Bicycle manufacturer Canyon has debuted a concept 3D printed mountain bike prototype which aims to demonstrate a more sustainable method of bicycle production.
Working with software and 3D printing service provider Materialise, Canyon 3D printed the bike’s frame and fork as part of Bike Magazine Germany’s ‘Ride Green’ campaign. The finished bike was showcased at the recent Cycle Show in London.
The Ride Green bike
The aim of the Ride Green project was to design a bike that is as sustainable as possible, with all its components being fully recyclable. The materials used also needed to be reusable without compromising the quality of the parts produced, while reducing waste was another key goal of the project.
Canyon was tasked with building the bike’s cradle-to-cradle frame and fork, and settled on 3D printing as the most suitable, and sustainable, method of production. The firm enlisted Materialise’s selective laser melting (SLM) 3D printing technology to fabricate the components in order to achieve the frame’s desired unique shape.
Materialise is no stranger to the bicycle sector, having deployed its technology to print 2,000 parts for fellow bicycle manufacturer Pinarello’s Dogma F racing bike last year. In addition to achieving substantial weight reductions for a crucial seat clamp component for the bike, the company also created a full-service, customized production workflow for the project. (Read more)
