Abstract:
Background A multi-tool set is an item carried for endurance and competitive mountain biking. Carried as an extra item in a backpack or on the body of the cyclist, multi-tools are cumbersome and contribute to unnecessary andunbalanced weight in race conditions. It can cause injury if the rider falls on the tools. This project was undertaken as part of a collaborative research design project with Roderick Walden and Stefan Lie (UTS) investigating ergonomics, interface design and the interplay between operational elements in multi-functional designs. Contribution A provisional patent application was filed on the 23rd October 2008, funded by UniQuest Pty. Ltd. (UTS) for the invention. The entire project, including the final design outcome was presented in an Exhibition titled 'Convergence' held in the DAB LAB Research Gallery at UTS. The exhibition demonstrated a connection between self-initiated design practice for multi-functional product types and practice-driven design research. Significance This invention is a unique integration of tools within the brake leverofa mountain bike. The innovation houses a number of tools normally found in a multi-tool set. The tools can be interchanged according to the cyclist's preferences or anticipated needs during a raceand/or during leisure mountain biking. Tools might include a combination of various sized aJlen keys, screwdrivers and/or a chainbreaker. This original design was the result of a collaborative research project set up to investigate the nature of converging design methods between two Industrial Designers working on two different selfinitiated product design problems.
