclocomputer functions but keep it under 12 oz. and $69. Hope to here from you in 2011! In all seriousness, good luck - lots of product positioning decisions there.

travelmama

Although it is a great ideal, its been done but several companies before.

qualla

Your main question is sufficiently ambiguous as to make answering the survey an exercise in guesswork. Do you mean to "harness wheel rotation" using a separately purchased dynamo? As several people have said, commercial solutions are available now. Or, are you proposing an alternative to a hub dynamo which will itself "harness wheel rotation" and charge devices?

qualla

It looks as if you are suggesting a dynamo replacement -- your weight choices start at 1 lb (454 g), whereas the B&M EWerk weighs in at a whopping 53 g (< 2 oz).

AsanaCycles

TOURING

I'd say, more so than Commuting, the market would be in Touring.

where as, in Commuting, electricity is available at home, work, the train, etc...

while on bicycle tour, access to an electrical outlet can be scarce.

especially if you're touring is along the lines of "BikePacking"

https://www.asanacycles.com/Asana_Cyc...ur_Divide.html

I rely on solar chargers such as Solio and a Brunton Freedom.

things to charge, are cell phone, GPS, iPod, and possibly NiMh AAA & AA's for things like cameras



The Electronics of my Touring gear begs to be streamlined. Somehow, there needs to be a way to keep things charged.

typically the Brunton Freedom keeps the Garmin 705 charged.
however, on my last tour, https://www.asanacycles.com/Asana_Cycles/Blog/Blog.html, the route was in a lot of shadow, then fog, when I started running out of charge to keep up with the demand.

HardyWeinberg

But that is $200 plus the price and weight of a the dynamo hub you plug it into. One pound and a regular hub definitely is intriguing to me.

Although what I really want is a simple mount to put my android phone onto the bars. The kind I find through google look like horrendously complicated and huge contraptions.

CbadRider

Bike Forums has a survey forum located here.

We get quite a few surveys on the Forums, and most of them are posted by newly joined members. Unfortunately, in many cases we never hear from them again. Which is why we have set up a criteria for survey posts. The survey must include the following information:

1. Why you are doing this and for what company/organization.
2. Your role in the survey.
3. Approx how long will the survey take.
4. What you plan to do with the information provided by the participants.
5. What you plan to do with the results.
6. Agree to post the results here.

If you have any questions, please send a visitor message to a moderator (one blue star by user name) or administrator (three blue stars).