Regenerative Breaking Question

[Barkme Wolf]

Radwagon Owner
Do I understand this correctly -
Regenerative breaking is initiated when the break lever is triggered but the "breaks" are not generating any of the energy (unlike in regen cars where the breaks are essentially the generators- with the back up of disc breaks for stopping).

The wheel spin is creating the energy and while the breaks are triggered, the energy is directed back to the battery- not the resistance from the breaking process.

In other words, the breaking is an independent process (in my case I have disk breaks) and the regen is done by harvesting the energy from the spin of the wheel, not the resistance of the breaking.

I would suppose hypothetically- If one were to remove the disc on the breaking system, engage the lever and coast down a hill, the regen process would still work regardless.

 

[JRA]

Yes, to that last. If you disabled the disc itself the cutout at the brake lever will still activate the regen. However even set at its strongest the regen effect on braking will do no more than slow you down some.

I have my regen set up so that it is separate from my brakes, the red button in the pic which is a momentary switch,

and use it before I use my front brake to scrub some speed. Used mostly on downhills and approaching stops. But when I need more I can easily grab my brake lever even while pushing the button.

You don't get a very big ah return using regen on a bike per battery cycle but every little bit helps. The biggest benefit is saving on brake pad wear.

 

[Barkme Wolf]

Yes, to that last. If you disabled the disc itself the cutout at the brake lever will still activate the regen. However even set at its strongest the regen effect on braking will do no more than slow you down some.

I have my regen set up so that it is separate from my brakes, the red button in the pic which is a momentary switch,
View attachment 17598
and use it before I use my front brake to scrub some speed. Used mostly on downhills and approaching stops. But when I need more I can easily grab my brake lever even while pushing the button.

You don't get a very big ah return using regen on a bike per battery cycle but every little bit helps. The biggest benefit is saving on brake pad wear.

Ah, so there is some actual "breaking" that happens internally. Interesting. I have several hills I bomb down and reap back no power because I do not break until the bottom.
It would be great if my break lever had a bit of a soft pull for the first bit to initiate the regen and then tense up for the disc. Does that even make sense?
I like the button too but I already have so much gak to deal with.