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You’ve got in all probability already seen articles on Specialised’s Underneath Backside Bracket patent software, however what they do not let you know is that this might truly be the structure for the subsequent Kenevo SL e-bike.
There’s been quite a lot of pleasure about Specialised’s Underneath Backside Bracket patent software on-line. And, whereas the main focus of most articles and pundits has been on the potential of a brand new 172mm journey Enduro platform sporting UBB, buried deep within the complicated legalese are two new suspension layouts that might level to the route of the subsequent era Specialised Turbo Kenevo SL. With rumours of EDR enduro racing fading out in 2025, and electrified enduro racing taking its place, might this truly be the longer term software for Specialised’s much-hyped new structure? Right here’s what we expect…
Why not use UBB for the Turbo Kenevo SL?
Liable to stating the apparent, we will’t see how Specialised might make use of its UBB design, because the hyperlinks that drive the shock and management the leverage price must move straight via the motor or battery of the Kenevo SL. However as said within the patent software, Specialised clearly feels that it’s “fascinating to separate the driving of the shock from the kinematics of the motion of the rear wheel”, and the choice configurations would allow it to do exactly that.
A potential new Enduro with UBB from Specialised’s latest patent software
How are these potential designs totally different from the present Kenevo SL?
Let’s take a better have a look at the present Kenevo SL. It shares the same body structure to the present Enduro, however there are refined variations within the hyperlinks that actuate the shock. Each designs use a scissor-style linkage that connects the higher suspension hyperlink to the shock, and the shock to the body.
Specialised’s present Turbo Kenevo SL is sort of three years outdated – ripe for a refresh?
On the Kenevo SL the decrease shock hyperlink doesn’t share the identical mounting location on the body as the primary pivot – which it does on the Enduro – as a result of the motor is in the best way. Because of this, the decrease hyperlink on the Kenevo SL can be a lot flatter, so the angle between the shock and the hyperlink is extra acute. In actual phrases, this implies the general leverage price is extra progressive initially, then linear for the ultimate third of the journey.
What benefits do the choice layouts within the patent software supply?
Similar to the UBB structure, the linkage preparations in what we’ll name the Over Backside Bracket (OBB) designs (see figures 7 & 8), separates the hyperlinks that drive the shock, from the 4-bar linkage (that determines the axle path). So, not solely does the brand new OBB preparations give Specialised extra freedom to control the leverage price curve to its liking, it might probably achieve this independently of the kinematics that decide anti-squat and anti-rise. Which is fairly sensible, proper?
One other potential suspension structure for the Turbo Kenevo SL, this time with an loafer.
Are there every other benefits of the brand new layouts?
Sure. There are a few apparent ones, like transferring the hyperlinks that drive the shock decrease within the body will cut back the centre of gravity of the body by a hair. However only a hair. Additionally, by eradicating the forces related to driving the shock from the higher linkage meeting, the seatstays, higher hyperlink, and any related bearings and {hardware} might be made considerably lighter. The patent software additionally signifies that there’s an outdoor risk that Specialised might even supply adjustable anti-rise, a lot in the identical method it at the moment gives geometry adjustment, with out negatively affecting different facets of the suspension structure.
Specialised UBB patent signifies 5 potential layouts with totally different anti-rise.
What about disadvantages?
Extra hyperlinks imply extra bearings and extra weight. And with elevated complexity, typically comes extra upkeep. That mentioned, if Specialised can enhance the general suspension efficiency of the Turbo Kenevo SL, we’d see that as an enormous win, because it’s one factor we criticised once we reviewed the S-Works Turbo Kenevo SL
When are we prone to see a brand new Turbo Kenevo SL?
Most manufacturers work on a three-year mannequin lifecycle, however given the fast growth of e-bike tech and that Specialised tends to set its personal guidelines, there’s each probability {that a} new model of the Kenevo SL will land in 2024. The Specialised Turbo Levo SL bought a refresh final 12 months, so the Kenevo SL already lags behind when it comes to energy and torque, and provided that the 170mm journey Kenevo SL suits neatly into Specialised’s gravity camp, together with the Enduro and Demo, we’d be very stunned if it didn’t share a number of the new design ideas outlined within the patent software.
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