innovations
magazine
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Smart wheel turns push bikes into e-bikes
The FlyKly Smart Wheel transforms ordinary
bicycles into pedal-assisted electric models
that can power up hills and travel 40
kilometres or more on a single charge.
Designed to replace the rear wheel on an
existing bicycle, the 970 euro smart wheel
comes in three rim sizes – 20, 26 and 28 inches
– and takes fewer than five minutes to mount.
The motor, 250W battery and sensors are
incorporated in a single unit protected with a
weatherproof casing in pure white or silver grey.
The accompanying app lets users personalise
their riding experience whenever they choose,
for example by setting a maximum assisted
speed (up to 25 km per hour) and how much
of a boost they want from the motor (within a
range of 0-100%). It can also track riding speed,
distance travelled and trip duration.
Once settings have been saved, the rider
simply hops on the bike and starts pedalling as
usual. Sensors in the wheel tell the motor when
and how much to kick in based on the rider’s
settings. The motor shuts off automatically when
the rider stops pedalling.
With 100% assistance from the motor, a
rider can go up to 40 km on a single charge, and
much further if they require less assistance or
can add to the charge while going downhill.
It takes two to three hours to fully charge
FlyKlyWheel’s 30 Volt lithium battery using the
electric wall charger supplied with the wheel.
Foldable e-bike meets
Kickstarter target
The JIVR Bike, billed as the most high-
tech e-bike in the world, is due to ship
worldwide in September having met its
Kickstarter target.
The first folding, chainless e-bike allows
users to commute at speeds of up to 15.6
mph in three different modes: full electric, full
manual and assisted pedalling. It has a range
of 20 miles on a single charge in assisted-
pedalling mode and takes two hours to re-
charge in any electrical socket.
The complementary JIVR app, which can
be used on a smartphone plugged directly
into the bike, provides information on speed,
calories burned and GPS mapping.
The JIVR Bike is also the first bike ever to
be beacon-enabled, which means that it can
send messages to devices using Bluetooth.
Jivrbike.com
Never ending power
As it attempts to become the number one
network for service, EE is offering all mobile and
broadband business customers a free EE Power
Bar smartphone charger that can be recharged
after use or swapped for a fully charged one in
any EE store whenever necessary.
Eligible customers can get their free EE Power
Bar by texting ‘POWER’ to 365 and presenting
their promotional code at any EE store. Non-EE
customers can join the scheme by paying £20.
Green energy
marketplace trial
Good Energy has teamed up with
energy startup Open Utility to
trial a new service that will enable
commercial consumers and renewable
generators to trade electricity. The
aim of the online marketplace, named
Piclo, is to provide an ‘eBay for energy’.
The 6 month trial will enable
renewable generators to sell their
electricity directly to neighbours, local
businesses or schools for the best price.
Good Energy will act as utility partner for
the scheme, working closely with Open
Utility to ensure that Piclo meets all
regulatory requirements and to help with
billing.
Open Utility and Good Energy are
currently recruiting a limited number of
commercial consumers and renewable
generators to be the first to try out Piclo.
To register interest in joining the trial,
contact
innovation@
goodenergy.co.uk
Video-conferencing monitor
With use of desktop video-conferencing
predicted to increase by 16% in 2015,
Viewsonic has introduced a 24-inch Full HD
integrated webcam LED monitor that converts
almost any desktop PC into a personal web
and video conferencing solution.
The VG2437Smc features a 2 megapixel
Full HD webcam, integrated echo cancelling
microphone, stereo speakers and advanced
SuperClear MVA wide-viewing angle display
technology.
The VG2437Smc costs £199 Ex VAT.
IP conference phone
Yealink UK is breaking into the conference
phone market with the launch of an IP phone
that can be connected to a mobile, desk phone
or laptop. Standard features of the CP860
include USB call recording, Power over Ethernet,
triple microphone pick-up and five-way HD
full duplex conferencing. Optional expansion
microphones extend the unit’s standard reach of
10 metres
and enable it
to support up
to 16 users.
Time to take the Leap?
Meeting the needs of businesses and users
who put security and productivity first,
BlackBerry has added an affordable, all-touch
smartphone for 4G LTE networks to its range.
The BlackBerry Leap includes an edge-to-
edge five-inch HD display, BlackBerry’s latest
operating system and a
battery that provides up
to 25 hours of heavy use.
It supports encryption
and has built-in malware
protection and back-up,
wipe and restore.
Other features include
BlackBerry Blend PC
synchronisation software
and BlackBerry’s first digital
assistant.
/
Leap
