Bicycle is one of vehicles for human transportation. Over their 150 year long life, bicycles have been used in wide variety of tasks. Talking about bicycle, there is various versions about history of bicycle. Bicycle4you.com will give you summarize about history of the bicycle from various source.
Earliest unverifiable history
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The celerifere - one of the earliest bike prototypes - had no pedals or steering. Library of Congress |
The first contraption that can realistically be said resembles a bicycle was constructed around 1790 by Comte Mede de Sivrac of France. Called a celerifere, it was a wooden scooter-like device with no pedals or steering. A similar model, improved with a steering mechanism attached to the front wheel, was created in 1816 by German Baron Karl von Drais de Sauerbrun. He called it a Draisienne, after himself, though popular parlance also dubbed it the hobby horse.
When using either of these devices, the rider perched on a seat between two wheels similarly sized wheels, and using the feet, propelled the bicycle a bit like a scooter. Drais exhibited his bicycle in Paris in 1818, and while popularly received, its design limited its use to really just flat, well-groomed paths through gardens and parks, which were off-limits to a good portion of the population in those days.
The Walking Machine
In 1817 Baron von Drais invented a walking machine that would help him get around the royal gardens faster: two same-size in-line wheels, the front one steerable, mounted in a frame which you straddled. The device was propelled by pushing your feet against the ground, thus rolling yourself and the device forward in a sort of gliding walk. The machine became known as the Draisienne or hobby horse. It was made entirely of wood. This enjoyed a short lived popularity as a fad, not being practical for transportation in any other place than a well maintained pathway such as in a park or garden.
The MacMillan Velocipede
This two-wheeled vehicle was designed by Kirkpatrick MacMillan, a Scottish blacksmith. It was the first of its kind that allowed people to ride without touching their feet to the ground. Macmillan's contraption had a wood frame and iron-rimmed wooden wheels. The front wheel, which provided limited steering measured 30 inches (760 mm) in diameter, while the back had a 40 inch (1016 mm) wheel and was attached to pedals via connecting rods. In total, Macmillan's bike weighed 57 lb (26 kg). His creation gathered a lot of attention, and Macmillan helped generate additional publicity when he rode the bike 68 miles to visit his brothers in Glasgow. Copies of his invention produced by other firms soon appeared on the market, and Macmillan saw little profit from his innovation.
In 1860, Michaux Velocipede Designed by France's Pierre Michaux who was involved in the repair of horse carriages and the manufacture of baby carriages and tricycles. He came up with his design when a customer brought a Draisienne in for repairs. After his son tried riding it and had difficulties with his feet on downhill roads, Michaux came up with the idea of connecting crank arms and pedals directly to the front wheel as a means of propulsion.
The High Wheel Bicycle
In 1870 the first all metal machine appeared. (Previous to this metallurgy was not advanced enough to provide metal which was strong enough to make small, light parts out of.) The pedals were still atttached directly to the front wheel with no freewheeling mechanism. Solid rubber tires and the long spokes of the large front wheel provided a much smoother ride than its predecessor. The front wheels became larger and larger as makers realized that the larger the wheel, the farther you could travel with one rotation of the pedals. You would purchase a wheel as large as your leg length would allow. This machine was the first one to be called a bicycle ("two wheel"). These bicycles enjoyed a great popularity among young men of means (they cost an average worker six month's pay), with the hey-day being the decade of the 1880s.
Because the rider sat so high above the center of gravity, if the front wheel was stopped by a stone or rut in the road, or the sudden emergence of a dog, the entire apparatus rotated forward on its front axle, and the rider, with his legs trapped under the handlebars, was dropped unceremoniously on his head. Thus the term "taking a header" came into being.
When using either of these devices, the rider perched on a seat between two wheels similarly sized wheels, and using the feet, propelled the bicycle a bit like a scooter. Drais exhibited his bicycle in Paris in 1818, and while popularly received, its design limited its use to really just flat, well-groomed paths through gardens and parks, which were off-limits to a good portion of the population in those days.
The Walking Machine
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| Draisienne (Hobby Horse) |
The MacMillan Velocipede
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| MacMillan Velocipede |
The world's first mass-produced riding machine
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| Boneshaker |
The High Wheel Bicycle
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| High-wheel bicycle |
Safety Bicycle - A Major Advancement in Design
The development of the safety bicycle was arguably the most important change in the history of the bicycle. It shifted their use and public perception from being a dangerous toy for sporting young men to being an everyday transport tool for men and, crucially, women of all ages.
The next stage of bicycle development came with the creation of the safety bicycle, which transformed the bicycle from a dangerous contraption limited to the realm of reckless young men to a reliable and comfortable device that could be safely used by people of all ages for everyday transportation.
Recognizing the design limitations of the high-wheeler bicycles, tinkerers continually looked for ways to improve the bike's basic form. A major breakthrough came in 1885 with John Kemp Starley's the creation of (or maybe "return to" is more accurate) a bike design that featured a rider perched much lower between two wheels of the same size, coupled with a sprocket and chain system that drove the bike from the rear wheel. This was the same basic "diamond frame" design still in use in today's bikes.
When Starley's new design was coupled with inflated rubber tires that ended the jolting and painful ride inflicted on cyclists when hard rubber tires were the norm, suddenly cycling was safe and fun again. Plus, the price of bicycles were dropping continually as manufacturing methods improved.
All these factors combined to create the golden age of cycling. People rode them for practical means and for leisure. It was transportation and recreation all wrapped up in one package. The number and influence of cycling grew so rapidly in the 1880s and 1890s that they formed groups like the League of American Wheelman (now called the League of American Bicyclists), to lobby for better roads in the days before automobiles were common.
Technological Innovations in Bikes in the 20th Century
Over the years, bicycle design, materials, components and manufacturing processes have improved to create bikes of today, increasingly sophisticated and efficient machines. And while the basic frame design has stayed the same for over a hundred years, the use of space age material like titanium and carbon fiber have created bikes far lighter and stronger than creators of the early iron and wooden models could ever have imagined.
Other innovations like shifters and derailleurs allow riders to work themselves through a range of gears that allow bikes to go far faster as well as to climb much steeper hills than a single speed bike would ever have allowed.
Bike styles have morphed too, to allow the incorporation of design features that specifically enhance and embrace one particular style of riding to the exclusion of others. This specialization means that you can go into any given bike shop and select from mountain bikes, road bikes, hybrids, cruisers, tandems, recumbents, and more, all based on where and how you plan to ride.
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| Safety bicycle |
When Starley's new design was coupled with inflated rubber tires that ended the jolting and painful ride inflicted on cyclists when hard rubber tires were the norm, suddenly cycling was safe and fun again. Plus, the price of bicycles were dropping continually as manufacturing methods improved.
All these factors combined to create the golden age of cycling. People rode them for practical means and for leisure. It was transportation and recreation all wrapped up in one package. The number and influence of cycling grew so rapidly in the 1880s and 1890s that they formed groups like the League of American Wheelman (now called the League of American Bicyclists), to lobby for better roads in the days before automobiles were common.
Technological Innovations in Bikes in the 20th Century
Over the years, bicycle design, materials, components and manufacturing processes have improved to create bikes of today, increasingly sophisticated and efficient machines. And while the basic frame design has stayed the same for over a hundred years, the use of space age material like titanium and carbon fiber have created bikes far lighter and stronger than creators of the early iron and wooden models could ever have imagined.
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| Superlight bicycle |
Bike styles have morphed too, to allow the incorporation of design features that specifically enhance and embrace one particular style of riding to the exclusion of others. This specialization means that you can go into any given bike shop and select from mountain bikes, road bikes, hybrids, cruisers, tandems, recumbents, and more, all based on where and how you plan to ride.
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| It's All About Bicycle |
Source :
- http://bicycling.about.com
- http://cycle-info.bpaj.or.jp
- http://www.pedalinghistory.com/PHhistory.html
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_bicycle
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