From garbage and car exhaust fumes to factory waste– Pollution is one of the hallmarks of modern life. Unfortunately, people have bought into the idea that pollution, especially air pollution, is a necessary evil. They reason that if we want to be able to drive from point A to point B and keep the economy running smoothly, we have to continue to pump petro-chemicals and other pollutants into the air.
Two winners will receive a FlyKly Smart Wheel valued at $800 each. Smart Wheels turn regular bikes into electric bikes. Photo credit: Flykly.
Some people have tried to go against prevailing wisdom by using cleaner forms of transportation such as walking or biking in urban centers. New York-based startup FlyKly caters to this crowd.
The company makes and sells biking accessories. FlyKly’s biggest product is the Smart Wheel, a device that turns almost any bike into an electrically powered vehicle.
FlyKly announced a contest Wednesday (Aug. 13) for those interested in 3-D printing and designing. The company wants designers to come up with novel accessories, as well as look at existing items for bikes such as valves, mirrors, bottle holders and reinvent them.
“With this challenge, FlyKly would like to encourage designers to design innovative accessories for urban cycling that will be available instantly to 3D print and fun to use in order to make the urban cycling fun, safe and smart,” said Niko Klansek, Founder of FlyKly.
Example bike accessory that can be 3-D printed.
The 3D Printed Biking Accessories Challenge is being presented in cooperation with CGTrader.com. This contest is the latest 3D Printing contest that CGTrader has sponsored or co-sponsored in recent memory. CGTrader is an ideal ally in this contest because of its 3D model marketplace.
“As a community-based 3D marketplace, we work hard to give our 3-D designers all the spotlight they need to showcase their skills. We also strive to give them a sense of direction by highlighting the emerging trends like bicycle accessories or jewelry that could generate a substantial amount of sales,” said Marius Kalytis, CEO of CGTrader.com. “Designers often use our challenges to test the market or discover customer buying patterns and we are delighted to serve that purpose.”
Designers will be able to enter their creations into two categories: Best 3D Printable Bicycle Accessories Portfolio and Bicycle Accessories Model. Each category will have one winner and two runner-ups.
The contest runs until Oct. 8. Top prizes in the contest include a Smart Wheel, promotional features on CGTrader.com and an opportunity to sell products directly to FlyKly’s customer base.
Learn more about the contest here. Have you decided to participate in the ‘3D Printed Biking Accessories Challenge’? Feel free to post your designs at the 3D printing challenge forum thread on 3DPB.com.
