Canvas - A product platform for electric bicycles
Authors
Hansen, Kristian Vrist ; Lind, Mette Bjørn ; Kristensen, Martin Fyhn
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2022
Submitted on
2022-05-25
Pages
116
Abstract
In spring 2022, a team of master’s students in Industrial Design at Aalborg University developed 'Canvas'—a product platform for e-bikes. A product platform is a shared base of parts and standards that allows multiple variants to be built from the same foundation. The aim is to let users customize their bike to their needs across categories such as city, classic, mountain, hybrid, and road. The project began with bicycle manufacturers’ interest in a modular setup to simplify production, but the focus shifted toward the user experience and possibilities for personalization. The work centered on designing a bike frame that looks coherent and functions well with different components, and on defining interfaces—standardized connection points—for attaching the motor, battery, wheels, saddle, and handlebars. The project was grounded in desktop research and expert insight into the bicycle industry, complemented by tests, mock-ups (simple physical models), interviews, and studies conducted by the team. The report walks through the development process and presents the resulting Canvas concept.
I foråret 2022 udviklede en gruppe kandidatstuderende i Industrielt Design ved Aalborg Universitet 'Canvas' – en produktplatform for elcykler. En produktplatform er en fælles base af dele og standarder, som gør det muligt at skabe flere varianter ud fra samme udgangspunkt. Formålet er, at brugere kan tilpasse deres cykel efter behov på tværs af kategorier som citybike, klassisk cykel, mountainbike, hybridcykel og racercykel. Projektet begyndte med et ønske fra cykelproducenter om en modulær opbygning, der kunne forenkle produktionen, men fokus blev flyttet til brugerens oplevelse og muligheder for personlig tilpasning. Arbejdet koncentrerede sig om at designe et cykelstel, der æstetisk og funktionelt fungerer sammen med forskellige komponenter, samt om at definere interaktionsflader – standardiserede tilslutningspunkter – til montering af motor, batteri, hjul, sæde og styr. Grundlaget for projektet var desktop research og ekspertviden om cykelbranchen suppleret med tests, mock-ups (enkle fysiske modeller), interviews og egne undersøgelser. Rapporten gennemgår udviklingsprocessen og præsenterer det endelige Canvas-koncept.
[This apstract has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]
Keywords
Bicycles ; bike ; cykel ; platform ; product platform