Robot Bike Co use 3D printing to create personalised bikes

Welsh bike company use additive manufacturing to create high-end, lightweight mountain bike frame

Welsh start-up Robot Bike Co has utilised 3D printing to create a high-end, lightweight mountain bike frame unique to a customers fit and size.

The project involved renowned bike designer Dave Weagle, along with partners Altair, HiETA Technologies and Renishaw to create the lightweight design.

Weighing in at just 7lbs, it is as light as any high-end custom-made carbon bike frame.

Ed Haythornwaite, director of Robot Bike Co (RBC), said: “Using additive manufacturing overcomes problems experienced by traditional welded bike manufacturers, which invest in moulds and are then restricted in the size of frames they can offer. Using 3D printing means we can quickly adapt to any new standards in the bicycle world and offer a range of bikes, and tweak them later if desired.”

A total of 12 complex areas of the bike, including the suspension, are 3D printed and linked together with carbon tubing.

Using 3D printing means RBC avoids the use of carbon in complex areas where layup problems can occur, explained Haythornwaite. “Additive manufacturing crucially offers us double bonded carbon joints - those couldn’t be made by any other manufacturing technology.”

Altair came on board for topology optimisation, making the frame as light and strong as possible so RBC can offer a lifetime guarantee on the product.

Paul Kirkham from Altair, said: “To achieve the most material efficient layout for RBC we used Solid Thinking Inspire software for the project, a technology usually aimed at the design community.”