Portuguese University Team Builds First Electric Scooter

Published: 12-Jul-2012

A team of researchers from the Institute for Systems and Robotics (ISR), University of Coimbra (UC) developed from scratch, the first Portuguese electric scooter, 100 percent green, with zero emissions of CO2.

With autonomy when circulating in urban traffic, between 100 and 140km, what distinguishes this new vehicle from existing ones in the market is the set of the latest technology used throughout the prototype, from beginning to end. The scooter comprises a propulsion system breakthrough (the heart of the vehicle), a controller - which acts as the brain - an electric motor, an energy storage system with two essential parts: batteries, BMS (battery management system) and a smart charger.

"We are entering a new culture for urban mobility, in which the two wheels start to have more efficiency, less waste, energy and economy. The major European cities are just focusing on promoting the use of two-wheeled electric vehicles, "says project leader, Ana Vaz.