Design and manufacturing of automatic gear shifter for bicycle

Project report
Submitted by
JAY NIKHIL OZA
MANNAM BRAMHARUJENDRA BRAMHAIYA
PRADEEP CHANDRA S
SHAIK HAFEEZ AHMED
SRIPATHI TARUN SUSANTH
Under the guidance
Of
Dr. R. Rajeswara Reddy, M.S. (UL-USA). Ph.D.(UL-USA)
Assistant Professor, Mechanical Department
GITAM University

In partial fulfillment for the award of degree

Of
Bachelor of engineering
In
Mechanical engineering

Gandhi Institute of technology

GITAM University
Visakhapatnam-530045.

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 ABSTRACT

This project relates to an automatic transmission system designed for a bicycle or

similar means of transportation. More particularly, this project relates to a multi-
speed bicycle transmission, the gear selection of which is controlled by means of a
centrifugal governor.

It includes an accessory that can be mounted on bicycles of the type which have
manually controllable variable speed transmissions, to permit automatic control of
the gear ratio. The accessory includes a housing which can be mounted on a frame
member of the bicycle, the housing including a governor shaft connected to the
rear wheel derailleur, a pair of weights pivotally mounted on the governor shaft,
and an output shaft which is moved to position dependent upon the pivotal position
of the governor weights. A control member connects the rear wheel in place of the
usual manually controlled cable, so that the gear ratio is determined or selected by
the automatic shifter from the bicycle speed.

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 INTRODUCTION
Currently many varying types of bicycle transmissions exist, from archaic single speeds to
modern multi-speeds. In general, the types of transmissions can be categorized in three ways:
manually shifted automatic, or a hybrid manual-automatic.

Manual bicycle transmissions operate by means of a cable or lever, which when activated change
the gear higher or lower, as desired by the cyclist. This relatively simple and older design allows
for maximum control by the cyclist, however, it requires constant vigilance, to ensure that the
transmission is in the optimal gear. Additionally, it can be cumbersome in cities where frequent
stops and starts are required.

Subsequently, to alleviate these problems, a variety of automatic transmissions were designed.

Starting from rest these designs engaged the lowest gear and upon acceleration of the bicycle to
higher speeds, would automatically to the middle and then the highest gear. This automatic
shifting obviated the need to select gears manually. As an additional feature some of the designs
allowed for a hybrid manual-automatic shift control, by which the cyclist could manually select
gears, if desired.

Bicycle gearing is the aspect of a bicycle drivetrain that determines the relation between the
cadence, the rate at which the rider pedals, and the rate at which the drive wheel turns.
Centrifugal governors are used to balancing the rotating balls by using the centrifugal force. As
the speed of the prime mover increases, the central spindle of the governor rotates at a faster rate
and the kinetic energy of the balls increases. This allows the two masses on lever arms to move
outwards and upwards against gravity. If the motion goes far enough, this motion causes the
lever arms to pull down on a thrust bearing

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 Literature Review

In more recent years, new designs of transmission have become available. Currently three types
are known to exist: fluid drive, centrifugal, and torque-responsive. Each design has particular
benefits and limitations associated with it. [1]

Fluid drive transmissions, commonly used in automobiles, utilize the drag of a fluid contained
within the transmission to transfer power. An example of this applied in bicycles is U.S. Pat. No.
7,059,618, which describes a transmission that utilizes the principle of fluid drag to transfer
power from the cyclist to the bicycle advantage between the input and output torque, and, in the
above situation, effectively acts as a shift into a lower gear. Unfortunately, this system has
several drawbacks. First, the system requires continuous input torque to operate effectively and,
if the input torque is varied, could up-shift at an inopportune time, i.e. in the middle of a long
hill. Secondly, the transmission would be difficult to maintain, as the entire assembly would need
to be drained to access the mechanical components, in addition to other disassembly.
Alternatively, the fluid could leak out during operation and render the bicycle useless, after only
a small amount of fluid is lost. Finally, this system would require extensive retrofitting to be
equipped on a standard bicycle. [2]

The second category of automatic transmissions, torque responsive transmissions, come in

variety of configuration, however all operate by selecting the gear ratio based on the input torque
from the cyclist. There are two main types of torque responsive transmissions, v-belt pulley
systems, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,781,663, or a spiral and spring system, as described in U.S. Pat.
No. 3,769,848 or application Ser. No. 13/165,807. The v-belt pulley systems operate by means of
a v-belt connected to several pulleys, which are of variable size. The main drawback of this
invention is that it requires a constant torque input or it will return to a low torque, high speed
configuration. This means the transmission will have effectively up-shifted every time the cyclist
pauses in or varies his rhythm. As the input torque decreases, the spring will force the
mechanism toward its zero input torque position and in so doing up-shift. These designs still
suffer from a lack of gear holding, and will up-shift without a continuous torque input, though
an automatic hold device is described in U.S. App. U.S. 2012/0329589 A1. However, this
hold device only activates when the rider is traveling uphill. [3]

The third categories of automatic transmissions are centrifugally governed. In general, these
types of transmissions work by harnessing the rotational inertia of the bicycle wheels. This is
achieved by having a particular component of the system rotate at a speed proportional to the
bicycle wheels, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,229,997, are comprised of an epicyclical gear assembly,
a plurality of centrifugal weights, and an overrunning clutch. There are several distinct
disadvantages with this type of automatic transmission. First, the entire assembly must be
contained within the bicycle wheel hub, and is therefore constrained in size. This constraint has
meant that all previous designs have been limited to no more than three speeds. Secondly, the
assemblies and various mechanisms are complex and rely on many small pieces, making
manufacture difficult and expensive. [4]

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 Methodology

Ergonomics: -

To calculate average speed of bicycle for different gears first we conducted a survey on five
persons while cycling and the speed at which gears of bicycle need to be shifted is determined

These images were obtained based on human effort using strava gps cycling app.
These results show:
Maximum speed: 30 kmph
Minimum speed: 6 kmph
Average speed : 18 24 kmph

Calculation of required speeds to shift to gears

Wheel diameter: - 24
= 0.6096 m
Radius of wheel = 0.3048 m

Gear 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th

Speed 6 12 18 24 30
(kmph)
Speed 53 105 157 209 261
(RPM)

The above table shows the maximum speed at which the derailleur should shift the gear from one
gear to other

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Selection of Governor: -

After determining the speeds required for shifting gear, the next step is to select a governor
which is suited for the required

As per the required speeds and dimensional constraints governor height vs. speed graphs were
plotted and based on results watts governor is selected.

Fig: - governor height vs. speed graph for Fig: - Required speed vs. lift required for
Watt governor shifting gears.

The above graphs show that the variation of height or lift of governor with speed of watt
governor is suitable for requirements of the project.

As speed and sleeve lift are the main constraints in designing Watt governor is best suited, easy
to manufacture and more cost efficient.

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Calculations: -

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Design of Governor: -

As the speed of the bicycle increases the watt governor which is mounted on the rear axle of the
bicycle starts rotating. When the spindle speeds increases in then the balls and the sleeve rise.
Due to this upward movement of sleeve, the lever is pulled up which is used to activate the
derailleur. In this way at different speeds the derailleur automatically shifts the gear to decrease
human effort.

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 Summary

This project is mainly concern to reduce human effort in shifting gears of bicycle. Many new
automatic gear shifting mechanisms are using sensors which are more expensive. Till date
Ergonomics, Selection of governor, Design of governor based on dimensional constraints were
completed

In future we are planning to do Stress analysis, Cost analysis, Market survey and Fabrication of
governor. Fabrication also includes manufacturing of governor, lever and gear shifting derailleur.

References:-

[1]- U.S. Pat. No. 7,059,618,

[2]- U.S. Pat. No. 4,781,663
[3]- U.S. App. U.S. 2012/0329589
[4]- U.S. Pat. No. 4,229,997

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