Launching a Game-Changing Electric Scooter Solution That Eliminates All Barriers to Go Green

TOKYO, March 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- KYMCO unveils Ionex at Tokyo Motorcycle Show 2018, marking the beginning of a new era of electric scooters with its innovative vehicle designs and open energy platforms.

Ionex is a game-changing electric scooter solution that eliminates all barriers to go green:

1. With the Ionex scooter architecture, the electric scooter for the first time overcomes the compromises associated with electric vehicle design. The scooter is smart, thoughtful, and head-turning cool.
2. With the Ionex energy architecture, charging no longer means waiting. While the battery is being charged, the electric scooter still allows riders to ride and take care of business.
3. With the Ionex charging architecture, a full-range of innovative solutions cover all private and public charging scenarios. Every morning riders start with a full charge. Shared outlets and public charge lockers are everywhere. The maximum range is 200 km with extra batteries added.
4. With the Ionex public charging infrastructure, policy makers have an economically feasible plan for implementing a green revolution on a local or national level. Governments now have a complete game-changing blueprint to go green.

"Electric is one of the most significant transformations of personal transportation," said Allen Ko, Chairman of KYMCO. "With Ionex, we want to make the world greener, to make our cities cleaner, and to make electric a practical reality for consumers worldwide. KYMCO is committed to making an impact at the juncture of the most important transformation in recent history."

I.                    HEAD-TURNING COOL

Until today, buying an electric scooter has meant accepting tremendous compromises. Finding a place to charge has been difficult. The battery has taken up too much storage space. It has also been tedious to remove, heavy to lift, and ungraceful to carry.

KYMCO pioneers the industry's first smart energy bay, which makes battery removal not only delightful, but also cool to watch. At a touch of a button the energy bay opens, bringing the battery to the perfect lifting position. Riders gracefully bring out the battery with ease. When returning the battery to the scooter, riders simply nudge the battery against the smart floor to trigger the bay door open. The experience is intuitive, convenient, and elegant.

The Ionex battery is compact and stylish. At less than 5kg it is effortless to carry for anyone. It also features a specially designed handle, so two batteries can be carried with one hand. The under-floor battery placement helps the electric scooter achieve the lowest center of gravity possible. At the same time, this architecture also offers the largest under-seat storage ever.

With the Ionex scooter architecture, the electric scooter for the first time overcomes the compromises associated with electric vehicle designs and becomes an object of desire.

II.                  NEVER WAIT FOR CHARGING

The conventional belief is that after plugging in the scooter to charge, we must wait. If pulling out the battery for charging, riders cannot go anywhere. Always seeking to go above and beyond, KYMCO challenged this never-questioned assumption and came up with a revolutionary e-scooter design. With this design, riders can still ride the scooter even when the battery is removed. Therefore, riders don't have to wait while charging the scooter.

Every KYMCO Ionex scooter has an internal core battery. When riders charge their removable battery, the scooter uses the internal core battery as the power source to continue to operate. Riders can go about their business without being tied down. Later, they can simply pick up the fully-charged removable battery at their convenience.

The core battery is constantly kept fully charged by the removable batteries. Ionex automatically selects the optimal battery to charge the core battery and decides on the right battery to supply power. It makes all batteries seamlessly work together. Riders simply ride without worrying about a thing.

With the Ionex energy architecture, the electric scooter allows the rider to ride and take care of business while the battery is being charged.

III.                NEVER WORRY ABOUT RANGE

Range anxiety and limited number of charging stations always come up first when people are asked about their hesitation for buying an electric scooter. This is by far the most common and legitimate reason not to go green. KYMCO Ionex finally solves this previously un-addressed challenge with an innovative charging architecture.

Effortless Home Charging

Home is where the riders' journey ends each day. Once they return home, they no longer want to go anywhere. In short, home is everyone's best everyday charging station. Therefore, Ionex made home charging a delightful experience. Ionex ensures riders' mornings always start with full charge to cover the entire day.

Charge Point Network

Occasionally riders want to recharge during the day. Ionex offers an extensive Charge Point Network. At Charge Points, riders can hand over their battery to have it charged. Most Charge Points can fully charge a battery in less than an hour. One hour is a blink when they can go about their business without wait.

Extra Battery Rental

Once in a while, riders may need longer range when they travel. Ionex offers Extra Battery Rental. When starting a long journey, riders simply rent extra batteries for the trip. Every KYMCO Ionex scooter is designed with under-seat storage that accommodates three additional batteries. Hence, the maximum range is an astonishing 200 km.

Power Outlet Network

To completely eliminate any range anxiety, Ionex offers the Power Outlet Network. These are the locations where riders can use their public outlets to charge their battery. KYMCO has designed the charger to be easily portable and to fit nicely in the scooter. Wherever riders go, they can always count on these most widely available power sources.

Sharing Economy Approach

To scale everything to the next level, the Charge Point Network, Extra Battery Rental and Power Outlet Network all embrace the spirit of the sharing economy. Everyone is invited to take part in this open energy network. It is also hugely rewarding to join. Aside from raising their public image, participating businesses can draw the right crowd to their establishment.

With the Ionex charging architecture, a full-range of innovative solutions cover all private and public charging scenarios, so riders never worry about range.

IV.                POLICY MAKERS' GAME CHANGER

As the green movement gains momentum, policy makers all over the world are rushing to take the lead. However, any government's effort to build out charging infrastructures has until now been met with very real obstacles.

First, it has been technically unfeasible to install fast chargers that rival the fueling time of a typical gas pump. As a result, the approach to building charging facilities that match the convenience of the gas station network has mostly been abandoned.

The next attempt has been to install one charger at every parking slot in a parking lot, so vehicles could be charged for a longer period when parked. This has also failed as it has been too impractical to rapidly install enough charging stations to make an impact.

Finally, in very few countries battery swapping has been attempted. Battery swapping requires every vehicle to use more than one share of battery resources, which generates excess pollution. Consequently, this is the least environmentally friendly approach and is also the most expensive option.

To overcome these aforementioned challenges previously faced by many policy makers, KYMCO introduces a brand new path to a complete public charging infrastructure, the Ionex Energy Station.

The Ionex energy station is a stand-alone station designed with multiple charging bays for Ionex batteries. It resembles any vending machine people see every day. It can be placed anywhere without lengthy construction which causes inconvenience to consumers.

Because of its extreme flexibility in deployment, the Ionex energy station can be quickly rolled-out across public places such as subway stations, parking lots, and tourist spots. Governments can also set policies to encourage commercial entities, residential buildings and businesses to install their own energy stations.

The Ionex energy stations can be used by employees, customers and visitors for drop-by charging. They can also be used by residents for overnight charging. These energy stations are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It has the potential to be the most visible demonstration of a government's commitment to the green movement.

Beyond charging, the Ionex energy stations also serve as the foundation for supporting multiple battery swapping services.

First, companies can use the energy stations to provide various battery swapping services for their customers. While KYMCO is the first provider, other vehicle brands and service providers may also join this endeavor. Consumers will have choices.

In addition, postal services, delivery services, and logistic operators can use the energy stations to operate battery swapping services for their own fleet of electric vehicles. Businesses will have more reasons to go green.

With charging services, swapping services, and private energy networks operating concurrently, Ionex is the world's first multi-function open energy platform. It is the simplest, most economical, and instantly scalable solution to enable all parties to embrace electric.

With the Ionex public charging infrastructure, governments at last have a game changer  to build up a truly ubiquitous public energy infrastructure that transforms the entire city.

"In the next 3 years, KYMCO plans to launch 10 electric models, establish charge networks in 20 countries, and sell over half a million electric vehicles worldwide," said Allen Ko, Chairman of KYMCO. "With KYMCO Ionex, together we start an open movement that celebrates one of the most important social missions of our time." 

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SOURCE KYMCO