Photo: APWorks
A supercar is defined by its crazy looks, incredible handling, and huge power. Such is the case with the LightRider, an electric bike that was made using the so popular 3D-printing technology.
The LightRider prototype you see here was made by APWorks, an aerospace company that decided to develop a motorcycle instead of calculating spaceship engines.
"With the Light Rider we at APWorks demonstrate our vision of future urban mobility," says engineer Stefanus Stahl. "We have used our know-how of optimization and manufacturing, to create means of transportation, that match our expectations," explains APWorks' Niels Grafen: "Exceptionally strong, impressively lightweight and of the highest quality."
The 3D-printing technology allowed for the designers to come up with that super-cool organic shapes. The frame is created out of thousands of 30-micrometer thin layers in a metallic powder bed.
Bionic algorithms define the organic frame structure using Altair’s OptiStruct. This aerospace-approved approach gives the motorcycle superb stiffness and guarantees optimal use of material.
As a result, the electric bike prototype weighs in at just 35 kg (77 lb) and combining this with the 130 Nm (96 lb-ft) of torque electric motor gives the machine a power-to-weight ratio of a supercar.
However, the performance of the prototype here has been limited. It can only go 80 km/h (50 mph) and reaches 0 - 45 km/h (28 mph) in 3 seconds. This makes it ideal for riding around the city. A full battery is said to last you about 60 km (37 miles), but the engineers made it interchangeable, so you don’t have to wait around to recharge.
It all sounds great, but there is a problem with it. Since the company that created it is more into spacecraft, it won’t put it into large-scale production. The project’s website reads that the company plans to make an exclusive small series of LightRider bikes that will be street legal for everyday use.
"With the Light Rider we at APWorks demonstrate our vision of future urban mobility," says engineer Stefanus Stahl. "We have used our know-how of optimization and manufacturing, to create means of transportation, that match our expectations," explains APWorks' Niels Grafen: "Exceptionally strong, impressively lightweight and of the highest quality."
The 3D-printing technology allowed for the designers to come up with that super-cool organic shapes. The frame is created out of thousands of 30-micrometer thin layers in a metallic powder bed.
Bionic algorithms define the organic frame structure using Altair’s OptiStruct. This aerospace-approved approach gives the motorcycle superb stiffness and guarantees optimal use of material.
As a result, the electric bike prototype weighs in at just 35 kg (77 lb) and combining this with the 130 Nm (96 lb-ft) of torque electric motor gives the machine a power-to-weight ratio of a supercar.
However, the performance of the prototype here has been limited. It can only go 80 km/h (50 mph) and reaches 0 - 45 km/h (28 mph) in 3 seconds. This makes it ideal for riding around the city. A full battery is said to last you about 60 km (37 miles), but the engineers made it interchangeable, so you don’t have to wait around to recharge.
It all sounds great, but there is a problem with it. Since the company that created it is more into spacecraft, it won’t put it into large-scale production. The project’s website reads that the company plans to make an exclusive small series of LightRider bikes that will be street legal for everyday use.
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