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Draft:Marcus Hays

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[[Category:AfC submissions by date/<0030Tue, 15 Sep 2026 03:50:00 +0000202693 2026-09-15T03:50:00+00:00Tuesdayam0000=error>EpTue, 15 Sep 2026 03:50:00 +0000UTC00005020269 UTCTue, 15 Sep 2026 03:50:00 +0000Tue, 15 Sep 2026 03:50:00 +00002026Tue, 15 Sep 2026 03:50:00 +0000: 17894442009Tue, 15 Sep 2026 03:50:00 +0000UTC2026-09-15T03:50:00+00:0020263950257UTC15 pu92026-09-15T03:50:00+00:0030uam305020269 2026-09-15T03:50:00+00:0003amTue, 15 Sep 2026 03:50:00 +0000am2026-09-15T03:50:00+00:0030UTCTue, 15 Sep 2026 03:50:00 +0000 &qu202630;:&qu202630;.</0030Tue, 15 Sep 2026 03:50:00 +0000202693>September 2026|Marcus Hays]]

  • Comment: A rather obvious LLM submission here, and we can't allow AI / LLM supported drafts. The last sentence, I suspect, was intended for the editor, rather than publication, which suggests this draft also has not been fully checked. ChrysGalley (talk) 07:04, 15 September 2026 (UTC)

Marcus Hays is an inventor, designer and EV veteran[1][2][3].Hay has designed several electric-powertrain technologies and holds electric-motorcycle land-speed records at the Bonneville Salt Flats Land Speed Record Trials[1][4][5][6].

Education and early career

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Hay graduated with a degree in Transportation Design from ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, California[1]. His early work with alternative-energy public transit vehicle “21st Century Taxicab,” was noticed by CALSTART (an advanced transportation hatchery) in mid 1990s[1]. He later worked with Lee Iacocca and Paul MacCready on electric mobility projects[4][7]. Defender, one his early works, were showcased in Greater Los Angeles Auto Show in 1994. Dianne Klein of the Los Angeles Times called it "a retooled, reinforced cop car" that "will win no beauty prize"[8]. Bob Mack, who test-drove it with Coolio for Vibe, found that "all of the Defender's sexy extras" were "not installed in this particular model"[9].

PiCycle

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Hays started work with Picycle in 2000[10]. The bike was build from an off-the-shelf extrusion rolled into a four-inch tube[10]. The bike uses NiMH cells hidden in the arch frame[11][12]Picycle has disc brakes and three transmission modes including Electricity, pedal power or assisted pedal power[11] The initial version 'Pi' was launched in 2007. Reviewing a preproduction Pi for the Los Angeles Times in 2007, Susan Carpenter found it "more aesthetic than athletic, but overall, it was an impressive machine", and noted that the batteries, housed in the curved frame, sat high enough that she was aware of their weight.[13] Darren Murph of Engadget called it "a more unorthodox design" than other hybrid bikes,[14] and Charlie Sorrel of Wired Online wrote that it seemed "to owe more to vintage motorcycles than to the modern pushbike"[11]. In Wired's print edition, Eviana Hartman pointed to its price of about $8,000 and wrote that "what you're really paying for is flashy design".[15] Leilani Labong of 7x7 described the bike as "gearing up to lead a two-wheel revolution",[16] while Popular Science singled out its 750-watt motor and a continuously variable transmission that shifts "seamlessly and automatically".[17] I.D. magazine called it "the one e-bike everybody wants" and, at a starting price of $5,500, concluded: "It's worth it."[18]

Reviewing the PiCycle for the Los Angeles Times in 2009, Susan Carpenter called it "an exceptional art piece that is both practical and affordable" and found it agile in corners, though on the steepest part of her test hill the motor needed help from her pedaling.[19] Ariel Schwartz of Fast Company wrote that Pi Mobility's bikes "look like nothing you've seen before" but "still aren't cheap",[20] and San Francisco magazine said the PiCycle "looks like a futurist sculpture but rides like a dreamy, souped-up Schwinn".[21] In a 2011 cover story, DEVELOP3D wrote that on first seeing it "you can't help doing a double take", and reported that the bike had reached serial production more than a decade after Hays's first sketch[10]. Roy M. Wallack, also in the Los Angeles Times, listed it as "stable, fast, exhilarating and attention-getting" but "very heavy at 60 pounds", a weight he said went unnoticed with the motor on.[22] The North Bay Bohemian found the bikes "surprisingly functional" and wrote that "the only obstacle with the PiCycle is its price tag".[23]

Ring Drive Wheel technology

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Hays and co-inventor Scott Streeter developed the Orbis Ring Drive Wheel, a hubless wheel in which a small electric motor turns a ring gear on the rim through a pinion, in place of a motor at the hub[6][2]. The aim was a powered wheel that weighed no more than a conventional aluminum wheel and removed the need for a traditional driveline[2][6]. Earlier projects included motors for a wheelchair and an electric scooter[6]. MotorTrend wrote that driving the rim lowers the torque needed to turn the wheel, and that a large brake rotor set close to the rim lowers the braking force needed[2].

In 2018 Orbis showed a Honda Civic Type R with ring drives on its rear wheels at the SAE World Congress[6]. MotorTrend tested the car that October: the two motors added about 100 horsepower, and it reached 60 mph 1.7 seconds quicker than its own unassisted run and 0.4 seconds quicker than the magazine's fastest standard Civic Type R, despite carrying 342 pounds more.[24] The session ended when a fuse blew[24]. Markus expected the electrical faults to be fixed but doubted the long-term durability of the rollers that run on the rim, which became very hot during the test[2][24]. Rain Noe of Core77 called the wheel "technically impressive" but said it would be less attractive if fitting it meant removing the rear seats.[25]

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 Weaver, Stephanie (2023-03-31). "Re-Inventing the Wheel: Marcus Hays | The Vintagent". Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Reinventing the Wheel - Technologue". MotorTrend. 2018-05-20. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  3. ↑ "Marcus Hays Inventions, Patents and Patent Applications - Justia Patents Search". patents.justia.com. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  4. 1 2 "Why this Santa Rosa firm is betting big on AI data center cooling". The Press Democrat. 2026-03-16. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  5. ↑ Johnson, Wayne (2010). Live to ride : the rumbling, roaring world of speed, escape, and adventure on two wheels. Internet Archive. New York : Atria Books. ISBN 978-1-4165-5032-7.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 "Ring Drive Suggests Future EV Powertrain | WardsAuto". www.wardsauto.com. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  7. ↑ Ackerman, Elise. "The Story Of The Schiller X1, The World's Most Radically Redesigned Bicycle". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2026-10-03. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  8. ↑ "Defensive Driving : Vehicles: A car for road warriors is unveiled at L.A. auto show. Its looks are plain--like a retooled police car--but it's designed to leave occupants unscathed even after a hail of gunfire". Los Angeles Times. 1994-01-14. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  9. ↑ Mack, Bob (August 1994). "Fantastic Voyage". Vibe. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  10. 1 2 3 Holmes, Stephen (2011-03-02). "The power of Pi". DEVELOP3D. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  11. 1 2 3 Sorrel, Charlie (2007-10-01). "Pi Electrobike: Expensive, Eccentric and Enchanting". Wired. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  12. ↑ Johnson, Steve. "3-D software key to designing many of today's consumer products".
  13. ↑ Carpenter, Susan (2007-09-26). "The Electrobike Pi electric bicycle is plug and play". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  14. ↑ Murph, Darren (2007-09-28). "Electrobike Pi: the pricey hybrid electric bicycle". Engadget. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  15. ↑ Hartman, Eviana (December 2007). "Sweet as Pi". Wired. p. 174.
  16. ↑ Labong, Leilani (April 2008). "Life Cycle". 7x7. p. 110.
  17. ↑ Popular Science, March 2009, pp. 65–66 (section "The Hybrid Boost").
  18. ↑ "Taking Charge". I.D. March–April 2009.
  19. ↑ Carpenter, Susan (2009-10-16). "PiCycle brings high style to the eco-commute". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  20. ↑ Schwartz, Ariel (2010-12-01). "How Funky Pi Mobility Bikes Tamed Quirky Curves With 3-D Software". Fast Company. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  21. ↑ "A bicycle cool enough to lure drivers from their cars". The Best. San Francisco.
  22. ↑ Wallack, Roy M. (2011-05-23). "Bicycles are getting artsy smartsy". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  23. ↑ Dovey, Rachel. "Made in the North Bay". North Bay Bohemian. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  24. 1 2 3 Markus, Frank (2018-10-03). "Civic Type R AWD? Testing an Orbis/Honda Civic Type R With 100-HP 'E-Nitrous' AWD!". MotorTrend. Retrieved 2026-10-05.
  25. ↑ Noe, Rain (2018-11-19). "Turn Your Two-Wheel-Drive Car into Four-Wheel-Drive by Adding Hubless Orbis Electric Wheels". Core77. Retrieved 2026-10-05.

Category:Living people Category:American automotive engineers Category:American inventors Category:American technology company founders Category:ArtCenter College of Design alumni Category:Electric bicycles Category:Year of birth missing (living people)

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