Cannondale Jacknife — Another Take on Folding Bikes
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 02.19.06
Have started going through a long backlog of tips that haven’t yet seen the light of day. And noticed this one. Dutchman Philippe Holthuizen (who sent the information) and Spaniard Rodrigo Clavel were Masters students studying transport design at the Elisava Design School in Barcelona. (We noted Elisava in a post of ecodesign university courses). The guys were selected to design a bike for Cannondale that would appeal to urbanites within the 20-35 years bracket. The Jackknife resulted. “For clean aesthetics and low maintenance the drive system is hydraulic, and for storage and easy handling in elevators and on public transport the bike is also foldable. The folding mechanism shows a unique and highly innovative approach, with the central tube twisting through 180°.” (The hydraulic drive sounds more radical than the folding aspect, but seems glossed over a bit.) The bike has integrated lighting and other details were in keeping with signature Cannondale aesthetics. The two wheeler has been doing the rounds of transport trade shows as a ‘concept’ bike, with the students sponsor indicating it may not be produced, but its ideas incorporated into future designs. Philippe initially sent us a link to the German site ::Radsport, but we see that in the intervening time the story was picked up by Bicycle Design and Car Design News.
Hydraulic drive?
could this perhaps also have regenerative braking??
I'll test the thing in NJ, on Jersey Transit,and in NYC! Let me at one!
Wow I like this one better than the other one.
If it was In a good price range I would buy it, but I rather dought that.
Make it available, I'll buy one.
me four.
I'd be interested to learn more about the hydraulic drive system.
Neither designer has any further information about this on their web sites.
that's a very unique design. The hydraulic drive might be their way of saying "no chain," but probably doesn't actually exist.
There used to be a lot of bikes that had a drive shaft going through the "chainstays" I always thought that would be an idea to look at again now that materials have gotten better.
Hi, i'm one of the guys who designed the bike and just wanted to give a quick comment on the hydraulic system. The bike is a concept, a proposal for what a bicycle might look like in 10 years. And while no hydraulic drive systems are available on the market, there are a couple of small companies working on them. Just don't hold your breath, 'cause as long as the big brands aren't interested, the prospects for such a system are pretty bleak.
Philippe,
Thank you for your reply about the hydraulic drive system.
What are the small companies working on such a system to which you referred?
I would think that if such a solution could be more simple than an internal rear hub. IF this system could be made of the same efficiency as an internal rear hub as well as the same weight or less, then there could be quite a market for it!
Please advise
i only know of one system you can easily find info about. google 'liquid drive' and youll find it. im not entirely sure the weight and efficiency of current drives could be matched. the big advantage is in maintenance.
as for the market, i think the two to four big players have no real interest in developing such a system. until one of those players surprises the others all of a sudden ;) but for now theres probably more money to be made with the current drive systems (more components, more maintenance, little r&d). then again, maybe im a pessimist...
Don't some downhill MTBs have a "hidden" chain, too? Combine that with an internal hub, and you could take (most of) this concept bike to market today.
By the time the R&D has caught up on the hydraulic drive, there will be enough demand. Bike lobby groups the world over are pushing local authorities for more bike-friendly access to roads and public transportation.
The most expensive Dahon quick-fold bike is around $1000 (or GBP1000 or EUR1000). I'd pay $2000 for Phillipe's and Rodrigo's bike.
Good design, gentlemen! Now, for the rest of us consumers, let's tell the big players we want this bike now.
I have notice that is increasing the interest in solutions to the urban mobility. Bikes are a good option in cities without climb and puma have an interesting model too. But in places where we have to climb, electric solutions work better. We create a model with climb hability the ZAC Z.01. it is simple to ride, small(fit everywhere) and has a strong structure. see us at www.zac.com.pt
As a professional bike mechanic, and geek for everything bike, I have worked on just about every alternative drive system. And while I am all for inovation and challenging design, none of the alternative systems match the beauty and the efficency (in the 90% range) of the chain drive. Simple to manufacture and simple to maintain. Though the deralleur system may eventually loose to the internal planetary hub, which is an amazing work of art. http://www.rohloff.de/en/products/index.html
The Jacknife is a pretty clean design, and it would be exciting to see it produced. But it does say a lot to find the basic double triangle, with its origin in the 19th century, still holding strong in progressive design.
The great thing about climbing hills, every time you ride up they get easier, then you get to ride down!
I am on the verge of developing a Hydraulic pedal system. How ever I need investors. I have been working on this for about ten years now. I build custom automated equipment, so I can tell you I can do this if the finances were there. This system will be able to power the front wheel and will be able to be shifted when bike is stopped. Keeping this system light is why the development is so costly. If there is any interest please reply thanks.
There are bikes on the market with a belt drive.
Strida (Strida.com) says their kevlar belt drive is greaseless and will last up to 50,000 miles.
iXi (iXibike.com) says their belt drive will never leave grease marks and will never skip.
Type "belt drive bicycle" in your search engine for more.
My own thoughts:
A kevlar belt has got to be lighter than a chain.
It's also got to be quieter.
And...it will never have to be cleaned and lubed.
Kevlar belts are use to spin the cam shafts on automobiles so they've got to be pretty damn tough and skip free.
If they can handle horsepower they can handle human power.
Belt drive is here now, hydraulic drive is off in the future and doesn't seem to offer an advantage.
The Cannondale Jacknife looks like it would be hard to get on and off.
It is super ugly and I don't think many people would want to be seen on one.
on the contrary, i find it to be an elegant minimalist design with balanced asymmetry. as a concept bike, it does look artificially clean though as it apparently lacks controls or brakes, and of course the clutter of a conventional drive system. will it be lighter than a more conventional frame? no. CV hydraulic drive? a long way off but would be cool. the bike is a nice design exercise though...
Check out the "Chainless Challenge" sponsored by Parker Hannifin
Why is it that really good ideas like this never see a production run? All we seem to see is expensive crap. It is sickening living in a capitalistic society like America!
If you want a real-world folding bike (not just a concept), check out the Sinclair A-bike:
http://www.a-bike.co.uk/
I just got one and it's amazing!
And for concept folding bikes, I prefer this one previously mentioned:
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/08/locust_folding_bike.php
Dreams turning to reality...No hydraulic drive and all left gone all right, but still pretty cool. Check it out!!
http://www.transcendmagazine.com/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=eurobike2007