According to Ligfiets.net and the linkedin page, the number of registrants for the 7th Velomobile Seminar has not met expectations and as a result the costs of a 2 day venue can not be met. The conference has therefore been shortened by one day. Obviously this will be disappointing to many. The dates are now Friday 7th and Saturday the 8th. A detailed program of the papers to be presented on Friday is now available together with more detail for the activities on Saturday.
As reported on Wim Schermer’s blog the K_Drive elliptical crank system is to be made available by Alligt, the manufacturer of the Alleweder and Sunrider family of velomobiles. Alligt intends to present the new drive at the 7th international Velomobile Seminar in a few weeks time.
Like many, if not all, modern innovations in cycle technology the K-Drive can be traced back to the period of intense creativity in the late 1800s. The modern form was developed by Miles Kingsbury and successfully used on the Kingcycle but the mechanism itself appears to have been first described in 1890.
The renewed interest, which has lead Alligt to start production, came from the University of Delft’s current attempt on the Human Powered Land Speed Record with their VeloX 2 HPV. To optimize aerodynamics the Human Power Team’s research and experience with VeloX 1, lead them to conclude that the way forward is to significantly reduce the frontal cross section of the nose. However the size of this section is determined largely by the swept volume required for the cranks, pedals and feet of the rider. It therefore became necessary to develop a transmission that could reduce the vertical dimension of this volume. Patrick Fenner of Deferred Procrastination calculates this reduction to be of the order of 45%. His post on the K-Drive gives a good overview and also includes a demonstration video of the Human Power Team’s drive in motion. Of course the proof of the pudding will be in the eating with 26 days to go till the test at Battle Mountain.
Alligt already produce a nice collection of specialist parts for recumbents and velomobiles and this should prove useful home builders and potentially commercial manufactures who are looking to emulate the approach of the Human Power Team and VeloX 2.
There are a number of events of both cycling and velomobile interest in the next few weeks. Of particular interest this year is the 7th International Velomobile Seminar to be held in Dronten in the Netherlands. Velomobiles.co.uk is pleased to announce that we are registered to attend and expect to be able to report on all aspects.
Dronten is home to 3 of the 4 principal Dutch Velomobile Manufacturers, Velomobiel, Alligt and Flevobike, so the location makes perfect sence. The venue is De Meerpaal, a large event and conference centre, which is located in the centre of Dronten, not far from the town bus station.
The seminars have been held periodically since 1993 and serve to bring together manufacturers, users, policy makers and any one else with in interest in human powered transport and velomobiles in particular. The purpose being to share knowledge and best practice in both technical aspects and also social acceptance of the velomobile concept.
| Number | Location | Year |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Copenhagen, DK | 1993 |
| 2nd | Laupen Castle, CH | 1994 |
| 3rd | Roskilde, DK | 1998 |
| 4th | Intelaken, CH | 1999 |
| 5th | Gemersheim, DE | 2004 |
| 6th | Copenhagen, DK | 2009 |
| 7th | Dronten, NL | 2012 |
This year’s event builds on previous seminars with two days of papers and presentations followed by a social gathering, at which there will be an attempt to break the Guinness World Record of the number of velomobiles gathered in one place. According to the provisional schedule Day 1 (6th September) focuses on the social and environmental aspects, particularly the World Class Dutch Infrastructure. Day 2 (7th September) is dedicated to technical presentations. Day 3 (8th September) hosts the record attempt and a velomobile tour.
Along side the seminar there will be an exhibition space both for the trade and enthusiasts with home builders welcome to exhibit their creations.
Registration for the event is not difficult, though it is a bit convoluted. You must first register an identity on the Dutch HPV Association website ligtfiets.net, which then allows you to subscribe on the event pages for either the seminar or the social gathering. Of course you are welcome to register for both! Payment details are then emailed to you. Preferred payment is by bank transfer and it was here that I had some difficulty, as my UK bank was requesting more information than was available in the registration email. Since it is Velomobiel that are providing the payment service for seminar registration, I was able to communicate with Ymte Sijbrandij directly, and complete my payment via Paypal.
So check back here on the 6th, 7th & 8th of September for our view from the centre of the velomobile world.
Well I have been occupied doing other things for the past few weeks. Some related to velomobiles and some not related, and consequently, I have some catching up to do. An update to the blog is long overdue! Mid-summer is a quiet period news-wise but, none the less, there are some items that have been reported elsewhere, which I expect to comment on shortly.
More generally the current Olympic fever and the achievements of team GB in the cycling events is serving to heighten the British public interest in cycling generally, both for practical transport as well as for sport. Anything which helps improve the status of transport cycling can only be a good thing. Looking beyond the olympics the question of what to spend the Olympic Legacy on has been raised. Bike Biz reported that the BBC radio 4 program You and Yours was asking this question of it’s listeners. Bike Biz were strongly advocating it be spent on quality cycle infrastructure a-la the Dutch model. This has been essentially seconded by SUSTRANS who are calling for investment to encourage cycling to school. A view with which we heartily concur.
There would also seem to be some increase not only in the profile but also in political support for the installation of better cycle infrastructure. The Times’ #cyclesafe campaign together with a high profile fatality connected with the London Olympic venue has served to raise public awareness, and political support, for serious improvement. Regrettably in the reporting of the fatality there were distracting comments about “wearing helmets,” raised by UK champion Bradley Wiggins and seconded by several shrill voices. The debate on helmet wearing and compulsion is largely removed from the world of rational scientific enquiry; and completely misses the point of how a 70 kg human and their 20 kg bike is able to stand up to a vehicle with a mass from 800 kg to upward of 3000 Kg. It should be obvious that these fatal “accidents” usually involve forces, and levels of energy, far exceeding that which a cycle helmet is capable of absorbing. Indeed, it was the writer’s own experience that, a healthy human skull is perfectly capable of exceeding the rather limited performance required of cycle helmets*. (If it helps, consider how easy it is to break a cycle helmet with your arms versus breaking a human skull!) I might write a post describing my own experience in detail, together with my observations, on the limited value and potential risks, of helmet wearing in everyday cycling, at some other time. I also intend to write a post about the protective benefit provided by a velomobile body when involved in a collision.
Continuing the theme of infrastructure, I had the opportunity to attend my local government Cycle-Forum, which I found very interesting. The Forum meets quarterly and serves to try and coordinate efforts to promote cycling and invest in better cycle provision locally. A promising activity which needs support, and can only get better, with consequent beneficial results for all pedal powered transport.
However I will return to velomobiles with my next post.
* Vertical impact at 11-15 mph assumed to be equivalent to falling over from a stationary bike and landing on your head. See the section on Standards on cyclehelmets.org