Types of strollers called ‘running strollers’ exist to make it possible to bring your toddlers along for your run but try it with two four-year old, 38 lb young ones, against the wind, and up enough hills and you’ll quickly lose steam. [Andrew Clink]’s and his wife’s solution? Modify the stroller to be a self-powered roadrunner.
[Andrew]’s hackaday.io build logs are detailed, including design, calculations, schematics, 3D printing files, fails and retries, and more. Power is provided by a bank of lithium-ion batteries that drive a brushless motor. The motor turns the stroller’s front wheel using a toothed belt around a small motor pulley and a larger 3D printed wheel pulley, providing a 13.92:1 gear ratio. [Andrew] considered a number of methods for steering, and even tried a few, but given that his paths are mostly straight lines, small adjustments by hand are all that’s needed. For the possibility of the stroller getting away from him for whatever reason, [Andrew] wrote an iOS app for his phone that makes use of the Bluetooth LE Proximity profile (PDF). It communicates with a small remote using an nRF8001 Bluetooth connectivity IC and for added safety has a belt clip and a stop button.
Does it work? See for yourself in the video below. We’re sure [Andrew] and his wife will continue to be fit for a long time to come.
Maybe you’re not a runner and prefer to ride the stroller yourself? In that case you can do what [Colin Furze] did and make a stroller that you can drive at over 53 miles per hour. Or perhaps it really is for your baby to ride themselves, with collision prevention features of course.
I’m an old long distance cyclist – cross country. You build your stamina when the pushing become difficult. But it’s a nice garage project.
I run with my kids and, when I had one kid, put her on my bike. While you are right about the stamina, running and biking with kids are two different things. You cant gear down your legs.
Nice project. While I generally don’t criticize, re ” For the possibility of the stroller getting away from him for whatever reason, [Andrew] wrote an iOS app for his phone that makes use of the Bluetooth LE Proximity profile (PDF). It communicates with a small remote using an nRF8001 Bluetooth connectivity IC and for added safety has a belt clip and a stop button.”. Damn that sounds dangerous. Why not a simple wrist strap tether to a kill switch?
I was thinking the same thing. There are way too many failure modes to use this with a child. All it takes is the stroller going an extra few feet in the wrong direction for terrible things to happen.
I thought that’s what the belt clip was, something that if pulled away, hits the brakes?
Ah, and now I see your follow-up comment below. Ignore what I said.
And that’s my being stupid and missing “… or added safety has a belt clip and a stop button.”
I just wonder, at what point do the kids join in? I mean I get the fact that they can’t do the distance (at speed), but my 3 year old daughter can walk miles with me…
Screw the “Green” battery nonsense. A “four-year old, 38 lb young one” can PEDDLE! Make the kid do the work and drive the stroller directly. Surely a “Kiddie Powered Peddle Stroller” must exist? Or maybe not, the concept may be encumbered by many Apple or Google-Owned frivolous U.S. patents :-(
Pedaling is fine until you’re 14km into a 21km run and the kid refuses to pedal any more.
electrically assisted bike then?