The building of the prototype is in it’s final stages, just a spray of paint and then all the parts have to be assembled. Next weeek we can finally make the first test-drive on the new African bicycle. In this post we can finally present the design to the world. After a meeting with all the involved partners from the TU Delft and Cycling out of Poverty we got the “green light” to share the design with everybody that’s interested.

During the design phase we built a virtual prototype to make sure everything we wanted was actually possible. We used it for strength calculations, prototyping drawings, design try-outs and as a presentation tool. In the next gallery one can find a small overview of the bicycle that we prototyped for testing in Kisumu.

As one can see in the final image, we used an existing frame produced by Indian manufacturers and we modified it to be stronger and be more versatile. By adding three main tubes to the front of the bicycle we created a large enough cargo space for the user to carry around whatever he or she may like, up to a maximum of 80 kg. The rack that is place on front is just one of the many possibilities of cargo carrying that this bicycle is capable of. One could remove the rack and mount a box or basket instead, if that suites the user better.  The placement of the front wheel right underneath the cargo will give it good support and the rest of the frame will suffer less stress.

This bicycle should enable the Kisumian, and other African, entrepreneurs to carry around more products for longer distances in such a way that they can reach more people and generate a better income for themselves and their family.