I'll check that out. The goal is to get to something that runs all night (or almost all night) with around 1kwh output using as little space as possible. I've just started poking around, but this'll help.
In the third world there's plenty of sunlight, but you don't need the power during the day necessarily. That price'll get to $400 for storage, $400 for panels, which is ballpark.
I'm actually pretty excited about this, and I've always been surprised that there isn't an electric bike like this.
One of the main user interface challenges with a pedal assist E bike is how to make the experience feel as intuitive as just pedaling a normal bicycle with a chain, but be able to embrace all of the UX freedom afforded by the "Pedal by wire" separation.
Consider that because there's an electric generator that the pedals are powering, the software can vary how much amperage is allowed to be generated and so provide variable force feedback as it were, and the software can set any relationship between the input (pedaling frequency, torque, rate of change etc.) and the behavior of the traction motor. I think that's the basis for actually a very exciting pedaling platform.
They also say in the article that the generator itself can create enough power to substantively move the motor, which is pretty awesome in my mind but I can totally understand how that feels circuitous.
