Test drives with our vehicles

To promote e-mobility, a well-developed charging infrastructure is required. Filling stations for diesel and petrol can be found on almost every street corner but filling up with electricity is a challenge. This lack of infrastructure is one of the reasons why the expansion of e-mobility in Germany is slowing down.

Furthermore the energy supply of e-scooters is also a challenge. In sharing services, discharged batteries are often collected by service staff with diesel vehicles and exchanged for charged batteries. The handy, replaceable batteries of the e-scooters offer the potential for more efficient energy supply concepts.

With the battery charging station from Swobbee, we are testing a new way of supplying LEVs (Light Electric Vehicles) with energy. The station is positioned on the west side of the D3 building. It has six compartments for batteries of the Kumpan- Scooter and two compartments for greenpack batteries. The station provides a quick and convenient way for users of sharing services to continue their journey when the batteries run out.

Currently, the user identifies himself by means of a customer card on the cabinet, selects the desired battery type and can then place his empty battery in a free compartment. Once this is done, a full battery can be removed. In the future, solutions will be developed to access the changing station with the help of an app and to implement a block chain solution for demand-based billing of energy consumption.

Funded by the FH-Basis program of the Ministry of Culture and Science of the State of Nordrhein-Westfalen.

The e-scooter team went to Berlin in May to get an idea of a functioning scooter sharing system. On site we not only tested the scooters of the providers "Emmy" and "Coup", but also looked at companies and start-ups in the mobility industry. The visit to the battery manufacturer Greenpack was particularly interesting. They produce very handy and compatible exchangeable batteries. The team also met with SunCrafter on the EUREF Campus and CitCar in the MotionLab. These sustainable start-ups shared their visions and experiences with us, allowing us to take away new insights for our own project work.

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(German)

Today we received our second vehicle. This time it was a model of the Kumpan company. The scooter is made in Germany and while it is a bit more expensive than the NIU, it is much better in equipment and workmanship. Besides the touch screen, two exchangeable batteries and the color combination of our university, we are especially happy about our logo on the side.

Today we received the "N-Series" model of the company "NIU" as the first test vehicle. The scooter is already prepared for sharing and meets all the requirements to withstand daily use. The battery of the vehicle with a capacity of 1.74 kWh allows a range of about 80km and is exchangeable. Two seats, a connection to the Internet and storage space for two helmets in the top case are additional plus points.

The next weeks will show how well the comparatively inexpensive scooter is suited for everyday life. We are looking forward to many test drives.