Category: Projects

Electric bicycles with detachable batteries are easy to charge. The problem is that the batteries are valuable (between €200-800) and therefore a huge target for thieves.

In The Netherlands, about 9.000 e-bike batteries get stolen per year. That’s more than one every hour.

A trained thief can “bypass” the factory integrated lock with one hard kick. 10 seconds of “work” for €800.

This lock makes it much more difficult to steal the battery, with almost no inconvenience for the owner. This well-selling lock can be self-installed by the consumer.

The latest iteration of the lock incorporates a lot of consumer feedback. Instead of two padlocks, this version now has the same level of security using a single padlock.

I made it my personal quest to allow this lock to fit as many e-bikes in this form-factor (fat bike) as possible. In doing so the production and handling costs can be kept reasonable, plus it is easier for the consumer to find the right lock for their bicycle.

On a personal note,

I have long been fascinated by locks. Why? Locks are (mostly) a physical restraint, that keep unwanted people from doing something that the one who controls the lock should still be able to do. But, as with anything in security, a good lock is only as strong as its weakest link.

Thieves are willing to go great lengths to find a weakness in the security. After all, once they figure it out, there are a lot of 10 second / €800 opportunities out there. A lock acts as a deterrent and it costs time to bypass. The better the lock, the more time needed to get past it.

The real trick is not compromising the ease of use for the owner of the lock, while keeping unwanted individuals out for as long as possible.

R-net is the public transportation network of the Randstad region. They inform their travellers on their various departure and arrival platforms through DRIS (Dynamic Traveler Information System).

Time savings up to 30 seconds for every train stop

For the European tender process we designed 4 models of DRIS in several modular configurations. The tender included the production and maintenance for 10 years.With the added security of radar passenger-in-rail accident detection, the chances of accidents happening are reduced.

European tender applications cost a lot of time because they need to be competitive, but realistically priced, while the production or even the design of the product has a lot of unknowns and surprises still.

Design for manufacturing (DFM) from the moment of starting the first conversation is essential to come to a product that can actually be made quickly.

Especially for projects like these, that have little innovation, the focus is on getting to a design that will work asap.

The tender included 8 different products (Type A, B, C and D, of which A and D are modular solutions). Type A and D each come in 3 different sizes, which meant a lot of modularity was needed.

Whenever designing/producing something for the public landscape, a lot of rules and regulations apply. Think of safety rules for how much wind such structures need to be able to withstand. Of course, security plays an important role as well when hanging expensive devices in the public space.

Industry standards for many components have to be incorporated, to keep the product serviceable. Speaking of serviceability, Design for Assembly (DFA) makes sure workers do not end up with a beautifully looking, but completely useless product.

The European tender had a hard deadline, which is always a combination of a great motivation and a struggle to stay factual and precise.

It is estimated that 5% of global CO₂ eq. emissions come from old, inefficient two-wheeled vehicles.

Fast growing economies significantly rely on this kind of transportation and will continue to do so, while much cleaner options could be made available at a similar price point.

Asked to help design the electric motorcycle for this user group. The production cost per motorcycle needed to match current internal combustion motorcycles. The infrastructure, allowing users to self-swap the batteries, was part of the design requirements; batteries for rent.

The motorcycle needs to accommodate its various use case scenarios: In many places they would be used as taxis, while others use them to transport large amounts of materials over non-flat terrain.

Our US based client is no new player in the electric vehicle market. Therefore, the design process was fast paced and the boundaries of our design process were everchanging but clearly communicated.