Pedal Electric Tricycle Project

The Pedal Electric Tricycle (PET) Project

The PET Team

Project Description

Lower Impact Vehicle
Symposium 2007

WEBSITE

Our Partners

PET Energy Testing data

Research Documents in Progress

Master's Design Report and Testing Analysis

Background

Click the Pictures to see videos of our prototypes in action!

Rationale

Links

"Real research is being done with wires sticking out and duct tape holding things in place because we're pushing the limits, it hasn't been done before."

--Roger Litge

Background
The Human Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HHEV) design team began working in the Spring of 2004 as a spin-off from a Transportation Technology and Policy graduate course on a city plan for a novel transportation infrastructure and vehicle amalgamation that significantly reduces air pollution, congestion, travel times, and private travel costs while vastly improving the safety, efficiency, convenience, and livability of suburban living (compared to existing infrastructure and travel patterns). This was primarily accomplished by distinguishing travelers according to their kinetic energy (K.E.) and separating them into two distinct networks: those with high K.E. and those with low K.E. It was hypothesized that pedestrian fatalities from collisions would be fairly improbable below a certain K.E. level, then estimated at 45.3kJ. Inspired by this potential, the team began to research what sort of vehicle could have a market niche in existing cities while also meeting the requirements of the low K.E. network in this theoretical town plan. Sponsored by the University of California Transportation Center (UCTC), a course was offered in the Fall of 2004 in which three interdisciplinary design teams competed in producing vehicles designed for such a low K.E. network. Members from these teams joined together after the course to refine the design of a vehicle that would find markets in existing communities and still remain appropriate for the potential advent of the dual infrastructure town.

Rationale
More and more people all over the world either yearn for or have come to expect the lifestyle opportunities that personal automobiles provide. Yet in places where personal automobile travel is legion, communities bemoan the collective problems entailed by such mass use: congestion, increased risk of injury and death on roadways (especially to non-motorists), increased health risks both from air pollution and sedentary lifestyles, and increased risk of climate change. Reducing the K.E. of personal travel can simultaneously reduce the impact of individual travelers' contributions to many of these collective problems to a significant degree. However, without prioritizing and improving the safety and convenience of such lower K.E. modes in a given community, they will continue to present less utility to the majority of travelers than their higher K.E. counterparts and the collective problems of automobility will inevitably persist. Conversely, without significant evidence that people would prefer to use such lower K.E. modes, communities will remain reluctant to invest significant resources towards developing separate networks or even just designating a strategic subset of existing roads to prioritize low K.E. modes. Thus, our project seeks to address the chicken and egg problem of developing low K.E. modeshare by providing a vehicle prototype for market studies in communities where lower K.E. mode networks already exist.

Project Description
The Pedal Electric Tricycle (PET) is a two passenger vehicle that can travel on regular roads and most existing bike paths in the U.S. while providing protection from inclement weather and electro-motive assistance to its human operator. It has a top speed of 25 mph, a 15 mile all-electric range at top speed even while using the wipers, defroster, and headlight, has driver visibility comparable to a car, handles in a similar manner to a bicycle (it even tilts like a bicycle), can carry four bags of groceries in addition to two passengers, has full passenger and cargo suspension (comfortable and no broken eggs), an am/fm radio with 1/8" auxiliary input, brake and turn signals front and aft, headlight, windshield wiper and defroster, charges from a standard 110V AC outlet or 12V DC socket, and has three generously-sized cup holders.

Research Documents and Relata

PET Pamphlet (pdf)

Tri-Fold Pamphlet explaining what the PET is and why it is important.

PET Request for Sponsorship and Market Proposition (pdf) (doc)

A general summary of the market context for the PET, what benefits it might provide to communities that use it, and information about the primary team members.

The Publication that inspired the PET (envisioning a novel dual infrastructure town plan):
Delucchi, M. K., Kurani, K. N., Turrentine. T. (2002). "How We Can Have Safe, Convenient, Clean, Affordable, Pleasant Transportation Without Making People Drive Less or Give Up Suburban Living?" UCD-ITS-RR-02-08, Institute of Transportation Studies, Davis, CA.