Design and implementation of a hybrid electric motorcycle management system

This paper presents a successful design and implement of a shunt-winding hybrid electric motorcycle management system which utilizes an electronic control unit (ECU) to integrate two major subsystems together, one being the traditional system of 125 c.c. internal combustion engine and the other an electric power motor. The hybrid electric motorcycle is assembled together robustly by these two major subsystems and eventually leads to successful road tests. The hybrid power system thus implemented can recharge its own batteries with electricity provided by the electrical recharge system and thus increasing the cruising mileages largely. The testing results obtained by using the proposed experimental platform indicate that lead-acid cells can boost their state of charge (SOC) by approximately 4% when it is operated under the hybrid mode for four driving cycles (about 1600 s) with the recharger on in a standard ECE-40 testing procedure. The results of road tests also clearly show that the pollutant emissions of the engine can be reduced at a lower speed or idling condition, and the problem of insufficient cruising range for electric motorcycles can also be greatly enhanced. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.