The invention of Bicycles and its evolution | Invention matrix

Who is the inventor of the Bicycle? : Karl von Drais

When was the Bicycle invented? : In 1817s

Where was the Bicycle invented? : Germany

The bicycle is the most efficient means yet devised to convert human energy into mobility. A bicycle, also called a bike, two-wheeled steerable machine that is pedaled by the rider’s feet. On a standard bicycle, the wheels are mounted in line in a metal frame, with the front wheel held in a rotatable fork. The rider sits on a saddle and steers by leaning and turning handlebars that are attached to the fork. The feet turn pedals attached to cranks and a chain wheel. Power is transmitted by a loop of a chain connecting the chain wheel to a sprocket on the rear wheel.

In general, bicycles are widely used for transportation, recreation, and sport (cycling). Throughout the world, bicycles are essential for moving people and goods in areas where there are few automobiles. Globally, there are twice as many bicycles as automobiles, and they outsell automobiles three to one.

For some time now there has been a debate around whether Giacomo Caprotti (a student of Leonardo da Vinci) might have made a sketch of a bicycle-like device back in 1534. The authenticity of this evidence has been called into question by many prominent historians, but others attest to its validity.

There are many people (and even countries) that have claimed the invention of the bicycle, but the reality is that no one person can be credited. It took a combined effort over a couple centuries to bring us from “running machines” to bikes as we know them today.

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Draisiennes, hobby horses, and dandy horse (1817s) 

In 1815 the Tambora volcano in Indonesia erupted, starting a chain of events that led to the invention of the bicycle. The eruption was the largest in recorded history and dumped tons of ash into Earth's atmosphere. This caused the global temperature to drop and did terrible things to crops. Three years earlier, following some bad weather in 1812, the price of oats was climbing, and the German inventor Karl Drais ( 1785-1851 ) was looking for something to replace hungry horses. He designed a four-wheeled vehicle, powered by a servant sitting in the backpedaling, while the master steered from the front with a tiller. It did not catch on and Drais decided to focus instead on surveying equipment. After the 1815 volcanic eruption, even worse weather caused oat prices to climb higher still. The need for horseless transport was even more pressing, and so Drais tried again. He switched from four wheels to two and got rid of the pedals completely. What he invented in 1817 was called the draisine or the draisienne, depending on where you lived. The design was simple: a light wooden frame supported the rider between the wheels, the rider used his or her feet to push, and the machine could reach speeds of 12 miles per hour ( 19 kph ). The machine quickly became popular, despite being quite uncomfortable to ride, and was copied all over the world, but some of the cheaper imitations lacked brakes, making them particularly dangerous. After being banned from sidewalks as a hazard to pedestrians, they went out of fashion. But they led the way for the bicycles that would follow.

Treadler/Pedal-powered Velocipede (1839s)

The Velocipede was a two-wheeled bicycle that consists of a combination of a wooden frame with metal tires pedals and cranks on its front wheel. As it has a combination of a wooden frame with a metal tire that made for a very uncomfortable ride over a cobbled street. . In England, the velocipede earned the name of "bone-shaker" because of its rigid frame and iron-banded wheels that resulted in a "bone-shaking experience for riders."

In 1839s, there was a two-wheeled machine with rear treadle drives was built in southwestern Scotland by Kirkpatrick Macmillan, a blacksmith of Dumfriesshire. The rider’s feet swung treadles back and forth, moving a pair of rods connected to cranks on the rear wheels. But this invention was newer commercialized and has not contributed to the subsequent development of the Bicycle.  

During the late 1860s, the velocipede's renaissance began in Paris with the introduction of a wooden contraption with two steel wheels, pedals, and a fixed gear system. There is a question- who invented the first velocipede with pedals?  There is no conclusive evidence proving who conceived the idea of applying pedals to the front wheel or who actually did so because of conflicting claims for patent of the velocipede. A German man named Karl Kech claimed that he was the first to attach pedals to a hobby horse in 1862. But the first patent for such a device was granted not to Kech but to Pierre Lallement, a French carriage-maker who obtained a U.S. patent for a two-wheeled vehicle with crank pedals in 1866.

It used rotary cranks and pedals mounted to the front wheel hub. This made it easier for riders to drive the machine at speed. n 1864, before securing his vehicle's patent, Lallement exhibited his creation publicly, which may explain how Aime and Rene Olivier — two sons of a wealthy Parisian industrialist — learned of his invention and decided to create a velocipede of their own. Together with a classmate, Georges de la Bouglise, the young men enlisted Pierre Michaux, a blacksmith and carriage maker, to create the parts they needed for their invention.

Michaux and the Olivier brothers began marketing their velocipede with pedals in 1867, and the device was a hit. Because of disagreements over design and financial matters, the company that Michaux and the Oliviers founded together eventually dissolved, but the Olivier-owned Compagnie Parisienne lived on.

By 1870, cyclists were fed up with the lumbering bone-shaker design popularized by Michaux, and manufacturers responded with new designs. Also by 1870, metallurgy had advanced enough that bicycle frames could be made of metal, which was stronger and lighter than wood.

 

Penny-farting or High wheelers or Ordinary bicycle (1869s)

There was also a popular logical extension of velocipede called high wheel bicycle. Because of its size of tires, it was also given another name penny-farthing (A farthing was a British coin that was worth one-fourth of a penny.) A penny-farthing featured a smoother ride than its predecessor, due to its solid rubber tires and long spokes. Front wheels became larger and larger as manufacturers realized that the larger the wheel, the farther one could travel with one rotation of the pedals. A riding enthusiast could get a wheel as large as their legs were long.

The ordinary was inherently unsafe. Mounting and dismounting required skill, and the rider sat almost directly over the large front wheel. From that position, he could be pitched forward onto his head by road hazards. Also, the ordinary was slowed by reverse pressure on the pedals or by a lever-operated spoon brake, and severe braking or even hard back-pedaling could pitch the rider forward. Finally, the ordinary was expensive, so most riders were athletic young men from the upper and middle classes.

Modern Safety bicycle (1885s)

Most experts agree that the nineteenth century was the great era for the development of the bike. British cycle-maker John Kemp Starley ( 1855-1901 ) claimed the safety bicycle as his invention, first demonstrating it in 1885. Questions have been raised over Starley's right to this invention as other similar models appeared around the same time, but his version was undoubtedly the best. Starley's Rover Safety model featured spoked wheels of almost equal size, a diamond-type frame, J. H. Lawson's recent invention of the chain-drive ( which powered the rear wheel ), and an easily adjusted seat and handlebar. The word " safety " was used here for a reason. Previous bicycles were perilous contraptions, especially the penny-farthing ( developed by Starley's uncle, James Starley ) that immediately preceded the Rover. The penny-farthing's giant front wheel and tiny rear one made it a strange-looking device, with riders perched precariously a long way off the ground. The safety bike was a more sensible height and its design and weight distribution were far better balanced. The new bike featured tangentially spoked wheels one of James Starley's innovations - but hard rubber tires still made for an uncomfortable ride. When John Dunlop's pneumatic tires were incorporated, however, the safety bicycle became a massive hit. It was also less costly than its predecessors, allowing cycling to become a more widespread activity. Many refinements in the bicycle have since taken place, significantly with the advent of the mountain bike in California during the 1970s.