Tjeerd Veenhoven’s carbon bike

There has been a lot of discussion in the last month or so about equipment sponsor changes for pro teams in 2011. Obviously those discussions are centered on flagship carbon fiber road bikes from companies like Cervelo, Specialized, Scott, and Trek. The high-tech bikes that are raced at the pro level these days go through countless hours of design, engineering, and testing before they show up at races during the season. I think that it is safe to say that engineering and technology are at a high point in the bicycle industry right now.

Dutch designer Tjeerd Veenhoven’s carbon bike is quite a bit different than the ones we are used to seeing though. He intentionally takes low-tech, sustainable approach to composite frame construction with his ‘carbon bike’ design, where the strands of carbon fiber are wrapped around parts in a jig. Tjeerd explains his approach on his blog:

“This bike is made by mounting parts of a bike into a jig and running carbon wires drenched in epoxy resin between them. After a while the resin sets and the parts are united again. This all in an attempt to come up with new forms and shapes. Carbon in itself is not a very complicated material; often it is the weave that makes it high tech. Many of these weaves are used in high tech products, to provide a better strength to weight ratio. Of course this brings much joy to engineers and provides consumers with many more options. However in this case the carbon is not intended as a high tech material, but more as a material that is easy to apply giving more freedom to create. Nevertheless, the carbon has some very specific qualities that need to be considered while using. In this frame you can see that where pressure is applied the carbon is denser. In the parts where there is a lot of pulling the carbon is used thinly because that is the true quality of carbon, it can handle tensile strength really well. Mind the beautiful muscle-like structures that surround the rear axle, and the way the seat is integrated in the frame.”

Also on his blog, check out Tjeed’s design for a handlebar mounted fan to charge an iPhone. It is a pretty interesting idea that it sounds like he plans to continue developing.

Read more about Veenhoven’s carbon bike and iFan at designboom.

Posted

December 9, 2010

Concept

James

Tags:

carbon fiber, composite, recycling

Comments

7 responses to “Tjeerd Veenhoven’s carbon bike”

Tweets that mention Tjeerd Veenhoven’s low tech carbon fiber bike | Bicycle Design — Topsy.com

December 9, 2010

[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by James@BicycleDesign and Wally Alief, Cycle Blogs. Cycle Blogs said: Bicycle Design: Tjeerd Veenhoven’s carbon bike: There has been a lot of discussion in the last month or … http://bit.ly/eRP6cR […]

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Richard Masoner

December 9, 2010

Craig Calfee built up a string bike something like this as well.

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Impossibly Stupid

December 9, 2010

That is a strangely cool look for a bike it have. Paint it red and it would look like muscles!

But the fan is seriously dumb. Not very high in efficiency, not very high in power. You’d be a lot better off with a modern 3W dynamo or, better, a generator hub. And I’ve long thought that bikes these days should all be designed with a standardized electrical system. It’s silly that everything strapped to my bike requires it’s own separate battery.

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1. Richard Masoner
  
  December 9, 2010
  
  I’ve dreamed about a standardized electrical system with standard plugs as well.
  
  The iFan is supposed to be used in natural wind — the bike option is just a handy bonus. In other words, if you have a wind dynamo anyway, why not make it bike usable as well?
  
  Reply
  1. Impossibly Stupid
    
    December 9, 2010
    
    Because it is next to worthless; nobody should have one in the first place! Show me the generation stats on something that small. It probably doesn’t even put out 1/10th of what the smallest bike dynamo does. A much better case could be made for putting propellers on a bike wheel to get a natural wind generator! 🙂
    
    Reply
Ross Nicholson

December 10, 2010

While we are waiting for a standardized electrical system for bicycles, I do not understand why wires are not laid in carbon fiber to power lights and turn signals. Silver wire would be best conductivity to weight, but plain old copper would serve nicely.

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padd

February 6, 2011

i like the corbon concept bike, but WHY did Tjeerd mount the coasterbrake reactionplate on a compression member????? He actually mentions on his blog that tension is the way to use non woven carbon.

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