RIDE-BY-WIRE TECHNOLOGY EXPLAINED !!!

The technologies in case of motorcycles is evolving at a faster rate.

ABS,Cornering ABS,Cruise control,adaptive cruise control etc. are the common examples.  Among these Ride by Wire is again a new technology.Let's understand this technology in this article.

Ride by wire refers to the absence of mechanical linkage between accelerator and throttle. Instead, various sensors and actuators (connected by wires) control the fuel-air supply going to the engine. Yamaha pioneered the use of ride by wire technology in 2006 on YZF-R6.

One of the main aspects of using the ride-by-wire technology is that motorcycle manufacturers can stick to strict emission norms, while still being able to make high displacement motorcycles. The bigger the displacement, higher the emission and ride-by-wire technology keeps emission under control as air-fuel mixture can be fine-tuned.

Why it is needed?

In a conventional setup, the butterfly throttle valve is directly controlled by the throttle control on the handlebar. As the rider twists the throttle for hard acceleration, the abrupt, large flow of air in the combustion chamber causes the bike to momentarily stall. This results in poor combustion and harsh ride. The ride-by-wire technology eliminates this problem.Also,as emission standards are getting stricter, it is becoming very difficult for motorcycle manufacturers to employ higher capacity engines while maintaining emission limit.So ride by wire is a solution.

How does Ride-by-wire work?

In earlier bikes having carburetor, accelerator had a direct cable connection with the butterfly valve in the carburetor body. Thus, in such engines, a twist of the accelerator would directly control the supply of fuel-air mixture to the engine. However, this is not the case with ride by wire system as there is no cable connection between accelerator and throttle. 

In this system, when rider twists the accelerator, actuators in the electronic throttle body sense this movement and change the throttle opening accordingly. The movement of throttle alters air supply to the engine.

Throttle position sensor senses this change and sends a signal to ECM. Based on this signal, ECM calculates the exact amount of fuel required and orders fuel injection system to supply it. Hence, engine receives correct amount of air-fuel mixture in every situation.

What are the Advantages of Ride-by-wire?

To sum it up ride-by-wire offers the following advantages

• Smooth acceleration
• Improved fuel economy
• Enables rider aids like Cruise Control, Traction Control
• Enables ride mode control

Limitations:

• Skilled person required for troubleshooting.
• Cost of repair is high.

The Ride By Wire technology is responsible for features like Cruise Control, Traction Control and Variable Power Modes in high end bikes. These features obviously demand premium and hence come with almost all sorts of supersports bikes by different names.