RD GCE Portfolio: The White Lightning Bike.

In the first STEAM class of my junior year, Design and Engineering, we looked into all the different concepts that go into making a tool, and how people brought all these different ideas together to make something way better. In the second unit of this course, which is called Farther, the class looked into the history of the wheel and how gears work. We also studied how big of a deal the invention of the wheel was, because it helped with so many situations. For the action project, the class was assigned to come up with ways of improving a bike for a specific person and make a real model. The bike was a really big part of this unit, as we learned about the many different ways a bike comes in handy. My partner and I decided to go for a more modern design for our bike because the person we are designing for is pretty young. I honestly didn't know much about bikes, so this project was a bit challenging for me, but with the help of my partner and teacher I was able to get through that. I am proud of how my partner and I communicated throughout this project and how we would be there whenever one of us was having a hard time with any part. Thanks to this unit, I at least know a little bit more about bikes, and I also realized how important they really are. I hope you enjoy reading about The White Lighting below!

As I stated before, in this unit we learned about the wheel, and specifically how the wheel brought us to the bicycle. I first needed to do research on bikes before I started to work on my design because I wanted to know what was already out there and what wasn't. After all that work was done, I felt confident diving into this project.

The name of the user I got is Peter: he's 18, lives in Hyde Park and travels 11.5 miles going to school using the Lakefront bike path. Peter wants his bike to be fast, as well as comfortable because he has been having some issues with his back. Along with that, he struggles with carrying his backpack because it's too heavy, and he also has a hard time with his arms and legs because they get too tired quickly. Peter is also nervous about the security with his bike, because he has had past experiences of people stealing parts

As my partner and I were reading Peter's needs, we made sure to focus on the idea of comfort, especially because of his back and we also realized how far he has to travel. We don't want him to be hunched over, so we added a very comfortable seat with a padded back, but it still has the shape of a normal bike seat. That way it doesn't mess with him while pedaling his bike. We also added a retractable basket in the back, so he can put his heavy book bag in it. We figured Peter might be riding his bike late at night so we added some small LED lights on both of his wheels, so he can be very noticeable. His wheels would also be a mix between wheels you could find on a mountain bike and wheels you could find on a road bike. When it came to security we added a high tech ID handlebar that identifies you when you put your hands on the bar, and only if you're listed as one of the people that can ride the bike, the bike will be able to move. The bike also includes an attachable GPS. The whole bike is made out of carbon and the seat is made out of super soft foam, so it can weigh less and also be comfortable.

The benefit of this bike is that it gives people the reassurance that their bike is safe from thieves and that they don't have to worry about being uncomfortable while biking, because that is unacceptable. If you want a smooth, comfortable, and safe bike, then you need The White Lightning. My partner and I know the struggles of having to travel a large distance to and from a place everyday, and how hard it can be when our own bodies can’t really handle it all.

The White Lightning has tires with a diameter of 26 in. To find the circumference of this, I multiplied that by pi (3.14), which came out to be 81.62 in. Peter travels 11.5 miles to get to GCE, and Google maps estimated that it would take him 59 minutes if he rode on the Lakefront bike path. To find his average speed I divided the 11.5 miles by the product of the 59 minutes and 60, which came out to be .19 miles per minute or 11.69 miles per hour, which converts to 5.2 meters per second. Going off the circumference, my wheel has to rotate 8927.2 times in order to cover his 11.5 mile journey.

Peter is focused on speed so when it comes to gears, he has to get a big cog in the front and a smaller one in the back. I understood this well, because as I was interviewing my uncle, he mentioned that “younger people look for the faster bikes”. In terms of gear ratio, we could say the biggest gear has 53 teeth and the small gear has 13, so the gear ratio would be 13:53

Peter would have more kinetic energy when he is going down a hill, because that is when the most of the energy is being used. He demonstrates potential energy when he is stopped at top of a hill because his energy is not being used yet.

Our wheel is 26 in, but our model wheel is 2.36 in, so the scale would be 26/2.36 or 11:1.