Who has never thought, while caught up in traffic, of the possibility of transporting people from the house to school and work in a more efficient way, with less traffic jams, less pollution and less energy consumption?

An answer to this question is being shaped in the incubator of the Itaipu mill. It is the Pompéo Tricycle. The tricycle was conceived thanks to the entrepreneurship of Renato Pompeu, Carlos Motta and Carlos Metzler to meet the demand of new challenges in transportation. The small vehicle, which transports up to two people, satisfies the daily transportation needs of many people. The reduced size also has the advantage of using up a very small amount of raw material preserving thus, our natural resources.

Due to the reduced weight of the vehicle it will be possible to use small, robust and efficient WEG electric motors driven by state-of-the-art frequency inverters also made by WEG and supplied by Lithium-ion batteries.

Day-to-day, the simplicity and robustness of this “power train” (term used to refer to the traction system) will result in more benefits because it eliminates having to change the oil, clean the carburetors or nozzles, do the maintenance of pulleys, belts, gear, clutches, etc.

Still in the initial testing phase of the functional prototype, the intention is to have the project approved to be manufactured in 2011 at an estimated price of R$ 35 mil. Designed to reach a limited speed of 90 km/h, autonomy of 200 km and with a recharging time of four to six hours, the Pompéo may be a viable alternative for everyday commuting both for private use or use by private and public companies.