Folding furniture is a common sight in urban households across the globe. Given the dearth of space and also a will to live in openness has inspired technology to add a folding dimension into almost all conceivable items. The latest addition to this folding portfolio is that of folding bikes. Some of you would never want to lose sight of your beloved bike, others would not have safe parking space and yet others might want to carry it whereever they go, like a suitcase. For all these uses and more, check out the following bike innovations.
1. One – Folding bike by Thomas Owen
A 21st century bike, ‘One’ designed by Thomas Owen comes loaded with convenient features of folding the bike into a compact case and offering a good ride. It can be used for as a riding bike on the streets and exercising. It is highly recommended for people who aspire to economize on both cost and also want their dear bike to be eco-friendly. One is a futuristic product which is an easy solution to city traffic and congestion. Also, it can be folded and kept inside the house, saving the hassle of parking.
2. The Locust Bike
Josef Cadek developed the Locust bike and designed it to fold up in a unique way. The two wheels of the bike have safety lock nuts and when these are released, the wheels can rotate on their axis and can be fitted inside the round frame. The handlebars too have safety lock nuts attached to the head set and when released the handlebar too can be folded. The breaks do not hamper the folding process of the bike as it has a disc break in the front portion and a clamshell break in the hind side. Not only is the bike suitable for domestic purpose or short street rides, but can be effectively used at airports, industrial areas or even city centers for quicker communication.
3. Cannondale Bike
Dutchman Philippe Holthuizen and Spaniard Rodrigo Clavel of the Elisava Design School in Barcelona were hired by Cannondale to design a bike that would appeal to the urban bike rider aged between 25-30 years. The main highlights of this bike are – it can be folded and easily carried on elevators with a hydraulic driving system that makes it light and easy to carry anywhere. The bike can be folded through 180 degree with the help of a central twisting tube.
4. Recumbent Folder concept
The Recumbent concept bike is a folding bike without aesthetics or design. The creator of the bike wanted to develop a Human Powered Vehicle that could be folded and kept in any little dump place anywhere. Recumbent folders are made of chain lines that are difficult to fold. In a folding bike, the tires need to overlap each other but the chains made this task manually difficult to carry out. To solve this, hinges are offset to allow the tires to slide and fold under. The folding of the seat and handlebars is yet to be reviewed.
5. The Briefcase Bike
An Israeli designer, Gosha Galitsky, from the Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem, developed the Briefcase bike. The foundation of folding bikes is that they are easy to carry anywhere you want. This demands that the bike has to be light weight and compact. The designer of the Briefcase Bike analogized the bike carrying concept with luggage carrying concept and designed and fitted a briefcase in the frame of the bike. The components of the bike can be dismantled and placed in the briefcase and pulled around like a trolley suitcase with a handle fitted at the top left corner of the suitcase.
6. The Suitcase Bike
The basic mechanism of the suitcase bike is similar to the Briefcase bike. Not only are their names synonyms but their features too are similar i.e. the components of this bike too can be put into the suitcase and the suitcase can be pulled around with the help of wheels. But one differentiating factor is that this version of the bike will come into production soon and will be available in the market unlike other similar models. It will cost around $400.
7. Celerity Bike
Developing the right design for a folding bike is imperative because it is the design that will eventually render it foldable and easy to carry around. Designers try their best to create parts and components that will easily fold up using hinges and nut locks. The designers of the Celerity bike do use all these for their models, but they ensure that each part itself is sleeker and occupies even lesser space. It uses smaller tires, sleeker body frame, and stretchable rubbers to allow easy folding.
