Motorcycle Taiwan 2010 Highlights Innovative PTWs and Parts

The 2010 Taiwan International Motorcycle Industry Show (Motorcycle Taiwan), held Apr. 15-18 in Taipei and the largest annual show of its kind in Taiwan, for some reason lacked sufficient clout to attract many exhibitors, especially world-class parts suppliers. So the event this year only revealed a tiny segment of the PTW parts sector in Taiwan.

Nevertheless, the exhibitors this year showcased their latest products that were generally creative and innovative. Industry experts say that Taiwan has excellent potential to be a global producer of high-quality, innovative and price-competitive powered two-wheelers (PTWs) as well as parts and accessories due to having an established supply chain.

Most insiders and operators in Taiwan's PTW industry would likely deny it but the core hindrance is the staidness of local companies, which shows in their global marketing; while some say the sector lacks total solution provided by assembled-vehicle makers and major trading companies, who may have engineering and marketing expertise. In fact, many companies in Taiwan are major suppliers to famous brands as BMW, Ducati, Triumph, Piaggio, Harley Davison, KTM and many more, suggesting the strength of the local makers.

Taiwan parts suppliers, though able to meet major brands' standards, reap modest margins relative to selling ready-to-ride BMWs, Hondas and Ducatis. In other words, supplying PTW parts is simply less profitable than selling PTWs.

Many experts in Taiwan have encouraged, with questionable validity and substance, PTW operators and the government to jointly map out the next stage of development, with limited effectiveness to date.

Sampling of Exhibits

Multipurpose Magic Block

Accel Technology Corp., a maker of upscale, precision motorcycle parts, showcased its latest innovation: multipurpose magic blocks of lightweight alloy. The company says 50 models are available, which can be assembled into almost any shape to function as handlebar holder, scooter-body protectors, seat-back supporter, headlamp protectors, cup holder etc.

Urban Bag Series

Niche Summit Co., Ltd., a maker of very innovative bags for scooter, motorcycle and all terrain vehicles (ATV) showed a new design concept at the event.

Jacky Cheng, general manager, says the new series of PTW bags is based on "urban riding," with the bags featuring daily functionality but also exterior appeal, adorned with beautiful patterns to totally change the drab stereotype of PTW bags. Niche's intelligent design enables the bags to be easily attached to PTWs securely.

"We have revolutionized PTW bags to offer a series destined to be popular with riders of all ages, gender and taste," says Cheng. The core competitiveness of Niche, however, lies not only in its ability to make beautiful bags, but also to design practical mechanisms to allow installing bags safely and firmly.

Such practical mechanism is Niche's patented Easy Go Plate, which includes two male plugs, one Velcro strap, one security strap with release buckle, and a two-inch security D-ring. The plate is easily attached to the under-seat cargo compartment of a scooter to conveniently install the bag, with the additional security strap to latch onto the rear rack for further security.

Another innovative mechanism is the East Attachment System, which uses replaceable magnets, detachable belts and bungee cords to attach bags onto motorcycle fuel tank or rear rack.

High-performance Cylinder Head

Colis Industrial Co., Ltd., already a tier-1 supplier of cylinder heads to many PTW makers, unveiled its latest high-performance cylinder head, featuring several patented designs to effectively raise horsepower and enhance heat-dissipation.

The cylinder head has a screw in the combustion chamber to allow fine-tuning of compression ratio as needed by a rider. The adjustable screw also functions as length-adjustable spark plug to lower combustion chamber pressure for easier ignition. Of course, Colis says, the screw is made of special alloy with special hermetic technique as that for making spark plugs to prevent air leakage that may damage the combustion chamber.

The new valve seat in the cylinder head is of the same material as the cylinder-head to prevent deformation, crack, inner-leakage or caving, resulting in minimized valve cracking and engine noise.

The cylinder head also has patented built-in main and sub oil channels to avoid having to buy additional ones or fastening screws to prevent oil leakage. And the patented cooling gasket is of high K-value (thermal coefficient) material to enhance cooling of the combustion chamber for improved engine performance, with the gasket available made-to-order.

Multipurpose Bag

Kuan Mei Plastic Co., Ltd., a major supplier of aftermarket plastic PTW body parts, further expressed its creativity and expertise by displaying the Xingbag series, which can be easily installed on scooters or motorcycles as well as double as shoulder bag and tote. Also big enough to hold a notebook PC, the Xingbag has color-matching LED lights for added appeal, in addition to its multi-functionality as a bag for riding, outdoor, work and school.

Wiper Helmet

HaiHao Technology Co., Ltd. unveiled its second-generation wiper helmet, a motorbike helmet with a well-designed electric wiper, to overcome poor visibility in snow, rain, and other bad weather.

This second-generation helmet is not only lighter but also more ergonomic to better fit various head shapes, as well as featuring a visor with integrated IC panel, electrical motor and small wiper arm, all of which run like an automotive counterpart with remote-control switch for ON/Off, intermittent and continual wiping.

HaiHao's patented helmet wiper works with a high-torque mini motor that runs for up to 800 hours with just four AAA batteries. Jerry Tseng, general manager, says several technical thresholds had to be cleared, including reducing the motor size, improving heat-dissipation, and waterproofing the unit.

Green Themed

A sub-theme at the Motorcycle Taiwan 2010 was eco-friendliness, which is fitting for the island is a major supplier of many light electric vehicles (LEV) and key parts as propulsion systems and lithium-ion power cells.

Taiwan-based automaker China Motor Corp. (CMC) of the Yulon Group showcased its e-Moving (or EMA98) e-scooter under its own GreenTrans brand at the show, following its winning of two major international awards: the iF product design award 2010 (the world's most coveted industry design contest) and Taiwan Excellence 2010 (the most important design and innovation contest in Taiwan).

According to CMC, the e-Moving is designed for eco-friendly, efficient transportation. In addition to sleek and elegant styling based on high-tech spirit but retro-styling, the e-scooter has many features to optimize urban riding. Its power stand (with auxiliary motor and mechanism), reverse switch, cruise control, uphill booster, anti-sudden- acceleration function, LCD battery gauge, high-efficiency motor make the e-Moving better-equipped, competitive than many counterparts.

CMC says the e-Moving weighs only 63 kg (including a 8.5kg lithium-ion phosphate battery that is chargeable onboard in two hours or at home by removal of battery). Its 48V DC brushless motor is rated 1,350w to reach maximum speed of 45 kph, scale grades up to 23-degrees, and a range of 40 km.

Li-ion Battery Solutions

Amita Technologies Inc., a top lithium polymer (Li-polymer) battery manufacturer in Taiwan, showcased its lithium-ion battery pack solutions developed and supplied to many LEV makers as Vetrix, E-Ton, SYM etc. at Motorcycle Taiwan.

Dr. Kevin Lee, Amita's new vice president for new business and technology, revealed corporate goals: to develop larger products, adopt new and innovative technologies to upgrade battery safety, and provide turnkey products for global customers, especially vehicle makers.

Amita's main products are 8Ah-10Ah Li-polymer batteries of up to A6 sized, with an A5 model to be introduced in the third quarter of 2010. Amita uses anode materials to-order, including LiMn204, LiFePO4, and nickel manganese cobalt (NMC), with MiMn204 currently accounting for 80% to 90% of total output.

The company has developed a standardized 26V, 10Ah Li-polymer cell mainly for electric-bicycles. Lee claims that this standardized pack offers most riders the needed power source with the highest reliability and affordability. The company also accepts made-to-order battery.

Amita's big break came in 2008, when 30% of its shares were acquired by Delta Electronics, the world's largest maker of power-supply units and an aggressive developer of battery electric vehicle (BEV) and hybrid electric vehicle (HEV).

Last year Amita refocused on power cells for light electric vehicles (LEVs), or ones using sub-60V power and primarily electric bicycles and scooters. In 2009 the company shipped 20,000 battery packs (together with battery management systems or BMS), and expects to move 60,000 units this year.

e-st@r Light e-Scooter

Sanyang Industry Co., Ltd. (SYM), a major PTW maker in Taiwan, also unveiled its e-scooter at the show. More PTW makers on the island will launch such bikes driven by an official subsidy of US$250 or US$344 for scooters meeting safety, battery, and performance requirements. Local makers of e-scooters can also export electric-powered products under the subsidy program to achieve economy-of-scale to cut cost and strengthen global competitiveness.

Dubbed SYM e-st@r, this light e-scooter measures 1,715mm X 640mm X 1,030mm, is powered by a patented wheel-hub motor with average rated power of 350W, maximum power of 750W and maximum torque of 1.8kg-m/420 rpm.

Two e-st@r models are available, one with 14Ah lead-acid battery and another 7.5Ah portable lithium-ion pack (supplied by Amita), with the former rechargeable in 6-8 hours and latter in 3-4 hours.

This LEV is designed for urban commuting, especially for housewives and young people. With simplified styling, the scooter has enlarged legroom measuring 420mm x 30mm to maximize comfort and battery storage.