[cycleworld.com] - BMW Adjustable Footpeg Patent

[Ninjette Newsbot]

Adjustable footpegs are nothing new, but the lack of a rear brake pedal and shifter on an electric motorcycle opens the door to simple execution.

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By not having to also adjust the brake or shift levers the execution can be greatly simplified. ( BMW/)Adjustable footpegs are far from a new idea but even on motorcycles that have them the adjustment process normally involves wrenches and hex keys. So a new patent application from BMW showing pegs that can be moved in seconds without any tools is interesting in itself. But the idea has specifically come about thanks to the company’s development of electric bikes—adding to a growing file of evidence that a BMW EV motorcycle is getting close.


When the footpeg is folded up the pin (20) comes out of the toothed channel and allows adjustment. (BMW/)The system illustrated in the new patent is incredibly simple—the sort of thing that makes you wonder why it hasn’t been done already. It shows riders’ footpegs that are mounted in a slotted carrier that allows them to slide, but there’s no need to loosen bolts to move them. Instead there’s a sawtooth patterned set of notches machined into the aluminum hanger below the adjustment slot and a stud that extends inward, directly opposite the peg itself, to fit into it. The peg itself is hinged like those on most bikes. When the peg is extended into its normal position, the stud opposite it locks into one of the notches, preventing it from sliding along the slot in the carrier. To adjust the peg, you simply fold it upward, disengaging that stud from the notches so the whole unit can slide along its adjustment slot.


When folded down into place for riding, the pin locks into the toothed channel (12). (BMW/)BMW’s patent explains that the slot could be straight or curved, and in a variety of directions depending on the bike the system is fitted to. On a sportbike, for instance, it might slide backward and upward for track use, and forward and downward when you want a more relaxed riding position.

Simple, right? So how does the patent point to electric bikes? The answer is that the adjustment system isn’t easily combined with a manual gearshift and rear brake lever that are found on most combustion-engine machines. But on a single-speed electric bike, where the rear brake is controlled by your left hand instead of your right foot, the pegs are there simply as a place to put your feet, making this adjustment system a logical thing to adopt.

The patent itself is specific about that point, saying: “It is known in tilting vehicles to provide mechanical components that can be actuated with a foot, such as foot-shift levers and foot brakes, in or on a footrest. This allows a user of the tilting vehicle to shift into different gears or operate a brake with their foot. Due to the mechanical connection of the mechanical components to a clutch or to a braking system, the known footrests are installed in a stationary manner on the tilting vehicle.” But then it adds, “If the tilting vehicle includes an electric tilting vehicle, the installed footrests can be designed without function.”


The backside view shows the pin (20) locked into the toothed notch in the track. (BMW/)Since this is a patent application and BMW wants to cover all the bases, the document does go on to say that “if the tilting vehicle can be driven by an internal combustion engine, a shift lever or brake lever arranged on the locking means can also be moved when the locking means is adjusted.” But the illustrations don’t show how a gearshift and rear brake might be attached.

What the illustrations do show is a set of pegs mounted on an aluminum rear frame section, with the swingarm pivot clearly visible and two bolt holes to mount to the main section of the bike’s chassis. It’s a pretty common layout, but not one that matches any bikes in BMW’s current lineup. What it does match quite closely is the patent for a large electric bike that we wrote about earlier this year, which featured much the same bolt-on swingarm pivot area, attaching to a big, structural battery case.

Is it incontrovertible evidence that a BMW electric motorcycle will imminently join the company’s lineup, alongside its existing range of CE electric scooters? Not quite. But when combined with other hints, ranging from the company’s 2019 Vision DC electric concept bike to a host of trademark applications for electric motorcycles wearing the “DC” name and patent applications for multiple electric motorcycle designs, it’s becoming increasingly clear that we can expect a battery-powered BMW bike sooner rather than later.