Title: Design for ergonomics in the bicycle industry: an engineering design concept

Authors: Nicholas J. Emerson; Wayne Hall

Addresses: School of Product Design, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand; School of Engineering and Built Environment, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia ' School of Engineering and Built Environment, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia

Abstract: Bicycle manufacturing is an industry that has taken advantage of technological developments in materials and large-scale manufacturing for high-performance products. Higher-specification bicycles typically use fibre-reinforced composite frames that are optimised for structural performance and mass. Efforts have also been made to increase the comfort of a rider by increasing the vertical compliance of frames, but traditional fibre-reinforced composite moulding techniques restrict manufacturing flexibility in fitting frame geometry to match the requirements of an individual. Manufacturers typically subdivide their frames into sized-based grouping to reduce manufacturing, inventory and supply costs. For specific user fits, customised bicycles are produced, but only on a smaller scale. These improve comfort via improved geometric fit for the user, but typically do so at high cost, or by using sub-optimum material selections. In this paper, an innovative, segmented frame design concept is introduced to facilitate a design-for-ergonomics and mass-customisation approach in the high-volume, high-performance bicycle industry.

Keywords: product development; engineering design; bicycle; comfort; fit; design for ergonomics; mass customisation; sports and leisure industry.

DOI: 10.1504/IJPD.2021.115699

International Journal of Product Development, 2021 Vol.25 No.1, pp.1 - 10

Received: 22 May 2020
Accepted: 14 Dec 2020
Published online: 17 Jun 2021 *

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