Development of a Racing Motorbike with Electric Power Train

This paper presents a racing bike with electrical drive train, which shall be used as a prototype of a future electro racing class and as well as a test bed for future driving performance and sound tests. All major components of the drive train including motor, battery, battery controller and wiring are described in detail. Safety issues related to the selection of the voltage level are discussed. The mechanical integration of the electrical drive train into a given racing bike is presented. Moreover, power and torque characteristics of the motor and the total weight of the motorcycle are put into relation to performance requirements of the racing class in question. The electric drive train has a modular design and can be simplified compared to internal combustion engines, because of the favorable torque characteristic of electric motors a gearbox is not necessary. Sound issues of both, the conventional racing bike and the electrically powered one are discussed.

The paper concludes with an outlook including the description of the next steps of the project targeting an improved motor design and the potential efficiency gain. It sets applications for motor sports into perspective and points out how street bikes and the public domain can benefit from developments carried forward by racing sports.