Design Trends: The Bike of the Future

In 2010, the Seoul Cycle Design Competition offered designers to showcase their ideas and proposals about the future of biking. Danish designer Nils Sveje emerged as the winner, his design, which has been dubbed ‘Bike 2.0’, is a contemporary remake on this age-old form of transportation. The design is aesthetically simple, but deceivingly so when one discovers the amount of technology in the bike. Instead of a chain, the bike has a pedal-powered internal generation that is wired directly to the rear motor. Instead of shifters, it has two wireless rings on the handlebar, which make turning, gearing, and controlling the bike much easier. In addition, it features a stepless gearbox and a regenerative coaster brake. The Intelligent Cadence Levelling Feature keeps the rider pedalling at a consistent speed and intensity (which can be adjusted via the handlebars), thus imitating the purpose of exercise bikes. Bike 2.0 has the added bonus of being ecological, as seen with its intelligent energy usage mechanism, which, among other things, controls the rate at which riders charge the bike’s batteries. The bike’s lack of external features allows riders to personalise their bike with parts such as front forks and rims. Its aluminium frame has built-in lighting, and can be adjusted to fit riders of all sizes comfortably. The bike’s technology, aesthetics, and concepts prove that Bike 2.0 is only a glimpse into the future of bicycle design.