Enviolo Automatiq auto transmission for e-bikes/e-cargobikes

[mzjo]

While idly browsing the web, looking at cargobikes when I should have been more gainfully employed wiring light and power for my daughter's "workshop", I came across this https://www.veloelectrique24.fr/fr/envolio-automatiq  fitted to this  https://www.yokler.com/accueil-fr/en/triporteur-cargo-espaces-verts-et-collecte-de-dechets/

Appreciations and criticisms of the vehicle apart (I was curious but it would fall far short of our requirements in capacity, autonomy and speed) I was curius about the transmission. Impossible to believe that it has flown under the YACF radar but a search has failed to find it. The company site isn't that informative (I can't tell if it's their box or an add-on to a Shimano Nexus and if it is really continuous variation, like a Nu-Vinci or just prestaged changes to maintain a regular cadence).

Anyone know anything out there? Just curious 

[Kim]

ICE are fitting them, so they must be vaguely decent.  It's definitely a CVT.

https://www.icetrikes.co/tech/gearing

https://enviolo.com/enviolo-technology/

[Paul H]

like a Nu-Vinci or just prestaged changes to maintain a regular cadence).
Anyone know anything out there? Just curious 

It's not like a Nu-Vinci, it is a  Nu-Vinci.
Repackaged and rebranded for E-bikes, the electronic shifting, manual and auto, is new, otherwise it's basically the original hub.  The criticism of the original, was the narrow gear range and the loss of efficiency, both of which are less relevant once you add a motor. Indeed, the ability to keep the motor spinning at optimum efficiency may well outweigh the inefficiencies of the hub.  I don't think there was ever any criticism of the hubs doing as claimed or a reason they'd be less reliable than the alternatives.
I had a test ride on a Riese & Muller light (haha) cargo bike with one fitted, I fond it a bit odd, it may be that it would just take longer to get used to it. Either way the bike was out of my range, but that such manufacturers (As with ICE above) consider them worthwhile shows they probably are.

[Kim]

The main issue with NuVinci hubs seems to be that bike shops don't know how to correctly adjust them, which is a significant problem for a large portion of the target market.

[mzjo]

like a Nu-Vinci or just prestaged changes to maintain a regular cadence).
Anyone know anything out there? Just curious 

It's not like a Nu-Vinci, it is a  Nu-Vinci.
Repackaged and rebranded for E-bikes, the electronic shifting, manual and auto, is new, otherwise it's basically the original hub.  The criticism of the original, was the narrow gear range and the loss of efficiency, both of which are less relevant once you add a motor. Indeed, the ability to keep the motor spinning at optimum efficiency may well outweigh the inefficiencies of the hub.  I don't think there was ever any criticism of the hubs doing as claimed or a reason they'd be less reliable than the alternatives.
I had a test ride on a Riese & Muller light (haha) cargo bike with one fitted, I fond it a bit odd, it may be that it would just take longer to get used to it. Either way the bike was out of my range, but that such manufacturers (As with ICE above) consider them worthwhile shows they probably are.

I imagine riding a bike with a CV transmission is odd. Just like driving a Daf or Volvo automatic car, you accelerate with the box not the motor - except that it's you that has to try to accelerate against a box that will oppose your acceleration by changing up. It might be easier with a motor but I bet the electronic control is a game-changer.
Interesting that Tern are fitting them to a folding e-cargobike - I wouldn't have thought that the Tern really needed that level of assistance.

[psyclist]

Yesterday I test rode a Douze cargo bike with the Enviolo transmission - manual rather than automatic gear selection. It’s not something that I’m looking for, having discounted it from an efficiency perspective and distrust of new technologies without a proven reliability track record, but it was just on the bike I test rode.

I spent the first 15 minutes with no battery, getting used to the bike without electric motor assistance. Once I got the hang of which way to twist the speed dial, riding with it quickly became second nature. When stopping at a junction, I would just select a somewhat lower setting, much the same as on a geared bike I’d select a lower gear without necessarily knowing which gear I’d selected.

I then spent another 15 minutes with the battery, using the electric motor in Eco mode, and then a quick go on Boost just to see what that was about. Changing the gear ratio was no different, gauging roughly where I wanted it as my speed and intent required.

It was very smooth in operation, and I could see it being good for day to day use. For me, the negatives would just be the lower efficiency, reliability question marks and the price.