No forks or rear shock needed with new wheels

[Paul_G]

http://www.gizmag.com/softwheel-acrobat-fluent-suspension-wheels/31955/

 

[Avitt]

Even in their promotional video, the wheel looks out of round. I can't imagine riding these at any speed...

 

[Paul_G]

Even in their promotional video, the wheel looks out of round. I can't imagine riding these at any speed...

The SoftWheel takes one of the basic principles of wheel design, that the hub needs to be in the center of the wheel, and tosses it out....so yes it runs off center at times.

http://www.dvice.com/2014-5-7/shock-absorbing-wheels-offers-more-compliant-ride

 

[Tench]

While riding upright with the c of g acting down through the centre line of the wheel it may be acceptable but what about when cornering, if you lean your body in a little the c of g will come inwards and apply a lateral force which would make the ride quite interesting! Add this to the G created buy the turn radius and what will happen? I would certainly rather watch some one find out than try it myself!

 

[cal3thousand]

I see this being of benefit to slow vehicles. I can't imagine it handling the dynamics of an high power ebike very well

 

[Avitt]

Even in their promotional video, the wheel looks out of round. I can't imagine riding these at any speed...

The SoftWheel takes one of the basic principles of wheel design, that the hub needs to be in the center of the wheel, and tosses it out....so yes it runs off center at times.

Understood. I'm just wondering what it will feel like when that wheel is turning at 30+ mph, and the centrifugal balance is disrupted by a large bump or pothole...

I'll believe it when I see a slow motion video of a bike traveling at high speed, and can observe the compliance an recovery.

 

[Paul_G]

Even in their promotional video, the wheel looks out of round. I can't imagine riding these at any speed...

The SoftWheel takes one of the basic principles of wheel design, that the hub needs to be in the center of the wheel, and tosses it out....so yes it runs off center at times.

Understood. I'm just wondering what it will feel like when that wheel is turning at 30+ mph, and the centrifugal balance is disrupted by a large bump or pothole...

I'll believe it when I see a slow motion video of a bike traveling at high speed, and can observe the compliance an recovery.

Just think of all the double take looks you would get as the wheels go off center and back....LOL

 

[Hillhater]

Cannot really comment on the wheel, since the promo video was 90% artistic photography of scenery and little of the wheel in action ! Why no Slo-Mo of the wheel going down those steps etc.
If they hide the product in their own advertising, i can only suspect the product is not worth looking at !

( need i add,.. that it really pisses me off when people waste on line video time with trivial, irrelevant scenes !)

Oh, and also ref the thread title PaulG .... I dont think even this product would get far without a set of forks !

 

[LockH]

Two years later and still promoting:
http://www.bikerumor.com/2016/05/20/softwheel-fluent-suspends-bike-wheels/

Their simulated track testing equated these gains to 16.4% extra energy that was not lost in a traditional suspension system.

SoftWheel has three versions for bikes. The premium wheelset is the disc brake Fluent HD setup designed for all around and even off-road riding, and available with either 27.5 or 29″ carbon rims. Its 3 shocks use an adjustable preload gas spring and hydraulic damping for 40mm of shock stroke. That isn’t the same as wheel travel due to the orientation of the shocks, so it’s not exactly clear how that translates to rim movement or really hoe it would compare to traditional suspension travel.

They’ve also developed a more bullet-proof wheelset with 25mm of shock travel called Fluent B designed for urban bike share programs. It includes a dynamo front and an internally geared rear hub. Lastly, the Fluent E is an e-bike version with 40mm of stroke and an integrated proprietary rear hub motor.

Final pricing hasn’t been set, but it looks like the standard wheelset should run about $2000 when they are available sometime later this year. In each of the wheels they use tech called Adaptive Rigidity that seems to be an optimized suspension tune geared to “absorb the bumps that matter and stay rigid over the ones that don’t”. How that is achieved isn’t entirely clear, but is certainly a unique take on suspending a bike.

 

[LockH]

Found a YT vid from 2012:
[youtube]tNE4YvxEwc8[/youtube]

http://softwheel.technology/

... Their system w/a hubbie:

Fluent E
Electric (Pair)

SIZES
27.5”(584mm), 29” (622mm)

SUSPENSION
– Suspension stroke 40mm
– Preload range 350-650N
– Hydraulic Rebound Dampening
– In-Wheel Suspension
– Adaptive Rigidity
– Rapid Shock-Reset
– Motor is unsprung mass

 

[Punx0r]

Are they literally reinventing the wheel?

 

[Mündawg]

I can see how this would be very beneficial to a wheel chair to ease going over steps and curbs etc. But i worry about cornering and strength at high speeds and with high torque. Also, 2,000$!!!!!!!!!!! for a pair!!! That's the price of my WHOLE EBIKE SETUP!!!!! No way in hell i'd pay that much for a wheel set to make a shitty rigid frame bmx bike a little more ride-able.