Understanding Hero’s i3S technology.

 

As the need to get to work in time is becoming more important, the demand for personal vehicles is going high and high. Buying cars is not an affordable option in developing countries where a majority of the population is middle class. So many people rely on Bikes and Scooters for their personal means of transport. However, as the number of vehicles grows, it is important to have an efficient vehicle. And i3S technology seems to play an important role in the efficiency of vehicles.

What i3S is?

Hero MotoCorp, a two-wheeler automaker company in India has been taking initiative in developing the technology to make an affordable and efficient motorcycle. In March 2014, i3S (Idle Stop and Start System) was introduced in the Splendor iSmart model. Which is one of Hero’s affordable and fuel-efficient motorcycles. Now, this system is available in almost all of its models.

How does it work?

The main purpose of i3S technology is to reduce the amount of fuel consumption in city rides where there is lots of traffic. This system automatically turns off the engine to hibernate mode when the bike idling in traffic resulting in less consumption of fuel.

The process involved in this system is not that difficult to understand. Let’s imagine you riding Splendor iSmart on the city road and you stopped in front of a traffic light. In a normal case, the engine will remain in idle mode continuously for the whole stopping interval, the only way to stop the engine is by turning off the key and restarting the bike when the signal opens, but it wouldn’t be a convenient and efficient way.

So in the case of the Idle Stop and Start System, when you stop and release the clutch by putting the gear in neutral for more than 5 sec, the i3S system will automatically turn off the engine to hibernate mode. And when the traffic light opens you can easily turn on the engine by simply pressing the clutch pedal and you are ready to go again. This will prevent the consumption of fuel in case of the idling of the engine.

Here is a video showing i3S operation: