Mechanical Engineering
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Motorcycle Stability Assistance
For my mechanical engineering capstone project, I worked on a team to design and prototype a product that helps to allow a more diverse group of people ride to motorcycles comfortably and safely. The product is able to stabilize a motorcycle at low speeds and provide a reverse function to the motorcycle.
The product enables riders to maneuver the motorcycle at low speeds without the fear of the motorcycle falling over. This allows motorcyclist who may otherwise be too short to reach the ground or lack the strength to support the motorcycle, to be able to park and guide the motorcycle at low speeds. The product enables shorter people to begin riding or be able to use a greater verity of motorcycles and for people with physical disabilities to use a motorcycle.
The product uses two independent modules mounted separately to the motorcycle. The drive module is mounted to the trailing arm of the motorcycle with a custom bracket. It uses a high torque motor to apply torque to the bottom of the motorcycle drive chain through a sprocket. This adds a reverse gear to the motorcycle while in neutral.
A sliding mechanism with a threaded rod connected to a small motor allows for the powered sprocket to move vertically, to engage and disengage with the chain, ensuring the chain is not impeded during normal operation. We developed a prototype, which proved the viability of the engagement and drive systems.
The second module stabilizes the bike. Left and right stabilizers are mounted near the back wheel via standard mounting holes. The arms are deployable and have wheels at the base to allow support for the bike while moving at slow speeds. When the motorcycle throttles higher than walking speeds, the legs are folded to the side of the bike.
Cycloidal drives are used to provide high torque deployment of the legs with a small motor. The high gear ratio cycloidal drives cannot be back driven, so they are able to support the weight of the motorcycle without a motor power. They are also far less expensive and more durable then alternatives.
