Photo Credit: Torstar News Service
History is being created every single day. Even better, it’s by us college students! Students at the University of Toronto created something so unique, that it has to be shared. Phil Lam and Jonathan Lung have created a startup, Sojourn Labs, supported by U of T’s Impact Centre. This vehicle they created will be classified as an e-bike, which means it won’t require registration, a licence, or insurance. And although they won’t divulge an exact cost, affordability is one of their main goals. So… this is pretty revolutionary, huh? Alright, I think it is. Here is the description of this historic new invention via metronews.ca
You charge the vehicle’s battery by pedalling. The intensity of pedalling controls its 500-watt engine’s throttle. The engine itself is fully programmable, which means that you can easily adjust the pedal-to-engine-power ratio. Rushing to an important meeting? Let the engine do most of the work, so you don’t show up sweaty. In need of a little exercise? Pedal the roughly 45-kilogram vehicle until you feel the burn.
The three-wheeled vehicle is tall enough to be seen by other traffic, yet narrow enough to manoeuvre through congested streets. It even has a windshield to protect you from the elements and a small trunk for parcels and groceries.
“We’ve built a prototype of a vehicle that tries to combine the benefits of driving a car with all the good things that come with riding a bicycle,” Lam says. “This vehicle will get you around in a way that has a minimal impact on the surrounding environment, infrastructure, and the people that you have to share the road with.”
The final product, they say, will have lights, a horn, a semi-enclosed cabin, a range of 30 to 40 kilometres and a maximum speed of 32 kilometres per hour. It will be completely smartphone-integrated, which means you’ll be able to control things such as pedal resistance and monitor charge levels and burned calories from your mobile device. They also hope to make a two-seater model, and the planned addition of a roof-mounted solar panel means the vehicle might never have to be plugged in.
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