Photo: Ford
After BMW, Mini and more recently Kia, Ford is yet another car manufacturer which is starting to take things very seriously in the personal electric mobility segment. The blue oval has recently announced that the Ford Smart Mobility program will be expanded and will include Handle on Mobility electric bicycle prototypes.
The announcement was made today in Barcelona, Spain, at the Mobile World Congress. According to Ford, this is part of a larger plan whose aim is to find ways to integrate electric transport with busy urban areas, together with electric cars and public transport. This interesting phase in the developing of the Smart Mobility plan is described as “a new experiment to study how electric bicycles can work seamlessly with cars and public transport to deliver faster and easier daily commutes and help businesses operating in urban centers.”
MoDe:Pro is built by a team of Ford specialists and can be used to urban commercial use, as it can also carry an additional load comprised of goods or tools, making it suitable for electricians, couriers and many others.
Both bikes work with a prototype app called MoDe:Link providing real-time info on the bike and helping navigation. The handlebars vibrate indicating where to turn, and the app controls turn signal automatically, being also able to identify bike-friendly routes, hazards and alerts.
The bikes are equipped with a 200W motor tied to a 9-amp-hour battery and the system can assist you up to 25km/h (15.5 mph), while they can be hooked to a charger when stored in the new Ford cars, thus being ready to roll when the rider needs them. Whether this will remain in the prototype zone or move to the production phase, we’ll definitely know this year. For more on the possible future of electric bikes make sure you read this all-electric vs hydrogen mobility article.
MoDe:Me and MoDe:Pro can be stored in Ford vehicles and charged while packed
Two bikes are so far envisaged as being part of the new Ford project, MoDe:Me and MoDe:Pro. The first is built by bicycle manufacturer Dahon and is a small unit with a low profile which can be easily folded and stowed away or carried in an elevator, train, bus and so on. It allows the riders to park in the outer areas of the city and then either ride downtown or take public transport and then ride in the most cluttered areas.MoDe:Pro is built by a team of Ford specialists and can be used to urban commercial use, as it can also carry an additional load comprised of goods or tools, making it suitable for electricians, couriers and many others.
Both bikes work with a prototype app called MoDe:Link providing real-time info on the bike and helping navigation. The handlebars vibrate indicating where to turn, and the app controls turn signal automatically, being also able to identify bike-friendly routes, hazards and alerts.
No Sweat mode guarantees you’re fresh at the destination
Both bikes can work in two modes, pedal assist, with variable degrees of intervention, and a No Sweat mode which makes pedaling non-necessary, guaranteeing you’ll arrive fresh at your destination.The bikes are equipped with a 200W motor tied to a 9-amp-hour battery and the system can assist you up to 25km/h (15.5 mph), while they can be hooked to a charger when stored in the new Ford cars, thus being ready to roll when the rider needs them. Whether this will remain in the prototype zone or move to the production phase, we’ll definitely know this year. For more on the possible future of electric bikes make sure you read this all-electric vs hydrogen mobility article.
Google News