[TusharK]

Honda has patented a hub motor design that could be used on its upcoming electric scooter in India.



The patent drawings reveal a pretty conventional design with a double-sided swingarm with twin shock absorbers and an in-wheel motor. It is said to be one of the most cost-effective solutions for electric propulsion in e-scooters. The TVS iQube also uses a similar setup.



Honda seems to have used a representative image of an electric scooter in the patent filing. Interestingly, it borrows a few components from the Activa 6G. These include the handlebar shroud and the front wheel. While the rest of the panels are new, they may not represent the final design of the e-scooter.

Source: Autocar India

Link to Team-BHP News

[ohaak]

How is this innovative for a patent? The is already prior existing products with same design.

[arijitkanrar]

I'm not very familiar with patent laws in our country. But, if TVS (and evidently other manufacturers) already have used the hub motor concept in their electric vehicles, wouldn't this fall under prior art and thus not be patenteable?
Most of the low cost, chinese made e-scooters, even the e-bikes on the Yulu platform (Yulu Miracle) all use hub motors if I'm not mistaken?

Here is a pic of the Yulu Miracle e-bike (Pic copyright: Yulu)


You can clearly see the hub motor setup on the rear wheel.