Copenhagen Wheel and bicycle
Bicycle
2017 (manufactured), 2009 (designed)
2017 (manufactured), 2009 (designed)
| Artist/Maker |
The Copenhagen Wheel was designed to replace the back wheel of any ordinary bicycle, transforming it into a smart electric hybrid. Here, the wheel is attached to a ‘Skinny Jeans’ bicycle, one of the bike-wheel pairings built specifically for Superpedestrian by a popular US-based bicycle company. The wheel ‘learns’ how its user pedals and provides an extra boost of energy when required. It is also connected to an app, which allows riders to monitor their physical activity and gather information about their environment – data that can be shared with friends and other cyclists. In 2010, the product won the US heat of the James Dyson Award for best invention of the year.
The wheel was originally developed by Carlo Ratti’s ‘Senseable City’ team at the MIT Media Lab in partnership with the City of Copenhagen. In 2012, Assaf Biderman, a co-inventor of the Wheel and Associate Director of the MIT Senseable City Lab, founded Superpedestrian Inc. with an exclusive license to commercialize the Wheel.
Superpedestrian Inc. launched the Copenhagen Wheel in 2017 and has since developed other modes of small-scale transportation such as scooter- and bicycle-sharing systems from their office in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
The development of this electric bicycle wheel represents the ways design and technology have responded to the demands of urban living. Cycling is a healthier, more environmentally friendly, cheaper, and often quicker way of getting around the city. By providing users with information regarding pollution levels, traffic congestion, and road conditions in real-time, the Copenhagen Wheel app offers a contemporary solution to the demands and accompanying hazards of densely populated cities.
The wheel was originally developed by Carlo Ratti’s ‘Senseable City’ team at the MIT Media Lab in partnership with the City of Copenhagen. In 2012, Assaf Biderman, a co-inventor of the Wheel and Associate Director of the MIT Senseable City Lab, founded Superpedestrian Inc. with an exclusive license to commercialize the Wheel.
Superpedestrian Inc. launched the Copenhagen Wheel in 2017 and has since developed other modes of small-scale transportation such as scooter- and bicycle-sharing systems from their office in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
The development of this electric bicycle wheel represents the ways design and technology have responded to the demands of urban living. Cycling is a healthier, more environmentally friendly, cheaper, and often quicker way of getting around the city. By providing users with information regarding pollution levels, traffic congestion, and road conditions in real-time, the Copenhagen Wheel app offers a contemporary solution to the demands and accompanying hazards of densely populated cities.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 2 parts.
|
| Title | Copenhagen Wheel and bicycle (trade title) |
| Materials and techniques | Brushless motor, sensors and lithium-ion battery, steel frame and rubber tyres |
| Brief description | Rear bike wheel with electric hub, Copenhagen Wheel, designed by the MIT Senseable City Lab with the city of Copenhagen, 2009, manufactured for Superpedestrian, USA, 2017, brushless motor, sensors and lithium-ion battery, steel frame and rubber tyres |
| Physical description | The design of the Copenhagen Wheel consists of a silver-rimmed black tire with spokes and a motorised magnesium red hub. The frisbee-shaped hub contains a custom brushless motor, sensors, control system, and a lithium-ion battery. The wheel is custom built to replace the rear wheel of any steel or aluminium bicycle frame. This wheel is attached to a bicycle called The Skinny Jeans. The design for the bicycle consist of a lightweight chromoly steel frame, an upright flat-bar, rubber seat and handles, gears, pedals, silver doublewall rims, silver spokes, and 28c tires. Marketed as ‘form, function,and a whole lot of style’, the black matte finish extending across the bicycle complemented by the sleek design of its steel frame creates a modern and stylish look. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Mass produced |
| Marks and inscriptions | Superpedestrian Inc. logo (hub) (The Superpedestrian logo is printed in white on the red hub of the Copenhagen Wheel. The logo’s design is formed of two curved lines evoking the letter ‘S’ as well as a winding road. The words ‘superpedestrian’ sit to the right of this icon in lowercase letters. ) |
| Gallery label | Wheel of power
Cycling has become a popular way of getting around the city, with on-street bike and e-bike rentals increasingly common. The Copenhagen Wheel, designed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Senseable City Lab with the city of Copenhagen, makes it easy to convert any bicycle into an e-bike. The rear wheel, with its distinct red central hub, can be fitted to an existing bike to give the cyclist a power boost.
Rear bike wheel with electric hub
Copenhagen Wheel, 2009 (manufactured 2017)
Designed by the MIT Senseable City Lab with the city of Copenhagen
Manufactured for Superpedestrian, USA
Brushless motor, sensors and lithium-ion battery, steel frame and rubber tyres
Donated by Superpedestrian
Museum no. CD.8:1, 2-2021
The object sits in the 'Housing and Living' section of the Design 1900-Now gallery opened in June 2021.(2021) |
| Credit line | Donated by Superpedestrian |
| Object history | The object was new when first loaned to the museum by Superpedestrian in 2018, as part of The Future Starts Here exhibition at the V&A in South Kensington. The exhibition focused on emerging technologies, the ways in which they will affect our lives in the near future, and what choices we have, as citizens, to influence their development. It was then gifted to the Museum. |
| Production | Designed by the MIT Senseable City Lab with the city of Copenhagen and manufactured for Superpedestrian, USA |
| Place depicted | |
| Summary | The Copenhagen Wheel was designed to replace the back wheel of any ordinary bicycle, transforming it into a smart electric hybrid. Here, the wheel is attached to a ‘Skinny Jeans’ bicycle, one of the bike-wheel pairings built specifically for Superpedestrian by a popular US-based bicycle company. The wheel ‘learns’ how its user pedals and provides an extra boost of energy when required. It is also connected to an app, which allows riders to monitor their physical activity and gather information about their environment – data that can be shared with friends and other cyclists. In 2010, the product won the US heat of the James Dyson Award for best invention of the year. The wheel was originally developed by Carlo Ratti’s ‘Senseable City’ team at the MIT Media Lab in partnership with the City of Copenhagen. In 2012, Assaf Biderman, a co-inventor of the Wheel and Associate Director of the MIT Senseable City Lab, founded Superpedestrian Inc. with an exclusive license to commercialize the Wheel. Superpedestrian Inc. launched the Copenhagen Wheel in 2017 and has since developed other modes of small-scale transportation such as scooter- and bicycle-sharing systems from their office in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The development of this electric bicycle wheel represents the ways design and technology have responded to the demands of urban living. Cycling is a healthier, more environmentally friendly, cheaper, and often quicker way of getting around the city. By providing users with information regarding pollution levels, traffic congestion, and road conditions in real-time, the Copenhagen Wheel app offers a contemporary solution to the demands and accompanying hazards of densely populated cities. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | CD.8-2021 |
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| Record created | June 3, 2016 |
| Record URL |
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