This is so cool. I really love how this isn’t just a side project but an actual job. The thought, materials and design are all appealing to me.
I live in the 3 Valleys, just 20min from Méribel and 30min from Courchevel, in France. We get plenty of snow in the winter and something like this could be go cool and practical… And something to show off with
My main concerns would be as you mentioned, being able to ride downhill freely or somewhat recreate a natural carve without feeling a drag
Weight… I don’t know how much your prototype weighs but given the two motors are almost 2kg, I’d assume the total weight would be between 2 and 3kg without a battery.
And Noise… Obviously in FOC motor noise is minimal but then I don’t know how loud your transmission system is.
I’m also curious on where you plan to put the battery with the final revision?
I wish you the best of luck! I live this project in every aspect!
Just my opinion but I would try to mount the treads design on the back of the board directly or center like one wheel, and try to incorporate some mechanical actuator like a riding lawn mower deck that can raise it when you want to go down hill under gravity power. One problem I see in the center one wheel design, how do you keep it from packing with snow and causing drag?
Thank you for this thread…fascinating reading and I wish you much success!
Being a battery guy and seeing my share of failures, I was wondering what you were considering using for a firewall between the pack and the rider’s back?
We’re you also considering using some sort of method to quickly drop the backpack in case of a fire? Or will the pack be in some sort of fireproof enclosure that would vent all the flames/gases/smoke up and to the rear?
@malJohann Morpheus build was a battery in a backpack. obviously you fall much more in snowboarding but if you use nese modules and/or protect/insulate the pack i can’t see an issue tbh.
Yea, I agree that the odds of something bad happening are low but the consequences if it does happen are quite bad. Having what will look like rocket engines strapped to ones back, in case of a failure, can very quickly cause severe burns.
Vapers have had horrendous injuries from batteries that failed in their front pockets (from loose change short-circuiting the battery). Those injuries happen very quickly, before they can pull the battery from their pocket or pull down their pants.
Cells can have internal faults, even good systems like NESE can have issues after being bounced/banged around for a while, and ESC’s and BMS’ can fail.
Not trying to be alarmist, and each of us gets to choose what risks we want to take, but I would sure not want to put a pack on my back without at least some kind of firewall. Perhaps I’ve been influenced by seeing too many failures and the horrifying injuries some have to deal with.
Heck, the firewall can even just be a piece of 3/8” thick plywood or a plastic kitchen cutting board. Anything that would give me a few seconds extra to dump the backpack.
@Battery_Mooch the backcountry pack has some built-in back support already.
(Acting as a firewall) 2 buckles to release and its off or yank the pack out by the wires.
We plan on building 5 demo mules for users to try for feedback towards final design.
I planned on having them ready first dump. This ESC issue has been a major setback.
Time to make some spring loaded battery packs, either automatically or with a rope you pull the packs are yeeted far from you in a fraction of a second
I think that will only work with tons of powder, if you hit something, probably will brake…Also you are loosing the capability to use the board edges when you are being pushed…I think I like the idea of a center mass riding, some king of caterpillar with suspension (between the bindings)…That will probably be a more all arround board…But not as good as your prototipe under heavy power at the highest peaks…
The system can be trimmed to current conditions using base wedges. Seen above in blue. These trim the wheel up or down up to 6 degrees. When trimmed out properly you should be able to get just the blade engaged in the snow while your edges are still flat.
The arm flexibility will keep your edges in the snow.
