BBC_Earth_UK_-_January_2017

128 / / JANUARY 2017

Bioinspiration
Reinventing the wheel

Marr says, ‘looking for consistency of thickness, tapering,

node structure, age and any defects.’

When you make a frame, you connect the bamboo

using hemp webbing, wrapping it around the joints and

soaking with an epoxy resin for a firm hold. The resulting

bikes, he says, should last for many years, with some early

examples having lasted for at least a century. In fact, to

ensure they can withstand even the harshest of British

weather, the bikes have been put through rigorous testing

at universities in London, Coventry, Portsmouth and Oxford.

‘We looked at the environmental impact on bamboo in

terms of cell deterioration and strength,’ Marr explains.

‘We found there is limited change in strength when

exposed to water for a prolonged period.’

Whether or not these technologies trickle down to the

high street is another matter, though. ‘I think it will take

a while for high-end technology concepts to become

relevant to the average cyclist,’ says Disley. But

reinventing the wheel is always going to take time to

have a true impact. There’s also more to come. ‘We have

lots of other ideas based on the findings on the humpback

whale,’ says Hall. ‘When you look at the diversity of nature

and the problems we have with aero-efficiency and stability,

there are many opportunities for biomimicry research.’

Safety first

As any cyclist will know, riding the

roads can leave you very twitchy.

Helmets are essential, of course,

but students at California State

University have looked at the issue

of safety from a very different angle.

Noticing that rodents use their

whiskers to determine if they can

pass through a gap, they reversed

the idea and developed a set of four

luminescent ‘whiskers’ to attach to

the front of a bike (left), with the idea

that it would force motorists to think

twice about whether they could

safely drive past. Called VibriSee,

it hasn’t made its way into

production yet, but we’ve got a

fe-line it could one day be as big a

boost to road safety as cat’s eyes.

There is a growing

interest in making bike

frames from bamboo

• it’s environmentally
  friendly and it absorbs
  vibration, making for a
  more comfortable ride

Bamboo is the world’s

fastest-growing plant and

rates highly for sustainability

Words: David Crookes. Photographs: Alamy, iStock, Nature Picture Library, Zipp