cyclomerisation



During January 2002, Saul Griffith and I taught a bike design and building class called Cyclomerisation.  The idea was to create a set of common parts that could be assembled into a bicycle, tricycle, tandem bicycle, and whatever else you could imagine.  We used 8020 extruded aluminum modular framing for structural elements, and fabricated miscellaneous connectors from aluminum plate on an abrasive jet machining center.

Using leftover material from recent lab construction, Saul and I built the first prototype bicycle and tricycle.  After a bit of brainstorming we decided that the best way to see how far we could take this would be to teach a small group of people bicycle design, computer aided design, and enough manufacturing for them to make bikes of their own design.

 









Even though it took several 16 hour days and quite a bit of swimming in the waterjet tank to retrieve lost parts (see left), the class was an overwhelming success. Twelve people, many of whom had never used a CAD program or even cut metal before, were able to design and build their own bikes.  In an unexpected bonus, the brainstorming sessions and intensive immersion required to teach this class helped me come up with some great new ideas and I built my ice proa immediately afterwards.


This IAP (2003)  I am reuniting with my partner in crime to teach a class on kite building!