Product Development - MotoBag Quick release, The Long Road to Soft Luggage Quick Release

I want to talk about our semi-rigid side panniers, the MotoBags, and the rack attachment system that we’ve developed. Full video below.

Developed in 3 variants, let's take a quick look at the ideas behind them and why they failed and what one became the best solution.

The first variant is a hook and clip system, which were installed to the existing backplate of the MotoBags. This system featured a clip lock, which clipped into the top bar of the pannier racks, and 2 hooks that hooked into the bottom bar of the racks. Hook systems are very stable and I really like the system. The prototypes that we made worked well, but there were a few issues. The first issue was the tooling, as these parts are made via a stamping process, which required us to modify existing tooling to suit this design. This design required a lot of end user adjustments, installation and assembly, which we did not want. In addition, it featured quite a few parts (pins, springs, etc) that required maintenance, and I was concerned about long term durability.

We actually got really far in this project. Then we decided to stop it just because we needed something more universal for all riders. So we moved on to the next project, which is a plastic injected plate design.

The plastic injected plate design is essentially a plate which is attached to the MotoBags, then the plate is slotted and automatically clipped into another plate, which are attached to the racks using our traditional puck system.  Basically you just put the bag on and then you walk away and it’s already locked in place, really easy for the user. We moved on from that because the project costs per piece too much to manufacture and we’d have to pass that onto you, the customer. It gets to a point where people just don’t see the value in it, especially when we can make a better version for cheaper so that’s what we did.

Then that brings us to the latest version. The new system is a hook and latch system. It features two stainless steel with injected molded nylon which hooks at the bottom, and a latch closure with lock. To attach the bag, open the top latch, hook the bottom hooks onto the racks, then fold the latch down onto the top bar the rack, turn your key to lock it into place, and it locks in place. The latch lock features a plastic bar which keeps it stable. This is a clean and very easy to use system.

The great thing with this design is it fit to OEM BEM racks out of the box. No need for adjustments.

I made a full video on all the points so have a look and let me know what you think.