Unu (company)
| Company type | public company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Scooters |
| Founded | 2013 |
| Headquarters | Berlin, Germany |
Number of employees | 75 |
| Website | www |
Unu (commonly: unu) is a German manufacturer of electric scooters based in Berlin. In 2014, the company began offering three engine sizes. The vehicles are assembled in China and distributed in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France and Netherlands.
History
[edit]
The company's co-founder, Pascal Blum, used an electric scooter during his stay (2012) in China and then came up with the idea of marketing such vehicles in Germany. Together with co-founder Elias Atahi, Blum founded the company in 2013 with the support of the Technical University of Munich. The company name refers to the term for "one" in Esperanto.[1]
Design
[edit]The electric drive motor is located in the rear wheel and can be configured with either 1kW, 2 kW or 3 kW engine.[2] All three engines offer less than 4 kW power and a maximum speed of 45 km/h, putting the scooter in the EC vehicle class L1e (a moped). The vehicle can actively recharge the battery during braking.[3] In 2020, company introduced a new model featuring Bosch hub motor mounted in the rear singled-sided swingarm and removable batteries made by LG. The 1.7 kWh and 10 kg (22 lb) batteries are rated for 50 km (31 mi) of range each. With space for two batteries, the electric scooter has a maximum range of 100 km (62 mi) with 3.4 kWh of battery capacity. The seat has been redesigned to fit two riders.[4]
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Front view -
Bosch motor with 2 kW engine, 2017 model -
Instrument gauge with speedometer and battery charge -
Rear view
Market
[edit]The unu-scooter is custom made on-demand for each customer, assembled in China and delivered to the customer a few weeks later.[5] The scooters are sold on the Internet after customers arrange a viewing or test drive with a company representative. Only areas where partner workshops are located are able to order the scooter. This allows for convenient servicing.[6]
After its introduction in Germany, sales were extended to Austria, Switzerland, and in 2016 to the Netherlands,[7] where the scooter is also offered in a 25 km/h version, which, in the Netherlands, allows the rider to drive without a helmet and on bike paths.[8]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Koch, Hannes (2016-06-06). "Motorräder mit Elektroantrieb: Rollt bei ihm". Die Tageszeitung: taz (in German). ISSN 0931-9085. Retrieved 2018-07-19.
- ^ "Mit dem Unu-Roller lautlos durch die Stadt - Magazin von auto.de". Magazin von auto.de (in German). 2014-08-11. Retrieved 2018-07-19.
- ^ "Leise surrender Gefährte". sueddeutsche.de (in German). 2017-11-02. ISSN 0174-4917. Retrieved 2018-07-19.
- ^ Toll, Micah (2019-05-21). "Unu launches affordable 2nd gen electric scooter with 100 km range". Electrek. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
- ^ Haist, Lorraine (2014-09-01). "Elektroroller Unu : Die Vespa mit Elektroantrieb im Test". DIE WELT. Retrieved 2018-07-19.
- ^ "FAQ | unu". unumotors.com (in German). Retrieved 2018-07-19.
- ^ "1506 unu Expansion Österreich DE.pdf".
- ^ "Mobility-Startup Unu: Elektro-Roller sind nur der Anfang". t3n News (in German). Retrieved 2018-07-19.
External links
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