A broken washer is not repairable? No problem. The main thing is that the motor is in good condition. What they don’t do from old spare parts, but an electric bike is a 21st century homemade product. If the washing machine no longer suits you, the bike will compete with it. How to assemble this complicated mechanism and what to look for?
How to fix the engine from the washing machine to a bicycle?
For the project you will need a bike with a sturdy frame and an old washer. It is important that the two-wheeled transport has a powerful frame, because it will have to withstand not only the rider, but also the weight of the additional structure.
It’s not easy to assemble a home-made bike, so you will need a complete set of tools, a turning and drilling machine, and a welding machine. Ideally, a locksmith's workshop.
To transmit torque from the engine to the wheel, you need a drive belt. In general, the design will consist of the following elements:
- large and small pulley;
- a belt;
- motor shaft;
- bicycle sleeve.
Unfortunately, it is difficult to find a large pulley with a diameter of 22 cm, so we will figure out how to make the part yourself. Here are the stages of the robots:
- From a steel sheet with a thickness of at least 2 mm, cut a circle on the machine.
- To fix the element, make holes between the spokes on the rear wheel hub. Make exactly the same holes in the prepared circle.
- The steel circle is very heavy. To remove at least a few pounds, make holes of larger diameter along the edges of the future pulley.
- To finish the pulley, you need to weld a steel strip to its edge. Take a strip measuring 20 x 4 mm. Gradually weld the part, bending along the edge. The task is not easy, but you can do it.
- All errors and irregularities will help to eliminate the lathe.
Voila! The large pulley is ready for installation. If you wish, you can color the element in tone with the bike. Fix the homemade product on the rear wheel of the vehicle.
Frame work
Of course, not everything is so simple. The fact is that the pulley abuts against the frame is large, which prevents it from rotating. The only way out is to bend the frame with new elements.
Now you need to combine the overall design with the engine from the washing machine. It is important to calculate the distance from the motor to the large pulley so that the belt is tensioned optimally. What do we do:
- We weld steel transverse tubes to the rear trunk on both sides. This is necessary to strengthen the structure.
- No trunk? Then weld it from the same tubes so that it is convenient to fix the motor.
Recommendation! Pre-fasten the motor with wooden boards, pull the belt and see how the wheel rotates. Only then install the stationary structure.
Paint the finished frame and install the motor. Fasten the rear wheel with a large pulley. Tighten the belt and rotate the mechanism. If everything keeps well, it's time to move on to the most crucial part - the connection.
Motor power
Here, the dilemma arises before the masters: can the motor from the washing machine run on direct current from the battery, if in the machine it was started from an alternating voltage of 220 volts? It turns out, maybe even better than on the variable.
But a new problem appears. Which batteries to choose and where to fix them? After all, all the details will take up a lot of space. The best solution is to purchase eight batteries for motorcycles, each of which produces 12 volts. Total will turn out 96 Volts.
In our case, the batteries had to be secured to the frame. To do this, it was necessary to strengthen the structure again, as well as to think of separate fasteners for each battery. The weight of the electric bike has increased, but there’s no getting around it.
Now you need to assemble the control module to regulate the engine speed and current growth. This can be done by those who are versed in electronics. Here's what you need:
- pulse converter for lowering, rated at 32.5 kHz;
- microchip type IR2127S;
- microcontroller ATtiny26;
- measuring and variable resistors;
- DC-DC converter P6AU-1215ELF;
- three diodes 10CTQ150;
- plastic case;
- automatic machine 6A;
- three transistors IRFB33N15D;
- diodes of red and green color;
- phone charging;
- radiator from the computer board.
The finished unit is important to protect from moisture and damage, so place it in a plastic case, and fix the radiator from the bottom.
How to start an electric bike from a washing machine? Click on the "gas" on the steering wheel. You will notice how the motor starts to work and rotate the belt. At the same time, a green diode will light up on the board. If there is a lack of energy, the unit will signal a red diode light up. This means it's time to pedal.
So the work is done. Tests have proven that home-made vehicles can travel at speeds of 25 km / h to 19 km on a single charge. The maximum acceleration of the bike is 30–35 km / h on a flat road. Of course, when pedaling, the speed can increase to 50 km / h, but the batteries run out faster.