1.
Stud Health Technol Inform
; 297: 359-366, 2022 Sep 02.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-36073414
ABSTRACT
In this research, the design of a new competitive handbike fork, made of a composite material, is presented. The study is based both on an early finite element analysis and on a CFD analysis of the characteristics and performance of a standard fork made of aluminum, allowing to define the loading and the flux conditions and to provide a design optimization of the fork. The model was later implemented iteratively with the properties of a carbon-fiber composite material. The results obtained show that the new model allows a weight and a drag force reduction and a downforce improvement, with a stiffness and a safety coefficient comparable to the standard aluminum fork.