Nippon Steel Corporation

Nippon Steel Chemical Co., Ltd.

Sakase Adteck Co.

Kenji Kubomura

Hiromi Kimura

Toshikazu Takeda

Nobuyuki Tsuji

Hirotaka Shibata

Hironori Maikuma

Triaxial fabric composed of carbon fiber strands and method for

A process for producing a bicycle frame of a fiber-reinforced plastics (FRP) including the steps of: forming parts of a bicycle frame such as an upper pipe, a lower pipe, a vertical pipe, a chain stay and a rear fork, or a combination thereof, with an FRP; arranging the bicycle frame parts in a structure of the bicycle frame; forming, with an FRP, lug portions onto the arranged bicycle frame parts at a required position whereat the bicycle frame parts are to be connected and fixed to each other; and curing all of the lug portions at one time, to thereby simultaneously accomplish an assembling of the bicycle frame. A process for forming a lug portion of a FRP bicycle is disclosed which includes the steps of: providing a female mold with a cavity having a shape of a final lug portion; disposing a flexible sheet on a surface of the cavity; arranging frame parts in a structure of a bicycle frame; arranging the female mold at a lug portion of the arranged bicycle frame parts; supplying and foaming a foaming material in the female mold at the lug portion; removing the female mold to leave an assembly of the frame parts with a foamed body; removing the flexible sheet from the female mold; laminating a foaming sheet and then a prepreg of resin-impregnated continuous fibers onto the foamed body; arranging the female mold over the laminated prepreg; and heating to cure the resin while foaming the foaming sheet, to thereby form the lug portion of the FRP bicycle frame.

Process for producing a bicycle frame made of fiber-reinforced plastics

Growing community of inventors

Kawasaki, Japan

Kenji Kubomura