| On the evening of Monday 11th February we had an excellent lecture on “Arion 5”. Arion 5 is a the latest in a series of hand powered bikes that have been developed by the University of Liverpool Velocipede Team (ULV Team). In September 2018 the Liverpool team raced their handbike, the ARION4, in Battle Mountain, Nevada at the World Human Powered Speed Challenge 2018 (WHPSC) breaking four world records in the process! This included the land speed record for a hand powered bike which now stands at 51.86 mph. The students outlined the techniques that they were using to develop Arion 5 with the aim of improving the already excellent Arion 4. These included:- - Medical assessment of potential riders (who are wheelchair users) and a redesigned “Rider Interface” to ensure that the rider had only the necessary information (avoid information overload) - Use of CFD (Computational fluid dynamics) to reduce drag and optimise acceleration to make best use of the riders energy reserves and minimise the effects of drag - A change in the steering mechanism from rotational to tilt - The use of composite materials along with 3D printing and additive manufacture in order to reduce weight Overall the Engineering involved in the vehicle was most impressive as was the considerable attention given the human interface side of the development. The Students will be bringing the bike to our Annual Dinner which is being held on the 8th March. This will give those attending an opportunity to see for themselves this excellent piece of world beating Engineering currently being developed by our Students in Liverpool. Further details can be found on their website:- www.ulvteam.co.uk/category/arion-5/ In September 2019 Arion5 will be travelling to Nevada USA in order to compete in the World Speed Challenge. We wish them every success. A big THANK YOU to the Arion 5 team John Pollard - Regional Chairman I.Mech.E. Merseyside and N Wales |