Pedalite Self Charging Bike Light
by Dominic Muren, Philadelphia, USA on 05.25.05
Faithful treehuggers everywhere can appreciate the genius of this tiny gem. How many times have you set out for a nighttime trip on your trusty bicycle, only to find that the batteries in your warning flasher have run out completely. Worse yet, maybe you're coming back home from somewhere, so you have no choice but to brave the streets invisibly. The Pedalite makes these woes a thing of the past...
Pedalite is the first integral, always powered, always safe lighting system for bicycles. Because they are built into the pedals, and derive their energy from pedaling, it's physically impossible to run out of batteries. Additionally, the light's mobile mounts on the pedals makes them -- and the cyclist -- much more visible.
The Pedalite principle is to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy from the movement of the pedal spindle. The spindle drives a tiny generator in each pedal producing enough energy to illuminate the colored LED's in each pedal. Pedalite provides pulses of white light to the front for illumination, red to the rear and amber to the side. An internal capacitor-based energy storage system ensures that the high-efficiency LEDs remain flashing for up to 12 minutes.
Currently only available through the Pedalite website (based in the UK), they are priced for a limited time at £49.99 (about 90 bucks US).
:: Pedalite [by DM]
Mmmm. Maybe not the first "self powered". First is always a big claim. We reported on a similar pedal, nearly 7 month ago.
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2004/11/sahalie_self_po.php
However, if it is "always powered" it might have a storage battery, which does give a safety edge over the Sahalie model.
I wonder how much they weigh.
First was Pedalite's claim, not mine. I think they meant that it was the first to incorporate an internal capacitor energy storage system, which has the advantage of continued blinking during stops and coasting, solving the main problem of past pedal designs like the Sahalie mentioned above.
Would be nice if they supported toe clips.
...and cleats!
Great idea though.
Ingenious.
this product is inspirational, thanks Pedalite for giving me an idea for what to build for my d.t. AS coursework
I concur with Ben. For me, no toe clip accommodation absolutely means no sale. Also, if they are so concerned about theft resistance, they need to replace the standard 6mm Allen/hex key fitting with a Torx.
I can't stand plastic pedals. Glowspek's got a similar light package in an alloy BMX style pedal.
Glowspek Pro Alloy Pedal