Canyon Has Developed a More Sustainable Bike Using 3D Printing

During the London Bike Show, which took place from April 21st to 23rd, the company Canyon presented its 3D printed bicycle prototype for the first time. To be more specific, the frame was created using a laser powder bed fusion solution, which printed the bike component in three parts. The main goal of this project was to create a more environmentally friendly bicycle. By using additive manufacturing, Canyon is taking a more sustainable approach, minimizing the amount of materials needed as well as promoting local production.

The German magazine BIKE were the ones to launch “Ride Green”, a project that revolves around one, central question: is it possible to build a sustainable bike? Providing the best, possible answer to that question, Canyon suggested an interesting method, designing one with additive manufacturing. Canyon’s prototype bike joins the many initiatives we’ve seen developing in recent months: bike and equipment manufacturers are relying on 3D technologies to offer custom made, high-performance and in many cases, more sustainable solutions.

The bike frame was 3D printed (photo credits: Wolfgang Watzke)

Canyon 3D Printed the Bicycle Frame

Canyon decided to use additive manufacturing to design the frame with a lattice structure, thus allowing for a minimalization of the amount of material used while still maintaining high performance. After analyzing the market, the company chose to use Laser Powder Bed Fusion and selected recycled aluminium. The printing was done by the 3D printing service, Materialise. The frame was divided into three parts with each one requiring 6 hours of printing. The weight of the frame and fork is only 4 pounds, according to Canyon.