A Context-Aware E-Bike System to Reduce Pollution Inhalation While Cycling

Abstract

The effect of transport-related pollution on human health is fast becoming recognized as a major issue in cities worldwide. Cyclists, in particular, face great risks, as they typically are most exposed to tail-pipe emissions. Three avenues are being explored worldwide in the fight against urban pollution: (i) outright bans on polluting vehicles and embracing zero tailpipe emission vehicles; (ii) measuring air-quality as a means to better informing citizens of zones of higher pollution; and (iii) developing smart mobility devices that seek to minimize the effect of polluting devices on citizens as they transport goods and individuals in our cities. Following this latter direction, in this paper we present a new way to protect cyclists from the effect of urban pollution. Namely, by exploiting the actuation possibilities afforded by pedelecs or e-bikes (electric bikes), we design a cyber-physical system that mitigates the effect of urban pollution by indirectly controlling the minute ventilation (volume of air inhaled per minute) of cyclists in polluted areas. Results from a real device are presented to illustrate the efficacy of our system.

On the design of cyber-physical control system for a smart pedelec (Ebike)

“…The work presented in this paper builds on our initial work in [17]. In this work an Ebike design is presented, as well as a holistic control strategy managing the interaction between the cyclist and the Ebike motor.…”

“…The work presented in this paper builds on our initial work in [17], where experimental results were obtained via a PI-type control strategy. While the basic idea of using a pitchfork bifurcation as the basis for a possible control strategy was mentioned in [17], our present work extends the previous for in a number of ways. Specifically:…”

Evaluation of the Policy Effect of China’s Environmental Interview System for Effective Air Quality Governance

“…This shows that air pollution has become a persistent problem affecting the construction of an ecological civilization [2], posing a great threat to public health and daily life [3]. Due to the growing need for air pollution treatment, many scholars working in the fields of meteorology [4][5][6][7], physics [8][9][10][11], and chemistry [12][13][14][15] have studied the effects of air pollution. Additionally, many economists have studied the relationship between the economy and air pollutionthe direct and indirect effects of air pollution on the economy.…”

Exploring Hybrid-Multimodal Routing to Improve User Experience in Urban Trips

“…In this sense, several studies have investigated different aspects of urban trips. For instance, routing approaches focused on non-motorized means of transport, also called active transportation (e.g., walking, bicycle) [3], enhancing the levels of enjoyment in the trip [4], or even identifying users' preferences using probabilistic frameworks [5].…”