Mahle’s E-Bike App for Consumers, Dealers and Manufacturers
Mahle has launched an app it hopes will accelerate the adoption of electric mico-mobility for e-scooters and e-bikes.
It already markets a powertrain platform for compact drive motors called Mahle X35+ and is seeking to make two-wheeled micro e-mobility more accessible for consumers, bike dealerships and manufacturers. To this end it has added new apps to its Mahle SmartBike Systems connective drive concept.
There will be tailor-made apps for each of these groups: “MySmartBike” for bikers, “SmartBike Lab” for dealerships, and “Production” for e-bike manufacturers. The customer and dealership applications will be available from the App Store and Google Play Store for iOS and Android, while manufacturers can get the app from their sales contact. All three apps can also be used on a desktop PC, where the user interface appears as a dashboard and includes additional functions.
The MySmartBike app for bikers provides charge status monitoring and other information about the bike in real time. It can also record training cycles and routes and lets the rider optimize training programs by recording displaying, and analyzing various parameters, including gradient, heart rate, and measured times. The boost level from the motor can be regulated based on the biker’s heart rate. If the heart rate exceeds the recommended range, then the motor output is increased.
The SmartBike Lab app lets dealerships optimize their after-sales services, with fast and customer-oriented diagnostics, setup, and training of new components. The Production app helps manufacturers to trace the path of the smart bike from shipment to the dealership to the initial ride by the end user. All three apps offer functions via the respective web dashboard. Information such as health data, topography of routes traveled, or trip information can be retrieved and connected to third-party services such as Strava, a social network for tracking athletic activities.
Dr Armin Messerer, vice-president mechatronics at Mahle and responsible for the e-bike business segment, said: “Connectivity is one of the key strengths of our drive concept for e-bikes. The new apps will allow us to make many digital services more customizable and user-friendly and to expand them to meet future needs.”
— Paul Myles is a seasoned automotive journalist based in Europe. Follow him on Twitter @Paulmyles_
