88-443: The ENV (Emission Neutral Vehicle) is an electric motorcycle prototype powered by a hydrogen fuel cell . It was developed by Intelligent Energy , a British company. The vehicle and the fuel cell centre respectively weigh approximately 80 and 20 kilograms . It uses a proton-exchange membrane fuel cell to generate about 8 hp or 6 kilowatts . The Discovery Channel has indicated it can reach approximately 80 km/h and, on
176-410: A one-directional slip or release provision so that once engine rotation began, the starter would disengage from the engine. In the event of a kickback, the reverse rotation of the engine could suddenly engage the starter, causing the crank to unexpectedly and violently jerk, possibly injuring the operator. For cord-wound starters, a kickback could pull the operator towards the engine or machine, or swing
264-433: A scooter-sharing system . Since electric motorcycles and scooters have relatively small frames, they typically have short ranges, restricted by the volume available for energy storage. Most electric motorcycles and scooters are powered by rechargeable lithium ion batteries , though some early models used nickel–metal hydride batteries. Alternative types of batteries are available. Z Electric Vehicle pioneered use of
352-412: A step-through frame , instead of being straddled. Electric bicycles are similar vehicles, distinguished by retaining the ability to be propelled by the rider pedaling in addition to battery propulsion. Electric scooters with the rider standing are known as e-scooters . The early history of electric motorcycles is somewhat unclear. On 19 September 1895, a patent application for an "electrical bicycle"
440-531: A 113 km/h (70 mph) capable 3-wheel enclosed-electric motorcycle called the Sunray – designed by noted solar EV pioneer Jonnathan Tennyson. The Sunray's battery cartridge was on rollers and slid out of the front of the vehicle so it could be swapped out for a freshly charged battery at a battery-swap station conveniently located along a highway or in a city. P.E.T. also had a streamlined 2-wheel seated motor scooter called Caballito – designed by Budd Steinhilbur, who
528-624: A Guinness World record as it wasn't timed by the FIM timing association. In 2012 Electro Force cycles made their debut as a commuter cycle for commuters to ride to work or for enjoyment. These cycle were built by Jennifer Northern of Issaquah, Washington , US. She became the first woman to develop and manufacture an electric vehicle in the US. The maximum speed reached was 137 km/h (85 mph), while immediate speeds reached up to 97 km/h (60 mph) in 6 seconds, programmable with regenerative braking or on
616-551: A San Francisco startup led by a former Tesla Motors engineer, unveiled the Mission One, an electric motorcycle capable of 240 km/h (150 mph). If achievable, this would make the Mission One the fastest production electric vehicle in the world. On April 4–5, 2009, Zero Motorcycles hosted the "24 Hours of Electricross" event in San Jose . It is considered the first all-electric off-road endurance race . On June 14, 2009,
704-463: A battery with lead electrodes and an electrolyte of a liquid low sodium silicate compound, a variation on the classic lead–acid battery invented in 1859 and still used for electrical power in internal-combustion-engine automobiles, that compares favorably with lithium batteries in size, weight, and energy capacity, at considerably less cost. EGen says its lithium-iron phosphate batteries are up to two-thirds lighter than lead-acid batteries and offer
792-458: A battery, a motor, and a black box (i.e. the controller) to keep you moving, electric motorcycles are a breeze to maintain compared to a conventional motorcycle, what with all the lubricating and adjusting and tuning you have to do. You basically just worry about consumables: brake pads, tires, maybe a brake fluid flush. That's about it." Electric scooters and motorcycles equipped with regenerative braking typically have longer brake pad life because
880-427: A clutch the torque is instantly available. Electric motorcycles and scooters suffer considerable disadvantage in range, since batteries that fit in a motorcycle frame cannot store as much energy as a tank of gasoline. Anything over 130 miles (210 km) on a single charge is considered an exceptionally long range. Consequently, while electric machines excel for city dwellers traveling relatively short distances, on
968-422: A combined starter-generator unit, with a direct current dynamo permanently coupled by gears to the engine's crankshaft. A system of electrical relays allowed this to be driven as a motor to rotate the engine for starting, and once the starter button was released the controlling switchgear returned the unit to operation as a generator. Because the starter-generator was directly coupled to the engine it did not need
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#17330859971881056-599: A division of Ola Cabs , planned to construct world's largest electric scooter factory near Bangalore , Karnataka , India . The company aims to produce 10 million vehicles annually. In 2020, Juan Ayala, an urban planning design professor at Rutgers University, invented smartphone app based rentable e-scooter systems. In 2022, VinFast of VinGroup from Vietnam introduced 2 new models: VinFast Theon S and VinFast Feliz S . In 2023, Bobfleet introduce its next generation model: Model X gen2. A two- (or sometimes three-) wheeled powered vehicle if ridden with rider astride
1144-473: A full tank may ride continuously for about 4 hours and travel a distance of 160 kilometres. The motorcycle is a preproduction prototype , which was targeted to sell for approximately $ 6000. Electric motorcycle Electric motorcycles and scooters are plug-in electric vehicles with two or three wheels. Power is supplied by a rechargeable battery that drives one or more electric motors . Electric scooters are distinguished from motorcycles by having
1232-443: A method of engaging and disengaging the motor drive. It thus suffered negligible mechanical wear and was virtually silent in operation. The starter-generator remained a feature of Dodge cars until 1929. The disadvantage of the design was that, as a dual-purpose device, the unit was limited in both its power as a motor and its output as a generator, which became a problem as engine size and electrical demands on cars increased. Controlling
1320-708: A more physically demanding endeavour. The first electric starter was installed on an Arnold , an adaptation of the Benz Velo, built in 1896 in East Peckham , England , by electrical engineer H. J. Dowsing. In 1903, Clyde J. Coleman invented and patented the first electric starter in America U.S. patent 0,745,157 . In 1911, Charles F. Kettering , with Henry M. Leland , of Dayton Engineering Laboratories Company ( DELCO ), invented and filed U.S. patent 1,150,523 for an electric starter in America. (Kettering had replaced
1408-433: A nonstandard starter, a direct-drive "movable pole shoe " design that provided cost reduction rather than electrical or mechanical benefits. This type of starter eliminated the solenoid, replacing it with a movable pole shoe and a separate starter relay. This starter operates as follows: The driver turns the key, activating the starter switch. A small electric current flows through the solenoid actuated starter relay , closing
1496-477: A pressure tank. Compressed air released from the tank is used to spin the turbine, and through a set of reduction gears , engages the ring gear on the flywheel, much like an electric starter. The engine, once running, drives the compressor to recharge the tank. Aircraft with large gas turbine engines are typically started using a large volume of low-pressure compressed air, supplied from a very small engine referred to as an auxiliary power unit , located elsewhere in
1584-562: A prototype electric motorcycle in which the batteries were fitted under the seat of the sidecar . Even though the vehicle was registered for road use, it never went past the trial stage. In 1936, the Limelette brothers founded an electric motorcycle company called Socovel ( So ciété pour l’étude et la Co nstruction de V éhicules El ectriques or Company for research and manufacture of electric vehicles) in Brussels. They continued production during
1672-425: A pull-rope to get them running during the startup procedure for the jet engines they were fitted to. Before Chrysler 's 1949 innovation of the key-operated combination ignition-starter switch, the starter was often operated by the driver pressing a button mounted on the floor or dashboard. Some vehicles had a pedal in the floor that manually engaged the starter drive pinion with the flywheel ring gear, then completed
1760-410: A range of 259 km (161 miles) was reported. At the other end of the scale, much shorter ranges such as 64 km (40 miles) were available at very much lower cost. Electric scooters and motorcycles need very little maintenance. As Wired magazine's transportation editor Damon Lavrinc reported after an experiment of trying to go six months using nothing but a Zero electric motorcycle: "[w]ith only
1848-544: A range of 55 km (35 miles). About a 100 of these were built. In 1996, the first mass-produced electric scooter, Peugeot Scoot'Elec , was released. It used Nickel-Cadmium batteries and a range of 40 km (25 miles). On 26 August 2000, Killacycle established a drag racing record of completing a 402 m ( 1 ⁄ 4 mile) in 9.450 seconds on the Woodburn track in Oregon . Killacycle used lead acid batteries at
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#17330859971881936-465: A reduction gear. If the car failed to start, the starter handle could be used to wind up the spring for a further attempt. One of the innovations on the first Dodge car, the Model 30-35 at its introduction in 1914 was an electric starter and electric lighting with a 12-volt system (against the six volts that was usual at the time) as a standard fitment on what was a relatively low-priced car. The Dodge used
2024-433: A removable crank handle which engaged the front of the crankshaft, pulling on an airplane propeller, or pulling a cord that was wound around an open-face pulley. The hand-crank method was commonly used to start engines, but it was inconvenient, difficult, and dangerous. The behavior of an engine during starting is not always predictable. The engine can kick back, causing sudden reverse rotation. Many manual starters included
2112-422: A set of flyweights in the body of the drive unit. When the starter motor begins turning and the drive unit is forced forward on the helical shaft by inertia, it is latched into the engaged position. Only once the drive unit is spun at a speed higher than that attained by the starter motor itself (i.e., it is backdriven by the running engine) will the flyweights pull radially outward, releasing the latch and permitting
2200-466: A significant portion of braking duty can be performed with the electric motor instead of the mechanical friction brakes. Starter motor A starter (also self-starter , cranking motor , or starter motor ) is a device used to rotate (crank) an internal-combustion engine so as to initiate the engine's operation under its own power. Starters can be electric , pneumatic , or hydraulic . The starter can also be another internal-combustion engine in
2288-564: A speed of 152.07 mph (244.73 km/h). Later, Killacycle using A123 Systems Li-ion nano-phosphate cells set a new quarter mile record of 7.824 seconds breaking the 8 seconds barrier at 168 mph (270 km/h) in Phoenix, Arizona , at the All Harley Drag Racing Association (AHDRA) 2007, on 10 November 2007. In 2006, Vectrix introduced the first commercially available high performance electric scooter,
2376-635: A top speed of 25 mph (40 km/h). In the same year, a prototype electric motorcycle called the Papoose, was built by the Indian Motorcycle Company under the direction of Floyd Clymer. In 1974, Auranthic Corp., a small manufacturer in California, produced a small motorcycle called the Charger. It had a 30 mph (48 km/h) top speed and a 80 km (50 miles) range on a full charge. In
2464-492: Is a hydrogen fuel cell prototype. The motorcycle has a range of 100 miles (160 km) and can reach a top speed of 50 mph (80 km/h). Suzuki has also developed a concept hydrogen fuel cell scooter based on the Suzuki Burgman . Yamaha has created a hydrogen fuel cell prototype called FC-AQEL, which is considered equivalent to a 125 cc vehicle. Honda has also developed a hydrogen fuel cell scooter which uses
2552-407: Is either a permanent-magnet or a series -parallel wound direct current electric motor with a starter solenoid (similar to a relay ) mounted on it. When DC power from the starting battery is applied to the solenoid, usually through a key -operated switch (the "ignition switch"), the solenoid engages a lever that pushes out the drive pinion on the starter driveshaft and meshes the pinion with
2640-400: Is made up of a center drum about the size of a soup can with four or more slots cut into it to allow for the vanes to be placed radially on the drum to form chambers around the drum. The drum is offset inside a round casing so that the inlet air for starting is admitted at the area where the drum and vanes form a small chamber compared to the others. The compressed air can only expand by rotating
2728-591: Is popular in India, with Sun Mobility planning modular batteries. "A moped would require one, a rickshaw two and a car four." Honda has developed an experimental internal combustion/electric hybrid scooter. Yamaha has also developed a hybrid concept motorcycle called Gen-Ryu. It uses a 600 cc engine and an additional electric motor. Piaggio MP3 Hybrid uses a 125 cc engine and an additional 2.4 kW motor. There are several experimental prototypes using fuel cell technology. ENV developed by Intelligent Energy
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2816-420: Is termed a motorcycle; if it has a step-through frame with rider seated with feet on a floor panel it is a motor scooter . A smaller vehicle, typically just a deck to stand on with two (or three) wheels and a handlebar on a vertical stem is also termed a scooter; such scooters if unpowered are termed kick scooters , and e-scooters if battery powered. E-scooters are made available for hire by several companies in
2904-405: Is then connected to the main engine and its inertia turns it over to start it. These stages are commonly automated by solenoid switches, with the machine operator using a two-position control switch, which is held in one position to spin the motor and then moved to the other to cut the current to the motor and engage the flywheel to the engine. The advantage of the inertia starter is that, because
2992-525: Is used in China, where over 10,000 urban buses run on these batteries. All electric scooters and motorcycles provide for recharging by plugging into ordinary wall outlets, usually taking about eight hours to recharge (i.e., overnight). Some manufacturers have designed in, included, or offer as an accessory, the high-power CHAdeMO level 2 charger, which can charge the batteries up to 95% in an hour. Manufacturers like Zero Motorcycles and several recent entrants to
3080-455: The Honda FC Stack . Electric and gasoline powered motorcycles and scooters of the same size and weight are roughly comparable in performance. In August 2013 Road & Track evaluated a high-end electric motorcycle as faster and better handling than any conventionally powered bike. Electric machines have better 0 to 60 acceleration, since they develop full torque immediately, and without
3168-424: The starter ring gear on the flywheel of the engine. The solenoid also closes high-current contacts for the starter motor, which begins to turn. Once the engine starts, the key-operated switch is opened, a spring in the solenoid assembly pulls the pinion gear away from the ring gear, and the starter motor stops. The starter's pinion is clutched to its drive shaft through an overrunning sprag clutch which permits
3256-554: The 'Dynastart' name. Since motorcycles usually had small engines and limited electrical equipment, as well as restricted space and weight, the Dynastart was a useful feature. The windings for the starter-generator were usually incorporated into the engine's flywheel, thus not requiring a separate unit at all. The Ford Model T relied on hand cranks until 1919; during the 1920s, electric starters became near-universal on most new cars, making it easier for women and elderly people to drive. It
3344-544: The 1980s. For the first examples of production German turbojet engines later in World War II, Norbert Riedel designed a small two-stroke, opposed-twin gasoline engine to start both the Junkers Jumo 004 and BMW 003 aircraft gas turbines as a form of auxiliary power unit to get the central spindle of each engine design rotating — these were usually installed at the very front of the turbojet, and were themselves started by
3432-850: The AMA electric motorcycle land speed record during the BUB Motorcycle Speed Trials at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, US riding the company's Mission One. The bike registered a speed of 150.059 mph (241.497 km/h). In 2010, ElectroCat, made by Eva Håkansson , set the record time for an electric motorcycle to climb Pikes Peak . The motorcycle, ridden by John Scollon, completed the 19 km (12 miles) course in 16 minutes 55.849 seconds. ElectroCat uses batteries manufactured by A123 Systems. On June 26, 2011, Chip Yates broke ElectroCat's previous record at Pikes Peak. He completed
3520-507: The Adams, S.C.A.T. and Wolseley cars having direct air starters, and Sunbeam introducing an air starter motor with similar approach to that used for the Delco and Scott-Crossley electrical starter motors (i.e. engaging with a toothed ring on the flywheel). The Star and Adler cars had spring motors (sometimes referred to as clockwork motors), which used the energy stored in a spring driving through
3608-478: The Bendix-type starter described above). Here the starter motor does not turn the engine directly. Instead, when energized, the motor turns a heavy flywheel built into its casing (not the main flywheel of the engine). Once the flywheel/motor unit has reached a constant speed the current to the motor is turned off and the drive between the motor and flywheel is disengaged by a freewheel mechanism. The spinning flywheel
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3696-593: The City Bike. This motorcycle used a battery manufactured by Yardney Electric. In June 1975, the first Annual Alternative Vehicle Regatta was held at Mt. Washington , New Hampshire . The event was created and promoted by Charles McArthur, an environmentalist . On June 17, Corbin's motorcycle completed the 13 km (8 miles) uphill course in 26 minutes. In 1988, Ed Rannberg, who founded Eyeball Engineering, tested his electric drag motorcycle in Bonneville . In 1992,
3784-580: The German occupation with their permission. Due to fuel rationing, they found some degree of success. But after the war, they switched to conventional models. The electric models remained available until 1948. During the World War II , compelled by fuel rationing in the United States, Merle Williams of Long Beach, California, invented a two-wheeled electric motorcycle that towed a single-wheeled trailer. Due to
3872-599: The January issue of Cycle World carried an article about Ed Rannberg's bike called the KawaSHOCKI. It could complete 400 m ( 1 ⁄ 4 mile) in 11–12 seconds. In 1995, Electric Motorbike Inc. was founded by Scott Cronk and Rick Whisman in Santa Rosa, California. In 1996, EMB Lectra was built by Electric Motorbike Inc., which used a variable reluctance motor . It had a top speed of about 45 mph (72 km/h) and
3960-842: The SMC/A3 class with a time of 10.602 at 197.26 km/h (122.57 mph). On June 30, 2013, Carlin Dunne riding a Lightning Motorcycle-built electric bike beat conventional motorcycles at Pikes Peak. He clocked a 10 minutes 00.694 seconds at the 20.0 km (12.42 miles) course. In 2017, Scorpio Electric announced its scope of business includes manufacturing and assembly of electric motorcycles and scooters. On November 20, 2018, VinFast from Vietnam introduced two electric scooter models in Hanoi , with 4 model: VinFast Klara A1 ( Lithium-ion battery ), VinFast Klara A2 ( Lead–acid battery ), VinFast Ludo and VinFast Impes. In 2020, Ola Electric Mobility,
4048-615: The VX-1. Following insolvency and initial bankruptcy reorganization, the Gold Peak battery group purchased the company in 2009. Vectrix expanded product lines, offering the VX-2 and the three wheeled VX-3. But Vectrix ceased operations in January 2014 and filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation, with its remaining assets auctioned off the following June. In February 2009, at the TED conference, Mission Motors ,
4136-407: The aircraft. Alternatively, aircraft gas turbine engines can be rapidly started using a mobile ground-based pneumatic starting engine, referred to as a start cart or air start cart . On larger diesel generators found in large shore installations and especially on ships, a pneumatic starting gear is used. The air motor is normally powered by compressed air at pressures of 10–30 bar . The air motor
4224-405: The best battery performance for electric vehicles. In 2017, the first vehicle in the US to use the new Lithium Titanium Oxide (LTO) battery non-flammable battery technology was a scooter called The Expresso. This technology allows a battery to charge in less than 10 minutes, and is capable of 25,000 charges, the equivalent of 70 years of daily charges. The technology, created by Altairnano ,
4312-459: The brake system. Pneumatic starters have the advantages of delivering high torque, mechanical simplicity and reliability. They eliminate the need for oversized, heavy storage batteries in prime mover electrical systems. Large Diesel generators and almost all Diesel engines used as the prime mover of ships use compressed air acting directly on the cylinder head. This is not ideal for smaller Diesels, as it provides too much cooling on starting. Also,
4400-416: The case, for instance, of very large engines, or diesel engines in agricultural or excavation applications. Internal combustion engines are feedback systems, which, once started, rely on the inertia from each cycle to initiate the next cycle. In a four-stroke engine , the third stroke releases energy from the fuel, powering the fourth (exhaust) stroke and also the first two (intake, compression) strokes of
4488-629: The conceptual basis for the gear-reduction starters that now predominate in vehicles on the road. Many Japanese automakers phased in gear reduction starters in the 1970s and 1980s. Light aircraft engines also made extensive use of this kind of starter, because its light weight offered an advantage. Those starters not employing offset gear trains like the Chrysler unit generally employ planetary epicyclic gear trains instead. Direct-drive starters are almost entirely obsolete owing to their larger size, heavier weight and higher current requirements. Ford issued
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#17330859971884576-437: The contacts and sending large battery current to the starter motor. One of the pole shoes, hinged at the front, linked to the starter drive, and spring-loaded away from its normal operating position, is swung into position by the magnetic field created by electricity flowing through its field coil. This moves the starter drive forward to engage the flywheel ring gear, and simultaneously closes a pair of contacts supplying current to
4664-438: The course in 12 minutes 50.094 seconds. On 30 August 2011, Yates riding his prototype SWIGZ.COM electric superbike established the official Guinness record of the fastest electric motorcycle. The motorcycle clocked a speed of 316.899 km/h (196.912 mph) at Bonneville. In 2012, Paul Ernst Thede set an SCTA record run of 216.8 mph (348.9 km/h) at Bonnevile Salt Flats, Utah, US. This did not qualify as
4752-506: The crank with it, because the overrun safety mechanism works in one direction only. Although users were advised to cup their fingers and thumb under the crank and pull up, it felt natural for operators to grasp the handle with the fingers on one side, the thumb on the other. Even a simple backfire could result in a broken thumb; it was possible to end up with a broken wrist , a dislocated shoulder or worse. Moreover, increasingly larger engines with higher compression ratios made hand cranking
4840-468: The crankshaft is needed for starting. Some diesel engines from six to 16 cylinders are started by means of a hydraulic motor . Hydraulic starters and the associated systems provide a sparkless, reliable method of engine starting over a wide temperature range. Typically hydraulic starters are found in applications such as remote generators, lifeboat propulsion engines, offshore fire pumping engines, and hydraulic fracturing rigs. The system used to support
4928-481: The cylinder head needs to have enough space to support an extra valve for the air start system. The air start system is conceptually very similar to a distributor in a car. There is an air distributor that is geared to the camshaft of the Diesel engine; on the top of the air distributor is a single lobe similar to what is found on a camshaft. Arranged radially around this lobe are roller tip followers for every cylinder. When
5016-444: The drum, which allows the small chamber to become larger and puts another one of the cambers in the air inlet. The air motor spins much too fast to be used directly on the flywheel of the engine; instead a large gearing reduction, such as a planetary gear, is used to lower the output speed. A Bendix gear is used to engage the flywheel. Since large trucks typically use air brakes , the system does double duty, supplying compressed air to
5104-548: The early 1970s, Mike Corbin built a street-legal commuter electric motorcycle called the Corbin Electric. Later in 1974, Corbin, riding a motorcycle called the Quick Silver, set the electric motorcycle speed world record at 165.387 mph (266.165 km/h). The motorcycle used a 24 volt electric starter motor from a Douglas A-4B fighter plane. In 1975, Corbin built a battery-powered prototype street motorcycle called
5192-505: The electrical circuit to the starter motor once the pedal reached the end of its travel. Ferguson tractors from the 1940s, including the Ferguson TE20 , had an extra position on the gear lever that engaged the starter switch, ensuring safety by preventing the tractors from being started in gear. The electric starter motor or cranking motor is the most common type used on gasoline engines and small diesel engines. The modern starter motor
5280-419: The engine - spinning up the flywheel to the required speed can take between 10 and 20 seconds. If the engine does not start by the time the flywheel has lost its inertia then the process must be repeated for the next attempt. Some gas turbine engines and diesel engines , particularly on trucks , use a pneumatic self-starter. In ground vehicles the system consists of a geared turbine, an air compressor and
5368-511: The engine fires briefly but does not continue to run. An intermediate development between the Bendix drive developed in the 1930s and the overrunning-clutch designs introduced in the 1960s was the Bendix Folo-Thru drive. The standard Bendix drive would disengage from the ring gear as soon as the engine fired, even if it did not continue to run. The Folo-Thru drive contains a latching mechanism and
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#17330859971885456-519: The few seconds needed to start the engine. The starters were first installed on the Cadillac Model Thirty in 1912, with the same system being adopted by Lanchester later that year. These starters also worked as generators once the engine was running, a concept that is now being revived in hybrid vehicles . Although the electric starter motor was to come to dominate the car market, in 1912, there were several competing types of starter, with
5544-497: The first electric Time Trial Xtreme Grand Prix (TTXGP) all-electric street motorcycle race took place on the Isle of Man in which 13 machines took part. Rob Barber riding a motorcycle built by Team Agni won the race. He completed the 60.72 km (37.73 miles) course in 25 minutes 53.5 seconds, an average speed of 87.434 mph (140.711 km/h). In September 2009, product manager Jeremy Cleland of Mission Motors broke
5632-448: The hand crank on NCR 's cash registers with an electric motor five years earlier.) One aspect of the invention lay in the realization that a relatively small motor, driven with higher voltage and current than would be feasible for continuous operation, could deliver enough power to crank the engine for starting. At the voltage and current levels required, such a motor would burn out in a few minutes of continuous operation, but not during
5720-415: The high efficiency of the axial piston motor concept, which provides high torque at any temperature or environment, and guarantees minimal wear of the engine ring gear and the pinion. A spring starter uses potential energy stored in a spring wound up with a crank to start an engine without a battery or alternator . Turning the crank moves the pinion into mesh with the engine's ring gear , then winds up
5808-417: The hydraulic starter includes valves, pumps, filters, a reservoir, and piston accumulators. The operator can manually recharge the hydraulic system; this cannot readily be done with electric starting systems, so hydraulic starting systems are favored in applications wherein emergency starting is a requirement. With various configurations, Hydraulic starters can be fitted on any engine. Hydraulic starters employ
5896-409: The inertia of the drive pinion assembly causes it to ride forward on the helix and thus engage with the ring gear. When the engine starts, backdrive from the ring gear causes the drive pinion to exceed the rotative speed of the starter, at which point the drive pinion is forced back down the helical shaft and thus out of mesh with the ring gear. This has the disadvantage that the gears will disengage if
5984-523: The lobe of the air distributor hits one of the followers it will send an air signal that acts upon the back of the air start valve located in the cylinder head, causing it to open. Compressed air is provided from a large reservoir that feeds into a header located along the engine. As soon as the air start valve is opened, the compressed air is admitted and the engine will begin turning. It can be used on two-cycle and four-cycle engines and on reversing engines. On large two-stroke engines less than one revolution of
6072-416: The motor is not driving the engine directly, it can be of much lower power than the standard starter for an engine of the same size. This allows for a motor of much lower weight and smaller size, as well as lighter cables and smaller batteries to power the motor. This made the inertia starter a common choice for aircraft with large radial piston engines. The disadvantage is the increased time required to start
6160-530: The next cycle, as well as powering the engine's external load. To start the first cycle at the beginning of any particular session, the first two strokes must be powered in some other way than from the engine itself. The starter motor is used for this purpose and it is not required once the engine starts running and its feedback loop becomes self-sustaining. Before the advent of the starter motor, engines were started by various methods including wind-up springs, gunpowder cylinders , and human-powered techniques such as
6248-411: The open road riders experience inhibiting range anxiety . Electric power also trades off range against speed; for instance according to the manufacturer the long-range ZEV LRC electric scooter can travel 225 km (140 mi) at 88 km/h (55 mph), but the range drops to about 129 km (80 mi) at 112 km/h (70 mph). Manufacturers are striving to increase range; as of 2022
6336-429: The operator to pause for at least ten seconds after each ten or fifteen seconds of cranking the engine, when trying to start an engine that does not start immediately. This overrunning-clutch pinion arrangement was phased into use beginning in the early 1960s; before that time, a Bendix drive was used. The Bendix system places the starter drive pinion on a helically cut drive shaft. When the starter motor begins turning,
6424-434: The overdriven drive unit to be spun out of engagement. In this manner, unwanted starter disengagement is avoided before a successful engine start. In 1962, Chrysler introduced a starter incorporating a geartrain between the motor and the drive shaft. The motor shaft included integrally cut gear teeth forming a pinion that meshes with a larger adjacent driven gear to provide a gear reduction ratio of 3.75:1. This permitted
6512-406: The pinion to transmit drive in only one direction. In this manner, drive is transmitted through the pinion to the flywheel ring gear, but if the pinion remains engaged (as for example because the operator fails to release the key as soon as the engine starts, or if there is a short and the solenoid remains engaged), the pinion will spin independently of its drive shaft. This prevents the engine driving
6600-513: The popularity of the vehicle, Williams started making more such vehicles in his garage. In 1946, it led to the formation of the Marketeer Company (current-day ParCar Corp.). In 1967, Karl Kordesch , working for Union Carbide , made a fuel cell / Nickel–cadmium battery hybrid electric motorcycle. It was later replaced with a hydrazine fuel cell, giving it a range of 200 mpg ‑US (240 mpg ‑imp ; 0.012 L/km) and
6688-443: The rest of the starter motor winding. Once the engine starts and the driver releases the starter switch, a spring retracts the pole shoe, which pulls the starter drive out of engagement with the ring gear. This starter was used on Ford vehicles from 1973 through 1990, when a gear-reduction unit conceptually similar to the Chrysler unit replaced it. A variant on the electric starter motor is the inertia starter (not to be confused with
6776-403: The scooter market Nanu EV, Gogoro, Unu, and TurboAnt have designed machines which allow quick battery swapping , to allow charging without the vehicle needing to be near a charge point, or, with a spare battery or an available battery network, to allow continued travel after a battery is drained. In the mid-1990s, Personal Electric Transports-Hawaii (formerly Suntera, now P.E.T.) was making
6864-418: The spring. Pulling the release lever then applies the spring tension to the pinion, turning the ring gear to start the engine. The pinion automatically disengages from the flywheel after operation. Provision is also made to allow the engine to be slowly turned over by hand for engine maintenance. This is achieved by operating the trip lever just after the pinion has engaged with the flywheel. Subsequent turning of
6952-429: The starter cord and handle at high speed around the starter pulley. Even though cranks had an overrun mechanism, when the engine started, the crank could begin to spin along with the crankshaft and potentially strike the person cranking the engine. Additionally, care had to be taken to retard the spark in order to prevent backfiring ; with an advanced spark setting, the engine could kick back (run in reverse), pulling
7040-606: The starter, for such backdrive would cause the starter to spin so fast as to fly apart. The sprag clutch arrangement would preclude the use of the starter as a generator if employed in the hybrid scheme mentioned above, unless modifications were made. The standard starter motor is typically designed for intermittent use, which would preclude its use as a generator. The starter's electrical components are designed only to operate for typically under 30 seconds before overheating (by too-slow dissipation of heat from ohmic losses ), to save weight and cost. Most automobile owner manuals instruct
7128-560: The switch between motor and generator modes required dedicated and relatively complex switchgear which was more prone to failure than the heavy-duty contacts of a dedicated starter motor. While the starter-generator dropped out of favour for cars by the 1930s, the concept was still useful for smaller vehicles and was taken up by the German firm SIBA Elektrik which built similar system intended mostly for use on motorcycles, scooters, economy cars (especially those will small-capacity two-stroke engines ), and marine engines. These were marketed under
7216-456: The throttle. Their range was up to 100 miles while maintaining 105 km/h (65 mph) in all weather and hills. It was the first of their kind built by a woman in the US. In 2012, Jim Higgins rode the street-legal Mission Motors' Mission R at the Sonoma Raceway quarter-mile drag strip and set a National Electric Drag Racing Association (NEDRA) street-legal electric motorcycle record for
7304-553: The use of a higher-speed, lower-current, lighter and more compact motor assembly while increasing cranking torque. Variants of this starter design were used on most rear- and four-wheel-drive vehicles produced by Chrysler Corporation from 1962 through 1987. It makes a unique, distinct sound when cranking the engine, which led to it being nicknamed the "Highland Park Hummingbird"—a reference to Chrysler's headquarters in Highland Park, Michigan . The Chrysler gear-reduction starter formed
7392-454: The winding handle during this operation will not load the starter. Spring starters can be found in engine-generators and hydraulic power packs , and on lifeboat engines , with the most common application being backup starting system on seagoing vessels. Many Briggs & Stratton lawn mowers in the 1960s had hand-cranked spring starters. Some modern gasoline engines with twelve or more cylinders always have at least one or more pistons at
7480-638: Was a well known designer of the Tucker 48 automobile. Budd's Caballitos were also adapted for battery-swapping at P.E.T.’s future battery-swap stations. In 2000, P.E.T. added light-electric motorcycle and scooter visionary Todd Bank to their team and P.E.T. secured major funding from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power to design and prototype the first battery-swap station's for light-electric vehicles and NEV's. P.E.T. prototypes and designs are now on display at museums across America. Battery swapping
7568-475: Was by a resistance placed across the handlebars. This electric bicycle was mainly intended for racetrack use. The October 1911 issue of Popular Mechanics mentioned the introduction of an electric motorcycle. It claimed to have a range of 120 km (75 miles) to 160 km (100 miles) per charge. The motorcycle had a three-speed controller, with speeds of 6, 24 and 56 km/h (4, 15 and 35 mph). In 1919, Ransomes, Sims & Jefferies made
7656-510: Was filed by Ogden Bolton Jr. of Canton Ohio. On 8 November of the same year, another patent application for an "electric bicycle" was filed by Hosea W. Libbey of Boston. At the Stanley Cycle Show in 1896 in London, England, bicycle manufacturer Humber exhibited an electric tandem bicycle. Powered by a bank of storage batteries, the motor was placed in front of the rear wheel. Speed control
7744-410: Was still common for cars to be supplied with starter handles into the 1960s, and this continued much later for some makes (e.g. Citroën 2CV until end of production in 1990). In many cases, cranks were used for setting timing rather than starting the engine as growing displacements and compression ratios made this impractical. Communist bloc cars such as Ladas often still sported crank-starting as late as
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