We're getting closer! Eli and I were able to make some good progress on the bike today. We began our day with a meeting with Mr. Hwang, who gave us some much needed guidance. We went ahead and scheduled a time for him to come into the garage next week, as we are planning on building the gas powered bike then. We then headed over to Patrick's where Eli had a bright idea as to how to secure the battery pack. He brought some plastic tupperwear with him that fit the battery pack perfectly. However, now we needed some way to secure the box to the bike. So, once again, we went to Home Depot. At home depot we got some self drilling screws (screws that do not need a hole drilled) as well as some washers, per Patrick's instructions. Once back at the shop, we drilled holes in the bike rack and successful secure the battery pack to the bike!
We then went to making a hole in the box where we could run wires through. Luckily, Patrick helped us out with that. He then instructed us to connect all four battery packs together at one point. Basically, we needed to cut electric wires, attach them to the battery pack, then connect the 4 separate wires together for both positive and negatively charged ends. The reasoning for this is because if all the batteries are connected by one single wire, you can charge all 4 batteries at once, which is efficient and convenient. So, we went to cutting wires, connecting them and melting them together. Our finished product is a battery pack that can be charged rather quickly and easily.
We are so close! I honestly think we will be done with our electric bike within the first hour of next Monday. Though it is a little irritating that our schedule didn't work out, I think that is part of the whole senior project experience. Hitting obstacles and finding ways around them is how you really begin to understand your subject. So, as of this week, no finished bike yet. Hopefully I can say differently next week!
Saturday, April 11, 2015
Thursday, April 9th
Thursday, April 9th
Today was a bit of a scare. After some research last night, Eli and I realized what we thought was the battery to our kit was actually the controller (something that dissipates the heat). So, we realized we were without a battery! We looked all night for batteries and realized the cost was way out of our budget. We decided to wait and ask Patrick what we should do. We met at WalMart this morning and purchased a bike rack to mount our theoretical battery onto. We then headed over to Patricks. Once there, he made many calls to different auto stores asking what the best way to approach this problem was. Most suggested fusing multiple batteries together to create 48V, the voltage of our controller.
With that in mind, Patrick sent us to Batteries Plus, where we met an extremely kind employee. We explained our situation, and he was super excited, because he loved to work on stuff like our project. He showed us the 12V battery, and suggested buying four and connecting them through a cable to make 48V. The only problem was that was that the batteries were about $36 a piece. Luckily, the employee said he could work the price down for us. We ended up getting 4 batteries for around $16 a piece, thanks to his help. He told us good luck, and we went on our way after thanking him many times.
With our problem solved, we headed back to Patrick's to see if the batteries would fit on the bike mount we purchased, which they did. However, we had no way to tie them down on the back. So once again, we loaded into the car, and headed off to Home Depot looking for some restraints to keep the battery pack in place. Unfortunately, they didn't have much of a selection. We were also looking for a specific type of screw to mount the controller onto the bike, as the bike rack was full. Making the best of what we could find, we bought some bungee cords and screws.
Once back at Patrick's, we realized the cords we bought weren't going to work. We agreed to both look into different ways of securing the battery pack onto the bike tonight. We then went to work mounting the controller onto the bike, which proved to be quite difficult. We had issues lining up the screws with the holes in the controller. Using much tape and forcing of screws, we were able to secure about half of the controller to the bicycle. Before we knew it, it was 3PM and Eli had to return to Lovett for tennis practice. So, we are planning on attaching the whole controller to the bicycle tomorrow, fastening the wires to the bicycle, and securing the battery pack. If all goes as planned, we should be done with the bike by tomorrow afternoon.
Today has shown me that everything does not go as planned. Originally, Eli and I thought we would be done with the bicycle by today, but this is obviously not the case. We now realize we will have to cut down our efficiency testing a little bit next week in order to build the motor bike. However, building the gas powered bike may prove to be easier than the electric, as we are sure that all parts are included in the kit. We are still very into the project, and want to thank Patrick for his help. We couldn't have solved our slight problem without him.
Wedneday, April 8th
Wednesday, April 8th
Building day 1 was a blast! Turns out all the boring research that Eli and I did last week paid off. To begin our day, Eli and I arrived at Auto Repairs by Patrick bright and early. Once there, we finally got to start on the much anticipated building of the bicycle. We decided to begin by building our electric motor first. So, we went to work. To start off, I should probably explain our electric motor. Contrary to what some may believe, our electric "Motor" is actually a bicycle wheel. The wheel is a standard 26'' frame, and it has a long cord hanging out from one side. The cord actually connects to a battery pack that is also attached to the bicycle. The battery pack provides the wheel with power, and the wheel spins on its own when power is initiated. So, to begin building, we first had to remove the original rear wheel from the bicycle, which was done with some heavy wrenching, and untangling of the bike chain. Eventually, after removing the brakes and kickstand to make way for the tire, we secured the tire onto the back with the chain attached.
Next is where we encountered a little trouble. By disconnecting the breaks, we had essentially loosened them, and could not figure out how to tighten them. We decided to leave them be and fix them later, but of course the next part we had to install was the brake handles that came with our kit. These brake handles were specially modified for our bike kit. When squeezed, the brake handles both slowed down the tires as well as cut off power to the rear wheel. So, we went to work removing the original brakes as well as the grips on the handle bars. Once removed, we encountered another slight problem. Our kit also came with custom hand grips, one of which is the "on" switch for the battery pack, as well as a throttle. However, our bicycle had multiple gears, and included a gear changer situated on the right handlebar. We soon realized that the brake handle, gear changer and bike handle would not all fit. After some discussion, we decided we needed the gear shifter on the bicycle in order to enable it to be ridden as a normal bicycle. Therefore, we actually moved it to the other handlebar. This worked fine, but we realized the gear shifter was upside down. However, we had no where else to put it, so upside down it remains.
Once we attached the brake handles, we soon realized we had to connect the brake cords to the handles. This required the reinstallation of our removed brake lines. Much time was spent figuring out how to readjust the brake lines in a way that they were tight and stopped the wheels from moving. After much tinkering, we soon realized we needed to look it up, but had no access to our computers. Therefore, priority number one tomorrow is to fix the brakes.
The building is going extremely well. However, the instructions we received are very poor quality, and low in detail. So, we also must try to find a more substantial instruction sheet or video, which I am sure we will. If not, we have Patrick to help out, as he did a lot today. I am so ecstatic to finally be building our bicycles, and cannot wait to finish the first one. If all goes as planned, we should be done with the electric one tomorrow, and can hopefully start on the gas powered motor. All in all, it was a very productive, successful day.
Tuesday, April 7th
Tuesday, April 7th
Were getting closer! Today was our final day of preparation before we begin building (finally). Our day actually began last night when Eli and I met for two hours at Caribou Coffee debating a list we compiled of different bikes on Craigslist over the weekend. After a little bit of emailing and calling, Eli and I arranged meetings with many different Craigslist sellers in order to ensure that we would have a bicycle by the end of the day. We ended up buying a bike from a guy located in Dallas, Georgia, about an hour away from Atlanta. Eli and I met the man and he told us how he had won the bike in a trade and didn’t want it, which enabled us to bargain it down from $100 to $70.
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| The bikes we bought |
Leaving Dallas, Georgia with a new bicycle in hand, Eli and I went back to his house to compare the two bicycles. Over the weekend, our electric motor arrived in the mail. Using the motor to compare the bikes, we came to the conclusion that the bike we just bought would be used for the electric motor, as it seemed to fit best on it. While we were sitting outside comparing the bicycles at Eli’s, FedEx arrived at his front door with a large package ( 3 guesses as to what the package was). Overjoyed, we tore into the package and spent ample time going through the motor kit. We made sure everything seemed to fit onto the bicycle, which it did. We went through the parts making sure everything that we ordered was included and nothing was lost. Luckily, everything was there, and we are now ready to build!
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| Parts included in motor kit |
Thursday, April 2nd
Thursday, April 2nd
What a long day! Today was a day full of car riding and purchasing. To start our day, we met with Mr. Hwang around 7:30 AM to go over all that we had done this week. We spoke about our finances, what our plans were for the day, and our plans for next week. He gave us some valuable information about efficiency testing which we plan to utilize during that week. All in all, Mr. Hwang added some valuable insight into our week, and helped us to recognize what exactly we want to accomplish.
After meeting with Mr. Hwang, Eli and I went to class, then headed over to Auto Repairs by Patrick. Here, Eli introduced me to Patrick and his son. While at the shop, they showed us where we would be working, what tools we could use, and showed us what assistance they could provide to the project. We then told them we were planning on buying bikes today, and they made a few suggestions into the type of bicycle we needed, as well as where to buy them. They pointed out a few thrift shops in the area that they knew had bikes, and told us to look there.
After leaving Patrick’s, we headed over to a pawnshop about 10 minutes away. In the shop, we found quite a few bikes, but sadly none of the bikes were within our price range. We then headed to Goodwill to see if they had any bikes, which they did. However, these also did not meet our requirements for the project. Following our trip to Goodwill, Eli and I went to The Varsity where we had planned to meet with a potential Craigslist seller. After a long time waiting, Eli and I finally met the guy, who was extremely nice and enthusiastic about bicycles. He showed us two different bikes, offering one for $150 and one for $200. After a couple minutes of bargaining, Eli and I were able to get one bike down to $100. We paid the man and went on our way with our new bike!
We then tried a few more thrift stores and pawnshops looking for the right bike, but none were in our price range. We then took to our trusty Craigslist to see if we could find another bicycle based on Patrick’s suggestions. Luckily, we found one listed for $100 from a guy in Kennesaw. We loaded up the car and our wallets and made the long trek to Kennesaw to meet the guy. Unfortunately, when Eli and I arrived, we realized the bicycle wasn’t exactly what we were looking for. We thought we could make it work though. We tried to bargain with the man, but he wouldn’t budge from $100. So, we bid him a good day and went on our way. Eli and I decided we would both look over the weekend online for bike listings, and plan to buy our last bicycle on Tuesday morning.
Of all our days this week, I would have to say this has really felt like a senior project. Getting out into the world and interacting with people made today especially important. We learned a lot about the prices of bicycles, and the art of bargaining. To sum it all up, I would have to say the final day of our first week can be marked down as a success, as we came away with at least one bicycle.
Wednesday, April 1
Wednesday, April 1
I will just go ahead and say how much I am looking forward to actually building the bikes. Today, Eli and I spent our time yet again researching, this time about both bicycles as well as marketing practices. Though this research was extremely useful, it does get a little boring. However, I know that in the long run, we will be glad that we did all this research, as it will make our project easier in the future.
Anyway, we began our day by reading up on marketing and commercial production. We planned out our week for commercial filming, and took numerous notes on how to appeal to different audiences. We made a list of tentative ideas to cover in each commercial for the different bikes. These include stressing efficiency, practicality, as well as money saving benefits. We were debating writing a script today for our commercials, but decided to wait until the week of because we really want to emphasize the results of our tests in the commercials.
After concluding our research into marketing, we looked into what kinds of bikes would work best with our engines we bought yesterday. We watched numerous videos that gave precise measurements that bicycles should have. We then scoured Craigslist looking for bicycles that met the description. We then found a bike that seemed within our price range, but was about an hour away. We debated heading out there to meet our craigslist seller, but then decided to go to Atlanta Cycling right near Lovett. This trip proved to be crucial to our project. At the store, we talked with an employee about the different specs we had learned, and asked if he had any advice. Luckily, he knew all about building motor bikes, and gave us very good advice about what kind of bike to look for. He told us that with a gas powered bike, a beach cruiser or mountain bike would work best, which we assumed. However, he told us with an electric engine, you want the ride to be as smooth as possible to get the most out of one charge. He showed us some hybrid bikes, which were a cross between a street bike and a mountain bike. He said the tires were thick enough to be durable, but also thin enough to move aerodynamically though the roads. Once we talked to him, we knew exactly what we needed. He actually even offered us some free bicycles he had out behind the store that were worn down. We went back there and found a bicycle that seemed to be pretty useable. We thanked him and went out to the car with our free bicycle. However, we ended up giving it back as we realized that it would be more expensive to fix the bicycle than to get a fully functional one.
After our conversation with the employee, we continued our research into bicycles, this time looking specifically for hybrid bicycles. After about an hour of searching and contacting, we found a few bikes that were within our price range. We then contacted the sellers and waited for them to reply, and we are meeting a few of the sellers tomorrow to see if we can get at least one of the bicycles.
All in all, it was a very exciting day towards the end, as we learned some crucial information for our project. I really enjoyed actually getting out and doing something other than research! Eli and I cannot wait to go look at the bikes tomorrow, and feel strongly that we will return from our drives with something to show for it.
Tuesday, March 30th
Tuesday, March 31: Research into Testing
What an exciting day! As I mentioned in my earlier post, Eli and I reached out to Dr. Dunkel and Ms. Switzer requesting funds for our electric engine. We explained that the engine we wanted was around $200, and they graciously granted us $250 from Lovett’s Green Initiative fund. Words cannot express how grateful Eli and I are for this donation, as it helps our project to become the best it can possibly be. Once we received confirmation that our request was approved, Eli and I spent a good while before buying the actual engines reading the fine print of the product. We wanted to make sure everything was perfect. One thing we were concerned with was whether or not the engines we were ordering came with mounts that would enable us to attach the motors to the bikes. We came to the conclusion that the kits included all necessary parts, and pushed “Order” on each engine.
With the engines ordered, we had done all we could with them until they arrived. Therefore, we then delved ourselves into the next aspect of our project, testing. During the third week of our project when everything is built, Eli and I plan to conduct a series of tests that measure the efficiency of the bikes, the practicality of the bikes, as well as many other aspects that would cause consumers to switch to motor bikes rather than cars. We went ahead and mapped out our third week planning what exact tests we would do. This of course was after much research into how exactly we would test the bikes. For example, to get the true MPG or MPC (miles per charge) Eli and I plan to fill/charge the tanks a quarter of the way full, and ride the bikes in Piedmont Park until the bikes will no longer move. Using either our GPS phones or a pedometer, Eli and I plan to calculate how far the bikes will move on a full tank or charge. This is just one of the many tests we plan to perform in the weeks to come.
What an exciting day! As I mentioned in my earlier post, Eli and I reached out to Dr. Dunkel and Ms. Switzer requesting funds for our electric engine. We explained that the engine we wanted was around $200, and they graciously granted us $250 from Lovett’s Green Initiative fund. Words cannot express how grateful Eli and I are for this donation, as it helps our project to become the best it can possibly be. Once we received confirmation that our request was approved, Eli and I spent a good while before buying the actual engines reading the fine print of the product. We wanted to make sure everything was perfect. One thing we were concerned with was whether or not the engines we were ordering came with mounts that would enable us to attach the motors to the bikes. We came to the conclusion that the kits included all necessary parts, and pushed “Order” on each engine.
With the engines ordered, we had done all we could with them until they arrived. Therefore, we then delved ourselves into the next aspect of our project, testing. During the third week of our project when everything is built, Eli and I plan to conduct a series of tests that measure the efficiency of the bikes, the practicality of the bikes, as well as many other aspects that would cause consumers to switch to motor bikes rather than cars. We went ahead and mapped out our third week planning what exact tests we would do. This of course was after much research into how exactly we would test the bikes. For example, to get the true MPG or MPC (miles per charge) Eli and I plan to fill/charge the tanks a quarter of the way full, and ride the bikes in Piedmont Park until the bikes will no longer move. Using either our GPS phones or a pedometer, Eli and I plan to calculate how far the bikes will move on a full tank or charge. This is just one of the many tests we plan to perform in the weeks to come.
As we entered our second day of the senior project, I still find myself extremely interested in the subject of motorbike mechanics. As I said yesterday, all this research is exhausting, but I am keeping my eye on the prize. Personally, I think the most fun week will either be the actual building of the bikes, or the week of testing. Regardless, I am looking forward to both, and cannot wait for tomorrow.
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