Recumbent Motorcycle?

[Thanantos]

This is a concept put together by the brother of a guy I went to HS with.

Any of you engineers know how a two wheeled steering motorcycle would work?

Watch the video....it's interesting if nothing else.

http://www.matus1976.com/akira_bike/index.html

[Contevita]

Some Japanese guy already did this. I think it was based on a scooter, though.

Found one of many links...

http://www.geekologie.com/2012/04/th...-akira-bik.php

[abnslr]

Had your friend just watched Akira when he designed it?

[Bill Harris]

OMG, it's not just an on-paper rendering--he's doing it. Best of luck.

Not familiar with the film, so I edumacated m'self:

Akira is a 1988 Japanese animated cyberpunk action film directed by Katsuhiro Otomo...

A secret military project endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a biker gang member into a rampaging psionic psychopath that only two kids and a group...

Seems to be an anime cult classic. May be worth digging up.

--Bill

[Thanantos]

Originally Posted by abnslr

Had your friend just watched Akira when he designed it?

That's the name of the project so I am sure it had a significant influence.

[itsatdm]

Dan Guerney was way ahead of you,http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPMjZCvIN3c

Don't tell me you don't know who Dan Guerney is: http://allamericanracers.com/alligat...n-gurney-post/

[Thanantos]

Originally Posted by itsatdm

Dan Guerney was way ahead of you,http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPMjZCvIN3c

Don't tell me you don't know who Dan Guerney is: http://allamericanracers.com/alligat...n-gurney-post/

Nope, never heard of him. I'm not much into racing.

That's about the general idea though.

[abnslr]

Originally Posted by Thanantos

That's the name of the project so I am sure it had a significant influence.

Yeah, that's what I get for just looking at the picture instead of actually paying attention to the post...
Nevermind, carry on then!

[vortexau]

Two different subjects-
for Two Wheel Steering try the 2x2x2

. . . thats for Two-Wheel-Drive, Two-Wheel-Steer, Two-Wheeled-Bike!







Now, as to recumbent-form motorcycles try the British style of FFTs:

Starting with the Reliant-engined Quasar, various custom builders in the UK were inspired to try to produce their own low-down Foot-Forward (Tourer)-style motorcycle.



Wikipedia- Quasar (motorcycle)

Malcolm Newell met Ken Leaman while on holiday in Scotland, and the two combined forces to design and build the first Quasar prototype.
The first production Quasar was sold in December 1976, having been built by Ken and Malcolm at Wilson Brothers of Bristol, where Ken was employed full time. Wilson kept the rights to the machine, although Ken did all the work on it in his own time.
Though they had launched a publicity campaign to gain interest in the bike, even after they began to receive inquiries Wilson Brothers did not provide enough funds for production to meet demand. Between December 1976 and October 1979, they only produced a total of six vehicles.

Creasey-Difazio CX500 Flying Banana (1981)



Read This First - Introduction to FF two-wheelers

Benefits?

We were attempting to put our finger on the extraordinary performance of the Quasars we'd just taken to that years 'TT week' in the Isle of Man. What we'd observed, from these recent experiences, was that the seat height, and hence CG, had a transforming effect on handling when it got low enough. It didn't happen at 28 inches, the seat height of my own Velocette Venom. That was a fine handling motorcycle, but nothing else. It didn't happen on Chris' chop at 23 inches. But it did happen, unambiguously, on the 15" Quasar seat base.
So we chose 20 inches as the point at which the transforming effect could be expected to become detectable.
What is this transforming effect? Easy. Get a PTW into a fast turn and get some power onto it. Then change direction to an equal turn the other way. Do this as quickly as possible - put some real effort into the steering. But don't close the throttle. At some point below 20" seat height the wheels stop coming off the ground and you no longer crash.

[DAKEZ]

Originally Posted by Thanantos

Nope, never heard of him.

Do you know what a Ford GT40 is? Not the new Ford GT... The original one that was 40" tall.

The bump in the roof above the Driver is called a Guerney Bubble. It was added because he was too tall to fit in the car with a helmet on.

[markk53]

Wasn't the first chopper a recumbent?

[vortexau]

Originally Posted by markk53

Wasn't the first chopper a recumbent?

Basically similar form factor, as regards the seating but not all choppers keep the engine (AND fuel tank) low mounted.

Eyeball that fuel tank?



Now check out the fuel tank on this 1922 Ner-a-car:






Wilkinson Four built by the Wilkinson Sword (razor) Comany of England. Rider (late) Rex Judd, former 20s-30s Brooklands racing rider.




1920 Militor- Many early motorcycle builders positioned the foot boards well forward even if the rider's seat wasn't particularly low set.

[vortexau]

Electric recumbent? EV World story

The Japanese company Axle Corporation created a new model of electric powered motorbike named EV-X7. The electric motorbike weighs 200 kg (441 lbs.) and can reach speeds of up to 150 kph (90+ mph) using its new "Sumo" hybrid magnetic motor located in its rear wheel.

Unfortunately, nothing further since 2006.

[Avocet]

I like being up high where I can look over cars in front of me. Also, when you sit up high you're more visible to car drivers. Some of those low-slung recumbent ideas seem to suffer in both those departments.

Thinking about two-wheel steering on a motorcycle. If you want to turn left and counter steer to move the front wheel right, to help you lean left, wouldn't the rear wheel of a two-wheel steered bike move to the left, bringing the bike back upright again just when you want it to lean? I think that maybe two wheel steering just doesn't work on a motorcycle.

[DC2wheels]

Monotracer. BMW K bike engine