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New reinventing the wheel with built-in shock absorbers
Loopwheel - wheel springs i>
Reinvent the wheel or bicycle - so vain to think out what is already known. Can we really invent brand new wheel? British designer Sam Pearce believes that it is possible. He managed to make the wheel Loopwheel , absorbing shock and vibration, which can be used in bicycles and wheelchairs.
The idea came to the designer in 2007. Once on the street, he saw a typical pattern - a woman pushing a stroller with a child sitting in it. Wheelchair bumped wheel on the curb - and the child fell forward. And Pierce wondered - is it possible to integrate directly into the cushioning wheel? Made a sketch of a possible design, he put it on the back burner for a couple of years. According to him, at that moment he was weak, as it can be done, and ideas began to come to him gradually.
Two years later, when the idea of completely overpowered the inventor, he made the wheel of plywood, cut into strips watering hose and began experimenting. He soon came to the conclusion to be used as springs and durable at the same time flexible material that could withstand prolonged stress and strain. Engineer guessed seek help from Bowyer - these are the characteristics inherent in modern bows.
Together they picked carbon composite material that satisfied all the requirements for depreciation wheels. The resulting wheels can be used not only in cycling, but also in wheelchairs - many patients are very difficult to transfer vibrations and shocks when driving on uneven surfaces.
Attempts were made to amortize the wheel for a long time. The well-known wheel with a flexible steel spokes, invented in the 19th century, has some damping characteristics. In 2014, an Israeli startup SoftWheels announced the development of a wheel in which the spokes are used instead of three absorber under pressure - design is more complex and capricious than carbon spring. Now I could not find this wheel for sale, although his promised to release in late 2014 priced at $ 2,000 for a couple.
The Israeli SoftWheel i>
But it is already possible Loopwheel buy at the official site . Prices net of VAT start from £ 258 per wheel ($ 380 or 21,000 rubles at the exchange rate on April 9). There's also offers adapted for a bicycle forks and even bicycle assembly. If this is really good wheel absorbs shock, soon we will be able to see it spread along with a reduction in cost.
Source: geektimes.ru/post/248788/
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