Wooden Bicycle Prototype | AERO
Milan Design Week 2015 has been full of surprises. One of the pieces exposed that catches your eye instantly is AERO’s Wooden Bicycle Prototype. The prototype has a wooden frame made from 9 mm lamellas that are glued together at both ends, while being detached in the middle. The frame has a rhombus shaped frame, laid on one side – a simple, quirky and discrete approach. It is both sophisticated and casual, and comes in more than one color version. In addition to the looks, it is said to provide better effort absorption at impact, as well as “improved flexibility and greater strength”. 
The idea came when being faced with a wooden layered structure for a house in London, a point where the two engineers involved in the project have decided to start experimenting with this technique at a smaller scale, so they build a bicycle. Further development will include reinforcing the wood with carbon or aluminium fibers in order to gain more strength by using less wood. The project could came to be available to the public, if the final prototype, which is schedules to be manufactured this year, will pass all the test for endurance and safety.
By Cristina Juc
Design: AERO
Management and technology development: Digital Architects – Mariya Korolova, Atanas Zhelev
Concept and design: Martino Hutz Architecture – Martino Hutz
Partners: Studio Zaha Hadid, Institute of Architecture, University of Applied Arts Vienna
Structural consultant: Altair Engineering
Manufacturing and materials: Höller
Media production: Maveo Schneider & Kreitmeir