I have just built up a Surly Troll with a BBSHD that I believe conforms to all the EN15194 rules that Australia uses.
These are the official wordings from the NSW state government in Australia To comply with EN 15194:
• The motor must be electric
• The maximum continuous power output of the motor cannot exceed 250 watts measured at the wheel Note: A motor that delivers 250 watts of continuous power can produce greater power for very short periods of time, which can be beneficial when pulling away at traffic lights or starting a hill climb.
• The rider must pedal the cycle to activate the motor*
• The motor must cut-off once the vehicle reaches 25 km/h, or sooner if the rider stops pedalling
• The vehicle must be certified by the manufacturer, and labelled as complying with EN 15194. The label must include the manufacturer’s name, the motor’s cut-off speed in km/h and its continuous rated power in watts.
*Pedalecs may be equipped with an optional low-speed start-up mode that allows the motor to power the cycle up to 6 km/h. This mode is activated by the user either when riding without pedalling or when the user is pushing the cycle.
So, I've changed the controller parameters to conform. Mainly the speed limit to 25km/h and the 'keep current' setting to 30, which makes the continuous current 30% of the nominal 1000w. Maybe this should be 25, but I gave some leeway for the fact that 250w is 'measured at the wheel'.
They also don't mention any peak power figure, so I left that at full 30amps. The bike gets up n going nicely, it's the continuous riding that is a learning curve, it's like virtual torque sensing, and I like it. The higher your cadence the less the motor helps, as your cadence slows down the motor helps more. It is much more noticeable with the low keep current setting. You will learn quickly how to play it.
The difference in battery range is huge! With factory settings I could do the 30km round trip to town and get home with 1 bar of battery left. With the new settings I only use 1 bar! So I could do 4 trips instead of 1! This is also attributed to the other settings of Start current, current decay, and slow start. If you want long range moreso than white knuckles I suggest winding these down.
I do have a throttle mounted on the handlebars, but it is disconnected at the higo... unless I'm at home (200 acres) where it quickly becomes a wild beast again as the throttle overrides most of these settings.
I have installed a plate with all the required details.
Manufacturer = me
Max 25km/h
250w cont.
EN15194
Am I really the manufacturer? Yes of course officer. I built it from many different parts, which is the same process as any other bike manufacturer, except for old English Raleigh bikes (who did actually manufacture all the parts for their bikes).
Safety is my prime concern officer, look, rim and disc brakes front and rear, dynamo lighting, mirror, bell, safety sunglasses, gloves, flouro beanie/tuke which of course is much safer than a helmet because I can hear traffic and they can see me... and I can only go 25km/h anyway.
Further to those regulations...
REGISTRATION Power-assisted pedal cycles that meet either of the criteria described above do not require registration in NSW. A bicycle fitted with a motor (or motors in combination) that does not meet either of the above criteria is a moped or motor cycle and the conditions described under ‘Mopeds’ on page 1 apply.
LICENSING, SAFETY AND USE A rider of a power-assisted pedal cycle does not have to hold a rider’s licence, but they must wear an approved bicycle helmet, and obey the same road rules as bicyclists.
ON-ROAD ENFORCEMENT Police carrying out on-road enforcement may ask the owner and/or user of a power-assisted pedal cycle to provide evidence that the power output does not exceed the applicable limit. If that evidence is not readily available, such as from the compliance label, it may be necessary to test the vehicle on a certified dynamometer (‘dyno’) to determine the maximum power output of its motor/s...
So it seems I can legally have two motors! Which means the next step is a grin all-axle! 2wd! Redundancy! Less wear! Regen braking!
Next step though is to find a dyno so I know for sure how hard to play with the law.
These are the official wordings from the NSW state government in Australia To comply with EN 15194:
• The motor must be electric
• The maximum continuous power output of the motor cannot exceed 250 watts measured at the wheel Note: A motor that delivers 250 watts of continuous power can produce greater power for very short periods of time, which can be beneficial when pulling away at traffic lights or starting a hill climb.
• The rider must pedal the cycle to activate the motor*
• The motor must cut-off once the vehicle reaches 25 km/h, or sooner if the rider stops pedalling
• The vehicle must be certified by the manufacturer, and labelled as complying with EN 15194. The label must include the manufacturer’s name, the motor’s cut-off speed in km/h and its continuous rated power in watts.
*Pedalecs may be equipped with an optional low-speed start-up mode that allows the motor to power the cycle up to 6 km/h. This mode is activated by the user either when riding without pedalling or when the user is pushing the cycle.
So, I've changed the controller parameters to conform. Mainly the speed limit to 25km/h and the 'keep current' setting to 30, which makes the continuous current 30% of the nominal 1000w. Maybe this should be 25, but I gave some leeway for the fact that 250w is 'measured at the wheel'.
They also don't mention any peak power figure, so I left that at full 30amps. The bike gets up n going nicely, it's the continuous riding that is a learning curve, it's like virtual torque sensing, and I like it. The higher your cadence the less the motor helps, as your cadence slows down the motor helps more. It is much more noticeable with the low keep current setting. You will learn quickly how to play it.
The difference in battery range is huge! With factory settings I could do the 30km round trip to town and get home with 1 bar of battery left. With the new settings I only use 1 bar! So I could do 4 trips instead of 1! This is also attributed to the other settings of Start current, current decay, and slow start. If you want long range moreso than white knuckles I suggest winding these down.
I do have a throttle mounted on the handlebars, but it is disconnected at the higo... unless I'm at home (200 acres) where it quickly becomes a wild beast again as the throttle overrides most of these settings.
I have installed a plate with all the required details.
Manufacturer = me
Max 25km/h
250w cont.
EN15194
Am I really the manufacturer? Yes of course officer. I built it from many different parts, which is the same process as any other bike manufacturer, except for old English Raleigh bikes (who did actually manufacture all the parts for their bikes).
Safety is my prime concern officer, look, rim and disc brakes front and rear, dynamo lighting, mirror, bell, safety sunglasses, gloves, flouro beanie/tuke which of course is much safer than a helmet because I can hear traffic and they can see me... and I can only go 25km/h anyway.
Further to those regulations...
REGISTRATION Power-assisted pedal cycles that meet either of the criteria described above do not require registration in NSW. A bicycle fitted with a motor (or motors in combination) that does not meet either of the above criteria is a moped or motor cycle and the conditions described under ‘Mopeds’ on page 1 apply.
LICENSING, SAFETY AND USE A rider of a power-assisted pedal cycle does not have to hold a rider’s licence, but they must wear an approved bicycle helmet, and obey the same road rules as bicyclists.
ON-ROAD ENFORCEMENT Police carrying out on-road enforcement may ask the owner and/or user of a power-assisted pedal cycle to provide evidence that the power output does not exceed the applicable limit. If that evidence is not readily available, such as from the compliance label, it may be necessary to test the vehicle on a certified dynamometer (‘dyno’) to determine the maximum power output of its motor/s...
So it seems I can legally have two motors! Which means the next step is a grin all-axle! 2wd! Redundancy! Less wear! Regen braking!
Next step though is to find a dyno so I know for sure how hard to play with the law.