Argentine Innovar 2007 Prototypes: The Urban Bike
by Paula Alvarado, Buenos Aires 
on 10. 8.07
The exhibition of the finalists and winners of the 2007 Innovar national contest took place in Buenos Aires last week. This competition is open for everyone from designers to entrepreneurs; and intends to discover new products of national origin and partner the creators with companies in order to produce them.
We were very glad to find a few green designs among the finalists, since last year we spotted just two: the nexo car and the BCK solar kitchen.
The first we're presenting this year is the RAD bike, a foldable bicycle by industrial designer and cyclist Jimena Gonzalez from Uno mas uno studio. As you can see, the bike is not thought to be small, but light and urban. "I use bikes a lot and go to work with them, but noticed other people less experienced couldn't do it. First, regular foldable bikes usually are hard to fold or at least not that clean: when you start doing it, you encounter the chain, wires and other things, and you might get to work with dirty hands or clothes.
Second, chains in general are exposed and you might get your pant with stains in the way", says the designer explaining the design. The plastic covering the chains and wires acts as protector and as a case when the bike folds. That is done with a single switch in the handle, which unlocks the front column with the wheel and allows to introduce it into the orange plastic case (picture in the extended). The result is a little big (a person's size) but nicer to the view than other bikes, if you want to leave it in the office or take it in a train.
Even though a prototype, Gonzalez wants to make it work, so if anyone is interested, contact her at jimena at estudiounomasuno dot com dot ar. ::Uno mas uno studio
The RAD bike, folded.
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Very clever! I just bought a Dahon this summer, and experience the difficulties mentioned in this article! Where can I get that RAD bike!
Try to contact the designer by mail, maybe she can ship one to you... If you don't get a response come back and leave a comment and I'll give her a call.
If the next version could modify the design so that it could hang from a bar like a coat hanger, that'd be perfect for my dorm.
What do you do if the chain falls off while you're riding? I've had that happen to me quite a few times, and I don't even ride that much.
Well, the plastic shell is nice in that it gives it a more 'moped' appeal I suppose, but really the majority of modern folding bikes today of decent quality aren't difficult to fold and take less than 5 minutes to learn, not to mention being far, far smaller and probably lighter than this dumbed down version. Many folders can be put in bags so you can take in on a train with you! This thing looks like it would barely even fit in a trunk, let alone other commuter scenarios. Good for someone who doesn't stray more than a few blocks from home in the city I guess, though.
Chain-
Looks like one gear on the front and one gear on the back. Gearing might be inside the hub itself like the Shimano Nexus hub or older 3-speeds. When the chain is aligned right, the chain should never pop off as with external derailleur bikes where the chain moves from gear to gear.
Just a guess. Anyway, it looks accessible from below.
vsk
Totally agree Russ!
As far as I can see, this bike is a summation of non-justified resources that probably make it more expensive, heavier and bigger. In fact, the trouble of the transportation by bike in the largest cities is solved with the more practical and completely foldable folding bikes that are already installed in the market since years ago.
Noup, sorry, I don´t buy it! It´s just a bluff!
Muy bueno, mas visible y limpio.
Aqui en europa seria aceptable en trenes y ascensores.