Rear Wheel Drive Recumbent Bicycle for Urban Transportation in a Tropical Emerging Country

Abstract

Bicycle for urban transportation in emerging countries still relies on "upright" bicycle which is unchanged since the 20th century. In a tropical emerging country such as Indonesia, a bicycle must be ergonomically designed because it may be used in a long run. On the other hand, bicycle rider may face various traffic conditions. Additionally, weather makes trip become heavy and takes a lot of energy. This research aims to develop and test a new bicycle concept for an urban transportation in the tropical emerging country. A multi-criteria decision method was used to select a right bicycle concept. Then the concept was detailed into a bicycle design. We used biomechanics model and simulated finite element method to verify its frame strength. After the design verified, we built a full bicycle prototype and compare it with a commercially available urban bicycle with equal specifications. The comparison tests include physiological tests and a subjective test for several terrain and traffic conditions. The new concept is an ergonomic bicycle based on rear wheel drive recumbent bike. Based on the overall test result, it can be concluded that the new bicycle concept is promising and still appropriate for the next development.