We had the distinct pleasure to interview award winning designer Monica Oddone about their original and creative Folding Bicycle design work. Monica Oddone is an award-winning industrial designer, that makes our world a better place with their original folding bicycle works.
Monica Oddone ("MO") answered Design Interview ("DI") questions about their award-winning work MinMax Folding Bicycle. Interview questions prepared by Frank Scott.
MO : The main goal in the development of MinMax was to design a new folding bike that could exceed the size and weight limits of existing models, applying innovative solutions that would make it unique and recognizable.
MO : I hope that winning this prestigious prize will be the launch pad for this project. It has become clear, especially in the present situation, how much innovation is needed in the individual mobility field, both in terms of sustainability and personal well-being. I would love to be able to take this project forward and work with interested partners to develop it further.
MO : The project development took 4 months of full-time work and was divided into several phases. Initially, through research and analysis of existing foldable bikes, it was possible to identify the unsatisfied needs of users and the current technical solutions that could be implemented. The preliminary design phase involved the development of different methods of folding the frame and the wheels, which could meet the dimensional constraints originally conceived. During the executive design phase, there were collected all the necessary standard components and designed the ad hoc solutions required for the product realization.
MO : The idea of designing a folding bike different from those currently on the market occurred after the work done with a design brief on a related topic. It was the ideal opportunity to deepen the theme of sustainable mobility, intermodality and to come into contact with different sector realities. I developed a passion for these topics and have been actively following them for almost five years.
MO : MinMax started as a personal project, but soon turned into a long-cherished dream. Its potential led me to apply for an industrial invention patent and to contact I3P, the business incubator of the Politecnico di Torino. For almost a year, I worked as designer and aspiring entrepreneur, developing a business plan and an innovative start-up idea that led me to be awarded a “Mention for Equal Opportunities” at the Start Cup Piemonte and Valle d'Aosta in 2018. I am currently looking for interested industrial partners to take the project forward, both as a collaboration and/or a lease of production rights.
MO : More and more people are choosing sustainable solutions and new tools designed to move around freely, optimize routes, achieve both time and money savings, escape the stress of the road traffic and the difficulties of the public transportation. In this perspective, folding bicycles are a perfect solution: they combine the benefits of traditional mobility on two wheels with the possibility of having a compact, lightweight and easily transportable vehicle. Also used in intermodality with other vectors, the folded bicycle proves to be the preferred choice for city commuters, which are becoming more and more demanding in terms of performance and comfort.
MO : There are many models of foldable bikes, mainly differentiated by the folding mechanisms and sequences that give shape to the compact and strongly characteristic geometries of the various brands. However, MinMax adds one more step, not found on any model currently on the market: the folding of the wheels.
MO : It wasn't difficult to find a name for this bike, because it fully reflects the design goal: to occupy the MINimum space, while ensuring MAXimum experience.
MO : MinMax is the result of an ambitious goal: reaching the smallest possible dimensions (the size of a hand luggage) without sacrificing comfort in use and with absolute freedom in ergonomic adjustments. Thanks to its innovative wheel folding mechanism, this bike is designed to be stored in a regular backpack: its size is reduced by almost 9 times (compared to other foldable bikes in the current market)!
MO : After the executive design phase, I contacted a mechanical engineer with large experience in the cycling field for the structural analysis of the innovative components of the bicycle, in order to particularly evaluate the performance of the wheel locking mechanisms. It was an enriching experience, a meeting point between design and scientific disciplines.
MO : The concept development was followed by a primary research phase with the identification of the target through a questionnaire entitled "Folding bikes: experience and imagination". The aim was to involve different kinds of riders, regular and non-regular users, to find out which characteristics of the folding bike are fundamental to improve its perception. The data showed that purchase and use are strongly influenced by factors such as low weight, reliability of the locking system and price/performance ratio.
MO : MinMax development was not only a technical challenge: bikers and commuters have new emerging needs, given by the constant evolution of personal habits and ways to live the urban environment. We can't respond to these needs using a standard approach. For these reason, the idea of "reinventing the wheel" was vital to design an extremely compact solution, not only functional, but also emotionally significant for the users.
MO : I nominated the MinMax bike for the A' Design Award to get a reliable feedback on its quality and to actively promote it with the aim of finding industrial partners interested in carrying out the project.
