{"id":22987,"date":"2014-08-21T07:30:48","date_gmt":"2014-08-21T11:30:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/?p=22987"},"modified":"2014-08-19T11:02:38","modified_gmt":"2014-08-19T15:02:38","slug":"researchers-unveil-the-science-behind-riding-a-bike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/2014\/08\/researchers-unveil-the-science-behind-riding-a-bike.html","title":{"rendered":"Researchers Unveil the Science Behind Riding a Bike"},"content":{"rendered":"

We\u2019ve all heard the expression \u201cit\u2019s like riding a bike?\u201d It typically implies something that is a learned task that once mastered, you never forget how to do.\u00a0 We all initially struggled as kids to learn the proper ratio of speed and balance required to remain upright when trying to ride a bike for the first time. There were probably a few spills and tears in the process, but eventually we all mastered the art of riding a bike.<\/p>\n

Turns out, however, that riding a bike is more science than art. Researchers from the U.S., Holland, and England took more than three years to arrive at a mathematical formula to explain riding a bike so don\u2019t feel bad if you took a few weeks\u2014and a few spills\u2014to learn how to ride yourself. The formula reveals the complex forces at work that cyclists\u2014even as relatively young children\u2014seem to master instinctively.<\/p>\n

\"bike\"<\/p>\n

Riding a bike more science than art<\/strong><\/p>\n

In simple terms, the phenomenally complex equation can be explained as: inertia forces + gyroscopic forces + the effects of gravity and centrifugal forces = the leaning of the body and the torque applied to the handlebars of a bike. In other words, if you do not pedal fast enough to keep moving while keeping the bike straight, you\u2019ll fall over. Warning: do not try to explain this to your risk-adverse four-year-old before he or she embarks on their maiden voyage on their bike.<\/p>\n

Dr. Arend Schwab of Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, one of the study’s key researchers, developed the equation and explained how it solves a question that is as old as bicycles themselves. \u201cPeople more than a hundred years ago were trying to figure out why a two-wheeled bicycle, given forward momentum, like a push, would seem to balance by itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

He explains how the results of this research hold the potential to improve bike design in the future. “Using our equation, we can simulate the motion of a bike and predict whether it will remain stable or not under certain conditions \u2013 including if it goes over a bump, or is hit by a gust of wind,” says Schwab. \u201cThis equation is aimed at enabling a bike designer to change certain features and to see the overall finished effect on the bike without having to actually manufacture it first.”<\/p>\n

For example, if an engineer were designing a folding bike with smaller wheels, or one with a shorter wheelbase, this equation would enable him to interpret how design changes will affect the stability and behavior of the bike.<\/p>\n

However, riding stability doesn\u2019t only come from bike geometry plus human input. The Gyrowheel, a gyroscope within a wheel that its manufacturers claim is self-righting, is now commercially available. This technology also appears in the new, electrically powered Honda U3-X\u2014a micro-wheeled device that claims to allow movement in any direction using only the body\u2019s sense of balance. Check out this video<\/a><\/strong> to see it in action. You can read more about Delft University of Technology’s bicycle dynamics study here<\/a><\/strong>. Also, check out this \u201cRide to Success\u201d infographic<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0 to get a step-by-step look at the advantages of designing bikes in 3D versus 2D.<\/p>\n

\"bike2\"<\/a><\/p>\n

University\u2019s students use SOLIDWORKS to design class projects<\/strong><\/p>\n

Delft University\u2019s Industrial Design and Mechanical Engineering departments have used SOLIDWORKS Education Edition and Simulation software since 2009. Since then the University has implemented over 6,000 licenses of the software, which is being used by students to design class projects.<\/p>\n

University professors are also using integrated SOLIDWORKS Simulation tools to introduce students to analysis concepts sooner than in the past. \u201cThe moment that we switched to SOLIDWORKS, we began exploring the possibilities for integrating SOLIDWORKS Simulation in the curriculum,\u201d says Anton van Beek, professor of Mechanical Design in the University\u2019s Department of Precision and Microsystems Engineering.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe successfully introduced Simulation during first-year courses at the same time that we introduced SOLIDWORKS. \u201cWhen students have the opportunity to compare the analytically derived stresses and strains with results obtained using SolidWorks Simulation, they learn more autonomously,\u201d says van Beek. \u201cThe certification programs offered by SolidWorks for design and simulation are also a great advantage in helping students build their curriculum vitae for entry into the real engineering world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SW2D3DMarqueeJune\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We\u2019ve all heard the expression \u201cit\u2019s like riding a bike?\u201d It typically implies something that is a learned task that once mastered, you never forget how to do.\u00a0 We all initially struggled as kids to learn the proper ratio of<\/p>\n... Continued<\/a>","protected":false},"author":174,"featured_media":22989,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26,14,18],"tags":[1489,211,1572,804,1570,1571],"class_list":["post-22987","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-customer-stories","category-design","category-solidworks","tag-3d-for-2d","tag-bicycle","tag-bike","tag-bike-design","tag-delft-university","tag-infographic"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22987","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/174"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22987"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22987\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22987"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22987"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22987"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}