Bike hardware required for Bosch's Smart System
Bosch's "Smart System" connects the e-bike to the internet. In addition to the "eBike Flow" smartphone app, this requires the latest generation of bike hardware: the LED Remote control unit and the new Kiox 300 display can be used to adjust the Performance CX motor to personal requirements once it has been successfully connected to the mobile phone. The app also uses a Bluetooth connection with the LED Remote to keep the entire system up to date via internet updates. New comfort or fitness functions can also be added in this way. Among other things, rides can be automatically recorded and analysed with the Flow app, while the integrated activity tracking synchronises data with Apple Health if required.
Perhaps the most remarkable feature of the app is access to the power delivery. Similar to Shimano riders with the E-Tube Project, Bosch Performance CX riders can now use the Flow app to access the motor control characteristics. In the Eco, Sport and Turbo support levels, the support, dynamics, maximum supported speed and torque parameters can be adjusted within limits to suit personal preferences. For example, those who want more torque when starting at traffic lights or want to slip less on loose surfaces may be interested in this. The assisted top speed is fixed at 25 kilometres per hour. It can be reduced, but not increased.
We tested how much the motor characteristics change via the app. To do this, we measured the possible support settings (in watts) on our roller dynamometer: The evaluation shows clear intervention options, especially in Sport mode. Here, the maximum assistance can be set between 130 and 370 watts.
The dynamics, i.e. the acceleration capacity of the engine, and the torque cannot be reliably tested on our test bench. We have therefore only assessed both variables on the basis of driving tests. In turbo mode, we could only feel little influence between the maximum and minimum dynamic settings (+5 or -5). It was felt to have the greatest influence in Sport mode. Changes in torque are most noticeable when starting off. We only felt noticeably less engine power after we had greatly reduced the maximum torque. Changes had the greatest effect in Sport mode.
The roller dynamometer test
Bosch's new eBike Flow smartphone app allows you to change the motor characteristics of the Bosch Performance Line CX within certain limits. The prerequisite is that the drive is operated with the new LED Remote. It acts as an interface between the app and the drive. The parameters that can be changed are assistance, dynamics, top speed and torque. We measured the differences in the motor's performance by changing the assistance parameter at 20 km/h, with a cadence of 70 pedal revolutions per minute and 120 watts of pedalling power on our roller dynamometer. Using the app, the power can be adjusted between -5 and +5 scale units using the slider. In turbo mode, the motor delivers the same power at the medium setting (0 on the scale) as at the maximum setting +5, namely just over 400 watts. With the scale value -5, the drive in "Turbo" is throttled down to around 230 watts. The adjustment range within turbo mode is therefore around 180 watts. In Sport mode, the largest difference between the minimum and maximum setting is achieved with a range of 240 watts, in Eco mode it is still 100 watts. This allows the power output to be reduced to around 40 watts.
MYBIKE test rider Mike Schinke tried out the eBike Flow app: Bosch's smart system in a practical test
In turbo mode, I can hardly feel the difference in performance between the minimum and maximum settings -5 and +5. The difference is more noticeable in Sport mode. If you select +5 as the maximum power setting, it feels as if you are driving in turbo mode. In the minimum setting (-5), the engine is noticeably weaker. I experience the effect of the dynamic setting in a similar way. While there is hardly any perceptible difference between the minimum and maximum values in Turbo mode, the drive responds more clearly in Sport mode. For example, the engine is noticeably less powerful when accelerating out of slow bends in the -5 setting. Changes in torque are only clearly noticeable when the value is drastically reduced. It was only after I had reduced the maximum torque from 85 to 50 Nm that I felt I had to use more leg power when starting off. Here too, the effect is much more noticeable in Sport and Eco mode than in Turbo mode. Overall, the possible settings for engine power, dynamics and torque have less of an effect than I had expected.
