Reinventing the Wheel
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 02. 1.08
TreeHugger has shown a lot of folding bikes, and most suffer from the same problem: smallish wheels because big ones take up too much space. So mountain biker and designer Duncan Fitzsimons invented a folding wheel. He told Bike Radar:
“The problem at the moment is that in order to get the weight down to a regular bike wheel weight, with the fact it’s got hinges and so on, it needs to be a carbon fibre wheel, which means that it’s quite expensive, so it’s a project that sets more challenges."
“They [bike manufacturers] think you’d have to design a new type of bike to go with it. At the moment I’m trying to find the right type of bike people to work with me.
“The aim is to try to get a really high end city bike or courier bike that can fold up into a package like a golf bag, which could go into an overhead rack on a train or go into a plane locker.” ::Bike Radar via ::Core77; See also :Duncan Fitzsimons
great video:
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This seems like a great idea, but the inventor himself said that this is a solution in need of a problem in that he does not know what type of bike would be fitting for this technology. If the wheel is durable, then it could be a great city bike. The only reason that I take a bus and not a bike to work is that I have no place to store the bike. This wheel could change that.
Not a bad idea.. I've got a simliar idea but it folds down even smaller. I should really develop it because there seems to be a demand for it.
I wonder if the air has to go out for it to fold?
Pumping and airing down would take about 30 seconds per wheel.
I think it has lots of promise. My fat self and goodies and the rest of the bike frame are about 255 pounds total ... maybe a few pounds more after the weekend!! I'd give them a try ... on a regular bike for fun. They look cool so far.
vsk
Wouldn't this would be a great application for the disabled? I mean, right now, wheelchairs are clunky at best. Such a chair that could easily be loaded and unloaded like a true folding chair would be great! Current folding wheelchairs don't do the disable (and the growing number of vetrens) any justice!
Great work, I hope it meets with practical applications.
I'm pretty critical of most new bike tech stuff, but this is amazing and I hope it makes it to market.
I love the fact that in the video he seems to trust his prototype so much that he'll forgo wearing a helmet and place the wheel in front. "please don't fold, please don't fold"...
@Steveorevo: Your idea that this could a bigger boon for wheelchairs is right on the mark.
I love the fact that in the video he seems to trust his prototype so much that he'll forgo wearing a helmet and place the wheel in front. "please don't fold, please don't fold"...
@Steveorevo: Your idea that this could a bigger boon for wheelchairs is right on the mark.
As a former NYC messenger I have my doubts about racing through traffic on these potentially hazardous wheels. Even as a commuter it seems hazardous; in the video the guy looks hesitant like he's expecting the worst.
It's an ingenious idea but I'm more than a bit skeptical.