This technical blog post documents the author's DIY construction of a high-capacity lithium-ion battery pack for an e-bike to enable extended-range commuting as a car alternative. The article engages positively with multiple UDHR provisions through its emphasis on personal agency and technical empowerment, explicit accommodation of physical disability, environmental health and climate action, knowledge sharing and education, and implicit advocacy for consumer rights against manufacturer DRM restrictions. The strongest human rights themes are environmental responsibility (Article 29), health and physical accessibility (Article 25), and freedom of movement (Article 13).
We have a pretty good network of fire roads in the southern Los Padres National Forest.
Several times recently I have seen hunters and campers using E-Bikes to extend their range into the forest. From what I can tell they use a cargo trailer for gear as well as extra batteries.
It will be interesting to see what other uses being find for E-Bikes as ranges increase.
This bike has the added benefit of being theft resistant - on the basis that it's too heavy for one person to lift. Seriously though, what does it weigh?
With a typical sized Dutch man, stopping from full speed is going to be a real test of the brakes...
For the same reason I don't like scooters on bike paths, I wouldn't want this sharing a bike path with me. When heavy fast vehicles and regular bikes collide, the regular biker usually suffers more.
Awesome project Jacques! I saw a comment of yours on an article a day or two ago and was hoping to see this pop up soon.
I've found the most difficult thing about riding an e-bike is the other motorists have no idea how to react to you. You're not really a regular bicycle anymore due to your speed, but you're also not a motorcycle that deserves its own lane. I have at least one car turn in front of me almost every trip out just because they're misjudging my speed. I get honked and yelled at when on the road because folks get frustrated when I'm using the left-hand side of the right-turn lane as a bike path.
Sidewalks/bike paths tend to be a lot less safe in residential areas as well, since cars coming out of their driveways really don't expect an e-bike to come rolling through. I've learned to dramatically reduce speed in areas like this.
Aside from those things, I love it! I ride the e-bike whenever I'm going somewhere in range (I live in Florida so things tend to be spread out) and the weather permits. My bike gets about 80km which is more than enough for anyplace I want to go on a bicycle anyway.
> I traced it down to the several KA welding pulse that caused the ground fault interruptor to be EMP’d. Running the welder without ground took care of that.
That's a solution, I suppose. Not one that I would pursue, but I'm glad the author got the pack welded without any injury.
Love it, glad to see you keep doing nice stuff, Jacques.
Also glad to see there are still real makers in the world. Makers do, period.
Another type of person would've asked for 10M of seed funding for "a revolutionary way to commute to work, target market: the whole world" and would've delivered nothing after 2 years of "working really hard on it".
I have a specialized Vado sl. You can purchase a range extender and easily do over 100km with it, in reality closer to 200k. Any reason you didn’t consider this as it’s manufacturer supported?
Unless you are doing some competitive riding, there is a reasonable limit for how long you want to ride per day. As a motorcyclist, I know well that distances of 350-600 miles per day are possible but taxing on your body. So for regular commute or light weekend riding (roundtrip), I would say 4-5 hours of battery life is sufficient. Depending on cruising speed, you can calculate the distance it will get you. Anything above that is just an extra unnecessary battery weight you are carrying.
I am surprised velomobiles are never mentioned: they are much faster than traditional bicycles, have some protection from the weather and can be electric assisted too: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velomobile
I have a question for the author - what safety precautions do you take against theft for such an e-bike, especially when going to public places like supermarkets? I recently came to the Netherlands and have heard that bike theft is common, especially for expensive bikes. I would guess that such an e-bike would be an attractive target, so do you take additional precautions when parking in public places (like 2/3/4 locks), or simply not park in public places at all?
Great project. I have a 2018 giant quick e+ that is speed limited to 28mph for the US market - in reality gets up to 26-27. In general the push bike cycling technology is universal (SRAM, shimano, campy, etc kit works everywhere) but for e-bikes there are wierd oddities where all the enthusiasm of the international DIY community doesn't quite translate to different locations because of differences in the battery and motor. I wanted to add a supernova headlight to my bike and what seemed like it would work was really hard because the US wire harnesses were different, voltages were different, etc.
In order to support the weight of the motor and batteries these bikes tend to be really beefy and top out at around 50 lbs. Not sure how much your extra batteries weigh - but if you exhaust the batteries on a 50lb bike you need to make sure you have a super granny gear to get you home if you have hills.
Awesome project and 500 km range is a cool achievement! Kudos to OP for all the effort and research that went into this.
I’ve run into the same issue that standard battery packs on eBikes are just not enough. The problem is not so much needing to do super long trips but if you forget to charge one day, you’re going to be stuck the next. Luckily it’s become more common for OEMs to offer dual battery setups with the piece of mind of extended range but also having a warranty! We own two cargo eBikes in the family and both have two Bosch batteries. Range varies from 80 to 200 miles depending on level of assist and is more than enough for our daily ~20 mile errands.
I built a stretch cruiser ebike out of parts, including a bafang / 8fun mid drive and 52v “shark” style battery. It does pedal assist and straight up throttle to danger in lickety-split.
This is a cool project, however, I wouldn’t have gone this route because:
It isn’t a great idea to lock up an ebike, but there are circumstances where you might want to and you’ll want to take the battery with you when you do.
If you need added capacity, I’d recommend a second battery to swap in during a longer ride. This can limit the size of the extreme failure should that occur, and let’s you choose less weight for shorter trips.
Finally, there are some quality battery builds out there, in a variety of shapes that include enclosures offering some resistance to shock.
Besides all the testing and perfect wiring here, you can rely somewhat on the seller to back up their work.
Reading OPs own multiple mentions of live bomb, more than a little bit scary, "especially given where it is located" makes me nervous just looking at it!
Hopefully op says the casing trespa has enough protection so they can get off it it catches fire or the ali express balancer breaks. From what I've read managing the batteries is a big part of tesla's success.
This is an interesting project, but if I needed long range transportation and didn't want a car, I'd get an electric scooter (the Vespa kind, not the Razor kind), or an electric motorcycle. It's built to handle higher speeds and can coexist with cars more safely.
> I hope this article will inspire people to look at e-bikes as potentially commuter car replacement, to send Bosch and other e-bike technology manufacturers a message that if they won’t supply what people need that they are going to have to live with people hacking their stuff and to get people to comment on the way the thing works, what they would do with it and how it could be improved or how I could work better/safer on stuff like this.
i bought a Onewheel-XR+ a few months ago and then found a lot of reddit threads about how the mfg DRM'd the controllers to prevent people from adding longer range batteries and buildig their own apps to do diagnoatics over bluetooth. they sent cease/desists to several prominent modders.
it's super sad. the modding community was very vibrant until they kneecapped it via firmware updates.
their android app is bloated 42MB crap with social features that requires an internet connection and google's framework to connect over bluetooth to the board under your feet to read battery levels, change riding modes, control headlights, etc. previously there were third party apps < 1mb that could be used offline for this, until they crippled everything via firmware updates.
now they released their new GT boards a month ago with extended range (and much heavier). the new Pint GT looks really compelling, so really torn about giving these sh*theads more of my money :(
There are alternatives that don’t involve DRM or Bosch at all.
I built our ebikes around regular bikes using a TSDZ2 torque sensing motor and an em3ev 52V battery. Total cost around 600$ + bike + tools. The battery is already assembled so no risk of setting your house on fire. The torque sensing makes it really natural (like having bionic legs), the whole thing has an open source firmware if you want to replace the Chinese made one (https://github.com/OpenSourceEBike/Color_LCD) and you can use any battery with it. With a 850Wh battery we get around 100km range.
There is also the cyber bike for which you can buy plans and build from scratch but that one is more of a motorcycle and you’ll probably need certification + insurance to use it legally.
Hi Jacques! A little late here. It's cool to see someone else spot welding! For the DC area, it's totally faster to commute and I took my daughter everywhere! Now we're in Philly and I use it for long ranges. I've built a bunch of these in various forms, my favorite is a big wheel scooter. It's my main commuter. Look up rivet nuts for securing to the frame! Was a big life saver.
One thing: After years of riding various bikes I've built, please for the love of everything, be careful at high speeds because I've discovered the weakest point of the bike is the C shaped thing at the end of the fork for the wheels. At super high speeds the bumps are rougher on the bike and will eventually pull it apart, even with mid motor power. It may not even come apart all the way, but spread open slightly. Maybe millimeters.
I've tried several bikes, offroad and everything. It won't happen now, but like at odometer 6000 or something. Every single time it fails there. I've had 3 bikes, various scooters, all fail that way. It means your wheel may eventually, suddenly come off at a high speed. I think the answer is a custom fork, but haven't gone there yet.
I'm jakecodes on twitter if you want to trade knowledge.
Agreed, highly frustrating this. I found a way to make it work but it would have been a lot better if third party batteries could be supported by the system out-of-the-box without butchering a Bosch pack first.
About 35 to 36 Kg. Bike + rider is 105K, which is actually not that bad. Your typical parent+bike+two kids is a lot heavier, I've had my 'daddy bike' up to well over 130 Kg before one of the kids was old enough to ride by themselves.
Full speed to stop is pretty good too, I did a couple of e-brakes to see how the change of weight and COG affected the bike. Stopping distance is a bit longer, it doesn't kick out when braking hard in a corner more than it did before, and - not surprisingly ;) - it transfers a bit more weight to the front when you hit the brakes hard.
But compared to a scooter it is much lighter and compared to a normal e-bike it is only 5 Kg heavier (29 vs 35 Kg).
An added benefit for hunters is that deer aren't afraid of the sound of bikes. Similar to cars, they just don't care. It's much easier to approach a deer on bike than on foot.
a friend does this for getting to fishing spots quicker from campsites. Sounds like an incredible idea if you've got the space for it, especially if you've got a large battery bank in your camper/vehicle for partial charges without having to turn an engine/generator on (I've got ~100amp hours of lithium battery in my truck camper, and I'd probably at least double that if I was gonna charge a bike every now and then)
In the USA the situation is much more risky than here.
I don't like riding in traffic mostly because drivers tend to have a short fuse for anything that isn't exactly at the limit, but on bike paths everything works just fine. The problem is that s-pedelecs are technically lumped in with the scooters, even though there is no throttle and there is absolutely no way you are going to sustain 40 Kph+ for anything but a very short period. But they're still pretty new and little by little municipalities are adapting and allowing s-pedelecs to use the bike lanes. What helps is that s-pedelec riders are extremely defensive. In town I simply reduce the assist to 'eco' and cycle with the rest of the bikes, and on the intercity bike paths I go as fast I conditions allow, typically 35 to 38 or so. On a longer trip that averages out to 33 to 35 Kph, which means a 1 hour car trip turns into a 2 hour bike trip, which is acceptable (and never traffic jams, which can turn that 1 hour car trip into a three hour car trip!).
> From what I can tell they use a cargo trailer for gear as well as extra batteries.
This is the main reason if you might ever buy multiple ebikes in your household, buy a drivetrain brand that has generic, swappable batteries that can work on all your ebikes. Buying batteries is expensive (~$1,000 for Bosch).
For example, some ebikes don't have swappable batteries (either they're integrated or are a no-name brand).
The Bosch Powerpack, on the other hand, is ubiquitous and swappable. If I'm going on a long trip, I steal the battery from my other ebike and bring it along (I have a Surly Big Easy cargo bike and a Trek Verve+ 2. My SO also has a Verve+ 2).
Another benefit on buying ebikes with the same powertrain manufacturer is the battery lock can be keyed alike. It simplifies a lot.
(Oh, one last thing! If you go with Bosch, you can get the battery locks keyed alike to Abus U locks.)
I know my way around electrical stuff, not having ground on the welder was ok given the work place setup, but agreed that if you are unsure about the possible consequences that you shouldn't do that.
Ironically, the only time I ever really got zapped was when I was connecting a scope to what I thought was the ground terminal of a very large high voltage power supply. The only slight problem was that it was a positive ground system...
>stopping from full speed is going to be a real test of the brakes...
I'm sure it'll be fine if you stick some high end mountain biking disk brakes on there. I suspect you could also use the moter to bring it to a sharpish stop.
I never even knew about the brand. The three that I looked at were Stromer, Bosch based systems and Klever. The Bosch based system won out because it doesn't use fancy one-off stuff, there is a fairly good source for spares (batteries, motors, controllers) and it seems to be the most reliable system on the market. The Stromers are a bit faster (higher powered motors), the Klever looks clunky and I've read a ton of stories about their reliability issues.
> You're not really a regular bicycle anymore due to your speed…
The top speed (with assist) for class 1 & 2 e-bikes is well within the speed range of a regular bicycle. 15 MPH is considered a reasonable average speed for beginners, and 18-22 MPG is not out of the question with training. I've ridden my own e-bike past 20 MPH with no assist on occasion, and being a foldable model designed for electric assist it has a higher mass, smaller (20") wheel radius, higher rolling resistance (due to low-pressure 3-4" tires), and lower gearing than your typical non-electric commuter bike.
> … but you're also not a motorcycle that deserves its own lane.
Bicycles should have their own lane, whether electric or not, regardless of speed. It's not safe to share the lane with another vehicle.
This is true, modulo that if you charge your battery to the max and discharge it all the way that you are murdering it, so some spare capacity will very much improve your battery's life span, way beyond what you would get out of it otherwise.
They are super dangerous too. Very low to the ground, nearly invisible from the perspective of a motorist and far harder to overtake with on narrow bike paths than regular bikes. We have a couple of them near here, also a few battery assisted ones. The velomobile would be an ideal vehicle if everybody rode one.
Chances of depleting this battery in normal use are nil unless you end up driving to Berlin from Amsterdam or so :) It can go up to the country borders in every direction.
The added weight is 130 times 50 grams + the weight of the enclosure. 170 batteries in there, but the original battery already had 40 of those.
Agreed that you don't want to pedal it uphill without the motor running that would get old really quick.
I park a similar ebike in San Francisco fairly often. I have a good U-Lock and only lock to secure bike rings on main streets but haven't had any trouble. I've left it for hours at a time, but never later than about 9pm. You can mitigate the overall risk with an insurance plan, which is only a few hundred bucks a year.
The Vado SL with the range extender still has a smaller battery than the Vado. If you want that kind of range all the time, isn't the Vado the better choice? At $450 for 160Wh, the Vado SL range extender is the worst deal in the Specialized catalog, and that's saying something!
People steal cars and motorcycles that are heavier. If you leave it out and think it’s too heavy to be stolen you’re living in a much friendlier place than me, electronic transport isn’t even always sought after for personal gain.
Scooters are routinely thrown in the water around the world.
Whatever you do in traffic, be very careful. I'm still driving a car and inner city traffic is basically slaloming between cyclists. If something goes wrong, only one of us will end up in hospital.
I do also ride my bike on weekends have have been riding a 650cc motorbike for 15+ years, so not at all against 2 wheels. It's just that most people on two wheels seem to have started very recently and they don't know how to behave.
> Another type of person would've asked for 10M of seed funding for "a revolutionary way to commute to work, target market: the whole world" and would've delivered nothing after 2 years of "working really hard on it".
... and yet another person would've bootstrapped a company off it :-)
Do people steal the bikes by picking them up with a car, or do they try to ride them away?
I'm surprised I haven't seen e-bikes with an electronic immobilizer (that will either disable the motor or use it as a brake, unless unlocked with a code or physical token).
If the battery isn't easily removed then I would say it's probably just as safe to lock up this ebike as much as any other expensive bike. It'd be really hard to flip/fence with a custom battery like that though
By and by, enough cars will be equipped with enough driver assist that heavy cars that must be crashworthy at relatively high speeds will no longer be needed, much in the way active safety makes light high speed rail carriages possible. Then lightweight vehicles can come in to wider use. Imagine how road capacity would be increased by something like a lightweight one-seat series hybrid "bike" with an enclosing fairing. A lot of communities could be done in vehicles weighing 5-10% the weight of a car.
It's very much less convenient than a bicycle since it's bigger, less maneuverable, harder to get in/out and harder to "park".
Also, when commuting you don't need "fast". A bicycle or a regulated ebike are sufficient enough given the constraints you will encounter (lights, stops...).
What makes using (e)bike to commute awesome is not the speed per se, it's the reliability. You won't be stuck (= taking part) in traffic, so if on Monday you take 30 minutes to go to work, it will be the same each day of the week. No need to rush to +30kmh between lights.
I've looked at that bike now. It's a regular e-bike, not an s-pedelec so quite a bit slower, also the range is very small. I like the looks though, very elegant. But like I wrote in the article, I'm probably faster on my old non assisted racer than I would be on that bike even though it would give me more range because it's assisted. The battery on my bike is more than four times as large, and will do 180 km at maximum assist, far faster than that Vado SL bike will go, and it's a different class of bike entirely (pedelec vs s-pedelec).
LOL I built the first version of their android app back in the day. Can't speak to why they've been going after modders, but it's likely from a liability / legal standpoint. At the end of the day I still love their products and currently own an XR (may upgrade to a GT next spring!).
At least for the earlier versions all the info was published as standard BLE descriptors, so building a third party lightweight app for that is fairly straight forward. Not sure what they're doing these days, but if you wanted to investigate LightBlue is a great app for digging into BLE devices ;)
Editorial Channel
What the content says
+0.68
Article 25Standard of Living
High Advocacy Framing
Editorial
+0.68
SETL
+0.47
Strong engagement with health and welfare on multiple dimensions. (1) Physical accessibility: Author explicitly states e-bike accommodates disability from previous accident: 'the fact that I didn't need to exert as much force when starting up, which as the result of a previous bike accident is still hard for me.' (2) Environmental health: Author repeatedly emphasizes climate/environmental benefit as primary motivation: 'Much lower environmental impact,' 'much better for our precious climate, which is the main reason I wanted to cut down on the use of my car.' (3) Public health through pollution reduction and active mobility.
FW Ratio: 60%
Observable Facts
Author states: 'the good bit about that e-bike for me wasn't the speed but the fact that I didn't need to exert as much force when starting up, which as the result of a previous bike accident is still hard for me.'
Author emphasizes environmental health: 'a lot better for our precious climate, which is the main reason I wanted to cut down on the use of my car.'
Article describes health benefits of active mobility: cycling replaces car usage.
Inferences
The explicit accommodation for physical disability demonstrates practical engagement with accessibility for health.
The repeated emphasis on environmental impact reflects understanding of collective health and welfare.
+0.58
Article 13Freedom of Movement
High Advocacy Framing
Editorial
+0.58
SETL
+0.32
Strong engagement with freedom of movement. Article documents how e-bikes enable personal mobility as alternative to cars, enabling commuting and long-distance travel. Author explicitly motivates the project around reducing vehicle dependence. Extended range (130 km) makes bikes viable alternative to cars.
FW Ratio: 60%
Observable Facts
Author states: 'this bike now a viable alternative to a vehicle. It's a bit slower and you can't take as much stuff but it is much, much cheaper.'
Article describes 130 km test ride: 'So that's 130 Km within a few hours, which makes this bike now a viable alternative to a vehicle.'
Author notes car usage reduction: 'my car usage dropped by more than half.'
Inferences
The entire project is framed around expanding personal mobility autonomy and reducing dependence on cars.
The emphasis on range, speed, and practicality for commuting demonstrates advocacy for freedom of movement.
+0.48
Article 19Freedom of Expression
High Advocacy Practice
Editorial
+0.48
SETL
-0.20
Strong engagement with freedom of expression. Article is published openly as technical documentation. Author explicitly invites feedback and discussion: 'I hope this article will inspire people...and to get people to comment on the way the thing works.'
FW Ratio: 75%
Observable Facts
Article concludes: 'I hope this article will inspire people to look at e-bikes as potentially commuter car replacement...and to get people to comment on the way the thing works, what they would do with it and how it could be improved.'
Article is published without paywall or registration requirement.
RSS feed available for content distribution.
Inferences
The open publication and explicit invitation for feedback demonstrates exercise of freedom of expression.
+0.48
Article 26Education
High Advocacy Framing
Editorial
+0.48
SETL
-0.20
Strong educational engagement. Article documents detailed technical knowledge of battery design, engineering process, problem-solving. Author states intent to publish additional technical documentation: 'I made a giant file of notes on how these batteries work (I'll post this separately one of these days).' Educational content shared openly.
Author states: 'I made a giant file of notes on how these batteries work...as well as how to repair them after they - inevitably - break.'
Inferences
The detailed technical documentation and promise of future educational posts demonstrate commitment to knowledge sharing.
+0.45
Article 29Duties to Community
High Advocacy
Editorial
+0.45
SETL
+0.30
Strong engagement with community duty and environmental responsibility. Author explicitly prioritizes climate impact as primary motivation throughout: 'much better for our precious climate, which is the main reason I wanted to cut down on the use of my car.' Project demonstrates practical commitment to environmental stewardship and reduced carbon footprint.
FW Ratio: 75%
Observable Facts
Author states motivation: 'the main reason I wanted to cut down on the use of my car' was climate.
Author emphasizes collective benefit: 'Much lower environmental impact and far more suited to medium range travel such as commuting.'
Article demonstrates practical reduction of car usage: 'my car usage dropped by more than half.'
Inferences
The repeated emphasis on environmental impact and climate reflects strong commitment to community duties toward environmental stewardship.
+0.35
Article 27Cultural Participation
Medium Framing
Editorial
+0.35
SETL
+0.19
Documents technical innovation and engineering creativity. Project demonstrates novel problem-solving and contribution to technical knowledge base.
Author shares research process: 'I watched endless youtube videos on pack manufacture, spot welding techniques, troubleshooting.'
Inferences
The documented innovation and creative problem-solving represent contribution to technical culture.
+0.32
Article 21Political Participation
Medium Advocacy
Editorial
+0.32
SETL
+0.21
Implicit advocacy for consumer political voice and agency. Author explicitly frames article as message to manufacturers about consumer demand: 'to send Bosch and other e-bike technology manufacturers a message.' Advocates for consumer will against corporate DRM restrictions.
FW Ratio: 67%
Observable Facts
Author states: 'to send Bosch and other e-bike technology manufacturers a message that if they won't supply what people need that they are going to have to live with people hacking their stuff.'
Author invites collective action: 'I hope this article will inspire people to look at e-bikes as potentially commuter car replacement.'
Inferences
The explicit message to manufacturers demonstrates use of expression as form of consumer political participation.
+0.28
Article 17Property
Medium Advocacy
Editorial
+0.28
SETL
+0.21
Implicit advocacy for right to modify owned property. Author modifies purchased S-Pedelec, works around Bosch DRM restrictions. Notes regulatory complications (licensing, insurance) but proceeds with modifications, asserting right to adapt technology. Advocates implicitly for consumer agency against manufacturer restrictions.
FW Ratio: 75%
Observable Facts
Author describes modifying owned S-Pedelec: 'I decided to increase the range of the bike by building a larger battery.'
Author describes DRM restrictions: 'the Bosch BMS is part of a DRM setup that pretty much prohibits using 3rd party batteries.'
Author explicitly calls for manufacturers to face consumer hacking: 'to send Bosch and other e-bike technology manufacturers a message that if they won't supply what people need that they are going to have to live with people hacking their stuff.'
Inferences
The detailed documentation of circumventing manufacturer restrictions suggests advocacy for right to repair and modify owned property.
+0.25
Article 24Rest & Leisure
Medium Framing
Editorial
+0.25
SETL
+0.19
E-bike enables recreational mobility and leisure cycling. Extended range enables exploratory travel ('cycling 65 Km to another city').
FW Ratio: 50%
Observable Facts
Author describes test ride: 'after charging the pack up fully I cycled 65 Km to another city and back again. So that's 130 Km within a few hours.'
Inferences
The extended range enables recreational cycling and leisure travel, supporting right to rest and leisure.
+0.22
Article 3Life, Liberty, Security
Medium Framing
Editorial
+0.22
SETL
+0.16
Explicit safety consciousness and respect for life in handling dangerous high-energy systems. Author repeatedly emphasizes testing, validation, and risk mitigation to protect against catastrophic failure.
FW Ratio: 67%
Observable Facts
Author states: 'Working on a pack that size is like working on a live bomb. I have great respect for Lead-Acid batteries, Lithium-Ion is at another level still.'
Author describes extensive pre-assembly testing: 'I tested each battery twice before mounting them in the pack, full charge-discharge cycle checking capacity and internal resistance.'
Inferences
The emphasis on safety-conscious engineering reflects awareness that right to life extends to protection from technical hazards.
+0.20
Article 23Work & Equal Pay
Medium Framing
Editorial
+0.20
SETL
+0.14
Celebrates technical work, skilled labor, and craftsmanship. Article documents detailed engineering labor and expertise, treating technical work as valued contribution.
FW Ratio: 50%
Observable Facts
Article describes extensive skilled labor: 'I tested each battery twice...this test too was passed. And that's a lot of work, everything you do you have to do 170 times.'
Inferences
The detailed documentation of technical expertise implicitly values skilled labor and craftsmanship.
+0.18
Article 28Social & International Order
Medium Framing
Editorial
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SETL
+0.12
Implicit engagement with right to social order protecting rights. Article notes tension between personal technical freedom and regulatory restrictions: S-Pedelecs require licensing, insurance, create safety concerns in mixed traffic. Author highlights gaps between what consumers need and what regulatory systems enable.
FW Ratio: 50%
Observable Facts
Author notes S-Pedelec legal complications: 'technically it is a moped (it needs insurance and a license plate) and in many places you are forced to ride in traffic, which is anything but safe.'
Inferences
The critique of regulatory barriers suggests concern for coherent rights framework that enables rather than restricts innovation.
+0.12
Article 1Freedom, Equality, Brotherhood
Medium Advocacy
Editorial
+0.12
SETL
+0.07
Celebrates individual agency, problem-solving, and personal empowerment through technical skill and DIY culture. Demonstrates equality of agency and capacity.
FW Ratio: 67%
Observable Facts
Author documents extensive independent research and decision-making throughout the project.
Article concludes with open invitation: 'feel free to contact me...if you go down this road.'
Inferences
The detailed documentation of personal agency and successful problem-solving implicitly advocates for individual dignity and capability.
+0.12
Article 12Privacy
Medium Practice
Editorial
+0.12
SETL
-0.07
No explicit privacy claims, but article respects reader privacy through asynchronous communication model. Author provides email contact rather than invasive tracking.
FW Ratio: 67%
Observable Facts
Author provides email contact (jacques@modularcompany.com) as sole means of communication.
No tracking pixels, analytics, or third-party services visible in provided content.
Inferences
The asynchronous communication model and lack of tracking infrastructure suggest respect for reader privacy.
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PreamblePreamble
Medium Framing
Editorial
+0.08
SETL
+0.05
Brief implicit framing of human dignity through technical empowerment and environmental stewardship ('much better for our precious climate').
FW Ratio: 67%
Observable Facts
Author states climate impact as primary motivation: 'the main reason I wanted to cut down on the use of my car.'
Article is published openly without paywalls or restrictions.
Inferences
The emphasis on climate and personal agency suggests implicit endorsement of collective human welfare.
ND
Article 2Non-Discrimination
No engagement with discrimination or equal treatment regardless of category.
ND
Article 4No Slavery
No engagement with slavery or forced labor.
ND
Article 5No Torture
No engagement with torture or cruel treatment.
ND
Article 6Legal Personhood
No engagement with legal personhood or recognition.
ND
Article 7Equality Before Law
No engagement with equality before law.
ND
Article 8Right to Remedy
No engagement with judicial remedy.
ND
Article 9No Arbitrary Detention
No engagement with arbitrary detention.
ND
Article 10Fair Hearing
No engagement with fair trial.
ND
Article 11Presumption of Innocence
No engagement with presumption of innocence.
ND
Article 14Asylum
No engagement with asylum or refugees.
ND
Article 15Nationality
No engagement with nationality.
ND
Article 16Marriage & Family
No engagement with marriage or family.
ND
Article 18Freedom of Thought
No engagement with thought, conscience, or religion.
ND
Article 20Assembly & Association
No engagement with freedom of assembly.
ND
Article 22Social Security
No engagement with social security or welfare.
ND
Article 30No Destruction of Rights
No engagement with prohibition on destruction of rights.
Structural Channel
What the site does
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Article 19Freedom of Expression
High Advocacy Practice
Structural
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Context Modifier
ND
SETL
-0.20
Website structure supports free expression: open access, RSS feed, email contact for engagement. No paywall, registration, or censorship mechanisms.
+0.55
Article 26Education
High Advocacy Framing
Structural
+0.55
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
-0.20
Website structure supports knowledge distribution: open access, RSS feed, searchable blog archive.
+0.40
Article 13Freedom of Movement
High Advocacy Framing
Structural
+0.40
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.32
Website structure enables knowledge sharing about mobility technology, supporting others' freedom of movement.
+0.35
Article 25Standard of Living
High Advocacy Framing
Structural
+0.35
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.47
Website shares health-enabling technology knowledge, supporting community wellness.
+0.25
Article 27Cultural Participation
Medium Framing
Structural
+0.25
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.19
Technical documentation supports community contribution to scientific/technical knowledge.
+0.25
Article 29Duties to Community
High Advocacy
Structural
+0.25
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.30
Sharing knowledge about sustainable mobility supports community environmental responsibility.
+0.18
Article 21Political Participation
Medium Advocacy
Structural
+0.18
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.21
Publishing technical documentation serves as form of political expression and consumer advocacy.
+0.15
Article 12Privacy
Medium Practice
Structural
+0.15
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
-0.07
Website demonstrates privacy-respecting design: no apparent tracking, cookies, or surveillance infrastructure. Clean publishing model.
+0.12
Article 17Property
Medium Advocacy
Structural
+0.12
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.21
Blog documents property modification, supporting others' right to adapt owned goods.
+0.10
Article 3Life, Liberty, Security
Medium Framing
Structural
+0.10
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.16
Blog documentation serves to educate others on safety practices in technical work.
+0.10
Article 23Work & Equal Pay
Medium Framing
Structural
+0.10
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.14
Blog platform enables documentation and recognition of skilled labor.
+0.10
Article 24Rest & Leisure
Medium Framing
Structural
+0.10
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.19
Technical documentation supports recreation and leisure enablement.
+0.10
Article 28Social & International Order
Medium Framing
Structural
+0.10
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.12
Documentation of regulatory challenges supports transparent public discourse on rights protection.
+0.08
Article 1Freedom, Equality, Brotherhood
Medium Advocacy
Structural
+0.08
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.07
Blog platform enables individual voice and self-publication, supporting equal right to participate.
+0.05
PreamblePreamble
Medium Framing
Structural
+0.05
Context Modifier
ND
SETL
+0.05
Open access platform enables expression of preamble's founding principles of equal rights and dignity.
ND
Article 2Non-Discrimination
Not assessed.
ND
Article 4No Slavery
Not assessed.
ND
Article 5No Torture
Not assessed.
ND
Article 6Legal Personhood
Not assessed.
ND
Article 7Equality Before Law
Not assessed.
ND
Article 8Right to Remedy
Not assessed.
ND
Article 9No Arbitrary Detention
Not assessed.
ND
Article 10Fair Hearing
Not assessed.
ND
Article 11Presumption of Innocence
Not assessed.
ND
Article 14Asylum
Not assessed.
ND
Article 15Nationality
Not assessed.
ND
Article 16Marriage & Family
Not assessed.
ND
Article 18Freedom of Thought
Not assessed.
ND
Article 20Assembly & Association
Not assessed.
ND
Article 22Social Security
Not assessed.
ND
Article 30No Destruction of Rights
Not assessed.
Supplementary Signals
How this content communicates, beyond directional lean. Learn more
build a784502+5vq5 · deployed 2026-02-28 14:31 UTC · evaluated 2026-02-28 14:28:40 UTC
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