Dominic Hargreaves, the inventor, said that owning a bike as a student saved him from forking out on public transport everyday.
The inspiration for the aptly-named ‘Contortionist’ came when he found that folding bikes always seemed to be too much of a compromise over the traditional bike and just not small enough when folded.
“The design was developed to have to the aesthetics and feel of a traditional bike that was desirable and most importantly doesn’t just rely on the fact that it folds,” says Dominic who created the bike for his MA final show at the Royal College of Art in London. “The starting point for my folding mechanism was that it is very important that the bike cannot fold up on the user when they are riding even if the quick release comes loose.
“The bike frame rolls up around the centre of the wheels in to a compact form allowing it to be carried easily on to the tube, buses and taxis. Once it is opened up, it becomes a full-sized bike for London roads and mountain bike trails.”
The invention is part of a shortlist for the James Dyson award that celebrates, encourages and inspires the next generation of design engineers. It’s run by the James Dyson Foundation as part of its mission to inspire young people about design engineering.
The international award is open to product design, industrial design and engineering university students and post-graduates who have been out of school for less than three years.
The top prize-winner, to be announced in September, will receive £10,000 in cash, a trophy and inclusion in the James Dyson Foundation’s publicity campaign. An additional £10,000 will also go to the student’s university design engineering department.
Other entries that made it to the shortlist include an electric-free automatic door, a jacket that harvests energy to power light, a low-energy cooling system and a DIY manufacturing machine.
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