Things to consider while buying an Electric Scooter
A. Performance (Range, Acceleration, Breaking Technology)
B. Battery (Type, Capacity, Battery Life, Depth of Discharge, Warranty)
C. Charging (Charger Rating, Charging Time, Charging Options, Charger Warranty)
D. Motor (Type, Peak Power/Continuous Power, Torque)
E. Other Features (Ingress Protection Rating, IOT Enable Mobile APP, DL & Registration Requirement)
A. Performance
1. Range: With the full charge of the battery how much distance one can travel is called driving range of the Electric Scooter. Some Electric Scooter brands are having different riding modes like Sports Mode, City Mode, Eco Modes, etc. The driving range of the Electric Scooter brands varies depending on the mode used by individuals.
2. Acceleration: Electric two-wheelers (E2W) produce instant torque and generates quick pick up as compared to ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles. That’s the reason why Electric two-wheelers are considered powerful as compared to normal Petrol two-wheelers.
3. Breaking Technology: Now-a-days E2W are using one of the techniques called Regenerative Braking. This unique technique is used to capture energy that the vehicle has due to its motion or its kinetic energy that would have been wasted when the vehicle decelerates or comes to a standstill while applying brake. This technology improves the overall efficiency of an E2W.
B. Battery
1. Type of Battery: Most of the E2W brands are now adapting from the usage of lead acid battery to high efficient lithium-ion battery. A Li-ion battery life is around 5 years where as lead acid battery lasts up to 2 years only. In FEME-II, govt is also encouraging the manufactures to eliminate the usage of lead acid battery. Li-ion batteries are used commonly because they are reliable, easy to use, cheaper, light weight and energy efficiency.
2. Capacity of the Battery: A higher battery capacity indicates a better driving range per charge of the vehicle. The energy stored in a battery, called the battery capacity, is measured in either watt-hours (Wh), kilowatt-hours (kWh), or ampere-hours (Ah). To compare the values of the Capacity, simply convert Ah to kWh by multiplying the Ah figure with normal voltage provided in the specifications and dividing the result by 1000.
For example, a 72 volt battery with a capacity of 24 Ah battery allows energy storage of approximately 24 Ah x 72 V = 1728 Wh or 1.73 KWh.
3. Depth of Discharge: A battery’s depth of discharge (DoD) indicates the percentage of the battery that has been discharged relative to the overall capacity of the battery. For example, if the vehicle manufacturer of a 1.73 kWh battery recommends a maximum DoD of 80 percent, you shouldn’t use more than 1.38 kWh from the battery without recharging. Some specification sheets provide usable capacity and installed capacity and ration of two figures indicate the DOD.
4. Battery Life: This represents the number of charge/discharge cycles in its useful life, depends on how much of the battery’s capacity you normally use. If you regularly discharge the batteries at a lower percentage amount, it will have more useful cycles than if you frequently drain the battery to its maximum DoD. For example, a battery may have 1500 cycles at a DoD of 10 percent, but only 300 cycles at 80 percent DoD.
3. Charging
1. Charger Rating
One should check the charger rating to know the voltage & amp requirements so that you can accordingly ensure an appropriate socket i.e. 6 Amp or 15 Amp. These sockets are easily available every where home, office, restaurants, etc.
2. Charging Time
Nowadays fast charging options are available in the market to reduce the time of charging. Through fast charging options with the chargers, a fully drained battery can be charged in 60 mins to 120mins.
3. Charging options
Lookout for other charging options the EV brands are provides. Are they providing portable charging through detachable/ removable battery or are they providing battery swapping options along with the vehicle. This determines the ease of charging while you won the vehicle.
4. Charger Warranty
OEMs are providing a separate warranty for battery charger and will repair or replace it in the warranty tenure.
D. Motor
1. Types of Motors
Brushless DC (BLDC) are widely used these days in most of the electric scooters. BLDC technology uses permanent magnets in the place of brushes and commutators as it’s a very advance version of DC series motor. These type of motors are having high staring torque and provides high efficiency and low maintenance. Another type of motor which is Three phase AC Induction Motors which are cheaper and can withstand rugged environmental conditions better.
2. Power supply to Motor
Mechanically power is the product of torque and rpm, so while torque can be multiplied through gearing (by lowering rpm), power is independent of gearing. Now on the electrical side of things power it is important to know that Voltage times Amps = Watts. The peak power of an EV is generally decided by the controller, as long as the batteries and motor can handle that power. Power is measured in metric units as watts (W) or more commonly kilowatts (1kW=1000W)
Many OEMs provide a continuous power rating that represents the amount of power motor can staidly produce. Top speed of the EV depends on its power rating.
3. Torque
It can be explained as twisted force that creates the rotary motion and gives an indication of pick-up. More torque on less RPM signifies better pick up.
5. Other Features
1. License and Registration Requirements
It is one of the biggest feature while choosing an Electric Scooter.