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PostPosted: September 23, 2010, 3:10 am 
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chetcpo wrote:
I know I'm late to the game here, but I was hoping someone would tell me what's the point of this? If it leans and drives just like a motorcycle, why not leave it as such?


Scariest thing on a bike is a front tyre lose, either simply going down or a lose that makes you stand the bike up and you veer to the opposite traffic lane .....

Much less "Ouch" and a lot more confidence especially in variable and/or wet road conditions.


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PostPosted: September 23, 2010, 12:30 pm 
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Location: Charleston, WV
cheapracer wrote:
chetcpo wrote:
I know I'm late to the game here, but I was hoping someone would tell me what's the point of this? If it leans and drives just like a motorcycle, why not leave it as such?


Scariest thing on a bike is a front tyre lose, either simply going down or a lose that makes you stand the bike up and you veer to the opposite traffic lane .....

Much less "Ouch" and a lot more confidence especially in variable and/or wet road conditions.


I can see how it would help if your single tired bike was bouncing/skipping over gravel or something, (with two up front, at least one tire would likely always be in contact with the road) but isn't the amount of grip available to a tire directly proportional to load? Would cutting that load in half reduce the grip enough to make it more apt to slide on wet or slippery surfaces? I guess not or they wouldn't be doing it. Maybe they use skinnier tires to keep the two contact patches about the same size as the one from the bigger single tire. Regardless, I'm clearly overthinking it since it appears to work. :ack:

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PostPosted: October 11, 2010, 10:27 pm 
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Even crazier are the Free To Caster tilting 3 wheelers. The steering input actually controls the lean angle of the vehicle with no connection to the wheels. The wheels are truly free to caster and take the appropriate steer angle given the forces fed in due to the speed, lean angle, etc. Its all been done without computer control and relies completely on the physics involved. It works in all situations, if the rear loses traction the front would automatically counter steer to create a stable slide. The only caveat being some of the vehicles use a system to steer the wheels directly at extremely low speeds when you don't really tilt, but even those aren't computer controlled.

Here's the first working prototype I ever saw, he does donuts in the dirt to show its inherent stability:


And here's a much more refined version by another guy with great shots of the FTC wheels:


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PostPosted: January 19, 2015, 8:09 pm 
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Why not an inclining 4 wheel car?
Of course inclination angles would need to be lower than a bike or trike?


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PostPosted: January 19, 2015, 10:46 pm 
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paradigm wrote:
Even crazier are the Free To Caster tilting 3 wheelers. The steering input actually controls the lean angle of the vehicle with no connection to the wheels. The wheels are truly free to caster and take the appropriate steer angle given the forces fed in due to the speed, lean angle, etc. Its all been done without computer control and relies completely on the physics involved. It works in all situations, if the rear loses traction the front would automatically counter steer to create a stable slide. The only caveat being some of the vehicles use a system to steer the wheels directly at extremely low speeds when you don't really tilt, but even those aren't computer controlled.

Here's the first working prototype I ever saw, he does donuts in the dirt to show its inherent stability:


And here's a much more refined version by another guy with great shots of the FTC wheels:



Tell me more.

What's the science behind it and what are its limitations?

Would A small one of those be good to turn the grandkids loose in in the pasture?

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PostPosted: January 19, 2015, 10:46 pm 
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Location: Fort Worth, Texas
paradigm wrote:
Even crazier are the Free To Caster tilting 3 wheelers. The steering input actually controls the lean angle of the vehicle with no connection to the wheels. The wheels are truly free to caster and take the appropriate steer angle given the forces fed in due to the speed, lean angle, etc. Its all been done without computer control and relies completely on the physics involved. It works in all situations, if the rear loses traction the front would automatically counter steer to create a stable slide. The only caveat being some of the vehicles use a system to steer the wheels directly at extremely low speeds when you don't really tilt, but even those aren't computer controlled.

Here's the first working prototype I ever saw, he does donuts in the dirt to show its inherent stability:


And here's a much more refined version by another guy with great shots of the FTC wheels:



Tell me more.

What's the science behind it and what are its limitations?

Would A small one of those be good to turn the grandkids loose in in the pasture?

_________________
mobilito ergo sum
I drive therefore I am

I can explain it to you,
but I can't understand it for you.


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PostPosted: January 26, 2015, 3:01 pm 
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Joined: August 12, 2012, 6:38 pm
Posts: 1937
Location: worcester county, Massachsetts
chetcpo wrote:
I know I'm late to the game here, but I was hoping someone would tell me what's the point of this? If it leans and drives just like a motorcycle, why not leave it as such?

I can see how it would help if your single tired bike was bouncing/skipping over gravel or something, (with two up front, at least one tire would likely always be in contact with the road) but isn't the amount of grip available to a tire directly proportional to load? Would cutting that load in half reduce the grip enough to make it more apt to slide on wet or slippery surfaces? I guess not or they wouldn't be doing it. Maybe they use skinnier tires to keep the two contact patches about the same size as the one from the bigger single tire. Regardless, I'm clearly overthinking it since it appears to work. :ack:



Guys, its been done, and its for sale to the public, right here, right now, in the USA and around the world.. google "Piaggio MP3"

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The B-3 build log: http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=13941 unfortunately, all the pictures were lost in the massive server crash

The beginnings of the Jag Special,
https://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=19012
Again, all pictures were lost.


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PostPosted: January 26, 2015, 4:03 pm 
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carguy123 wrote:
Tell me more.

What's the science behind it and what are its limitations?

Would A small one of those be good to turn the grandkids loose in in the pasture?
The science behind it the steering is pretty much the same as that of riding a bicycle with no hands. Basically, mechanical trail is controls the steering angle. The biggest differences being that tilting can now occur much more quickly without a single track, as you can force it to lean rather than relying physical weight transfer, and speed is no longer required to keep it upright. The limitation is your ability to develop an additional mechanism for low speed steering control, and in the pasture rough terrain stability might be a problem as well.

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