Hub Motor

Hub motors are specially designed motors used in motorcycles. The motor hub arrangement places the electric motor in the front or rear wheel hub of the motorcycle to aid peddling. An electric hub motor operates as either a direct drive hub or geared hub that makes use of injected molded shock-resistant plastic gears. E-bike hub motors' performance varies depending on the build quality of the manufacturer.

How Does a Hub Motor Work?

Hub motors are built directly into the hub of the front or rear wheel of the electric bikes The hub motor and stator are connected through a gear reduction system that spans the unit. These motors can run at incredibly fast speeds for bikes, emphasizing the need for a gear reduction system.

Is Hub Motor AC or DC?

Ebike hub motors primarily belong to the DC motors family. This is because they do not have any brush mechanism and commutator to produce excitation in windings, a setup primarily found in AC motors. Instead in this wheel hub motor, the stator is stationary with slots where the copper windings are incorporated into the core. Most motorcycle hub motors have a trapezoidal winding design.

Being DC in design, hub motors for bikes require little or no maintenance. Instead, they operate as an independent drive system that retains all their components within the motor casing. This leaves little or nothing to maintain or toy with externally. It also means that the hub motor kit unit is a lot less likely to fail.

Hub Motors vs Mid Drive Motors

Hub motors were designed for the early days of electric bicycles and were used majorly on the front or rear wheel. However, mid drive motors were eventually invented as an upgrade to hub motors. Mid drive motors for ebikes are small packed high-speed automotive motors coupled with an elaborate reduction system that converts their revolution per minute into something suitable for a bicycle. They are a compact mechanical package that is more reliable than hub motors and can also be repaired as a unit should they get faulty.