Don't understand this one?

[jonrev]

Can anyone give a short explanation of just how this tilter seems to stay upright?

Delta Trikes

ethicallogistics.org

Looking at it I would imagine it would
a) flop over at the front when left standing on it's own and
b) tip the pilot off and dump him on his rear when he mounts it.

The father christmas looking guy doesn't seem to be making herculean efforts to keep upright and none of the pics shows any tendency to be unstable at the front.

Am I missing something in the layout of this machine?

John

 

[Radical Brad]

If you imagine the rear segment "hanging" from the front, then it makes some sense.
Unloaded, you would probably need to put some leg muscle into keeping it stable at low speeds.
With a passenger in the rear, it would self balance.

That's my guess!
Brad

 

[stormbird]

Well it is almost a Python , just sitting in front of the pivot instead , the weight on the pivot of a Python causes the front end to rise and stand upright [ except mine ]
One also appears to have a bungee cord maybe helping.
My Python can stand like that if I choose , however any slight gust of wind [ no not me ! ] or it rolling forward 1/2" causes the front end to swing violently till it hits the frame.

Also notice the handlebars are mounted on the non tilting part so:-
Good
These help you keep the front end up when seated
Bad
They play no part in steering , the downfall of my Tilt #2 after 70 odd miles

Paul

 

[Popshot]

It stays upright at rest or with a pilot making no effort to turn because that is the lowest state of energy for the pivot. Ie as you turn the front it raises the pivot slightly. Gravity pulls it to it's lowest state which is straight ahead. It therefore must require some effort to turn as you are also raising the pivot. If you draw a line through the pivot it intersects the road just behind the front wheel. This means turning moves the contact patch down which forces the pivot up.

 

[DannyC]

It stays upright at rest or with a pilot making no effort to turn because that is the lowest state of energy for the pivot. Ie as you turn the front it raises the pivot slightly. Gravity pulls it to it's lowest state which is straight ahead. It therefore must require some effort to turn as you are also raising the pivot. If you draw a line through the pivot it intersects the road just behind the front wheel. This means turning moves the contact patch down which forces the pivot up.

....and we all thought it was just some Voodoo-magic.

 

[stormbird]

My worry is it will stop working now someone has explained it ?

Paul

 

[jonrev]

Yes I guess I can see that unloaded perhaps it should stay put but it still looks to me that the front end would be pretty top heavy with Santa aboard! Having said that it obviously does work but I wish there was a bit of video of it on the move and taking a few corners.

Aint it just amazing how there are so many totally different trike designs that have been built? It just seems that every day I find another oddity to marvel at. So many proud builders showing off their creations. So many that just look so completely wrong! So many that look so completely scarily bad. So many without centre point steering or ackerman geometry or with flimsy one side mounted axles or horrifying bird poo welding.
Hopefully those that visit this site do buy Brad's plans and take heed of his instructions re the geometry and need for heavy axles on single sided wheels plus take a good look at what a sound weld should look like?

In the end though it's great to see all the innovation folk put into their builds and how much inspiration you can get from studying their ideas. It seems there is no end to the variety this hobby brings.

Thanks for the explanations of Santa's sleigh. Another great machine which I won't be building but still enjoyed seeing.

John