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Truck Horn for Bicycles

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Bike paths, here in the USA, when they exist at all, tend to exist along only one side of the road. So, sometimes a cyclist will be traveling with the automobile traffic, and sometimes against that traffic.

Now consider a cyclist going against traffic, and reaching an ordinary intersection/road-crossing. Two branches of the intersection are of course part of the road that the cyclist has been riding near; one branch of the intersection is on the other side of that road, from the cyclist, and the fourth branch is, in this example, what the cyclist needs to cross.

Now consider a vehicle waiting in that fourth branch of the intersection, preparing to make a turn toward the cyclist. Carefully note that the car won't have to cross any traffic to make the turn, if simply getting into the nearest lane; it just has to join the traffic flow in that lane.

So the driver will be waiting for an opening, and will be observing the traffic that is moving toward both the car and the cyclist, as the cyclist approaches the intersection.

Depending on habit, with respect to making this kind of turn at an intersection, the driver may fail to look both ways, and thus would fail to see the oncoming cyclist. I personally have had to jump off my bike a couple of times to avoid getting run over by cars turning at intersections, as described above.

So, here is where the Truck Horn for Bicycles comes into the picture. Mounted for convenient activation, it includes a very small wheel-mounted generator that (A) trickle-charges a capacitor bank, and (B) extracts so little power from the cycling effort that the cyclist barely notices.

However, when the horn button is pressed, the capacitor bank is disharged through it, and the driver of the automobile, waiting to turn at the intersection, will thus be loudly informed of a need to look both ways, before turning.

Vernon, Nov 07 2012

http://deltacycle.com/Airzound-Bike-Horn [pocmloc, Nov 07 2012]

Ridable mechanical horses http://warhorseonstage.com/puppetry
For [ytk]'s cats. Just add wheels. [Alterother, Nov 08 2012]

RMS Queen Mary http://www.plimsoll...iren_tcm4-60671.mp3
[pocmloc, Nov 13 2012]

train horn on car http://www.youtube....watch?v=BQpa8whzwAE
[pashute, Nov 14 2012]

Israeli railway ride http://www.youtube....watch?v=q2NPz7j-1Pc
[pashute, Nov 15 2012]

Plug and Play Screaming Banshee http://www.gizmag.c...orcycle-horn/25047/
[AusCan531, Nov 16 2012]

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       saw one of those stupid buggers come || close to getting creamed the other day: I almost would've applauded if he had: at a red light he came barrelling up between two full lanes and right into the intersection where an opposing direction vehicle was turning left with an advanced green.   

       Used to be bicyclists who weren't part of vehicular traffic (ie: kids using the sidewalk) had to dismount and walk across intersections.
FlyingToaster, Nov 07 2012
  

       Visit Holland.
mitxela, Nov 07 2012
  

       There was a guy at the University I dropped out of twice who built 'art bikes'. One he rode frequently had a 10- gallon pressure tank and a lobsterboat horn mounted across the handlebars. It was hilariously deafening.
Alterother, Nov 07 2012
  

       I could imagine a thin aluminum ramp, mounted parallel with the bike above the ride and extending in fromt of the bike a good distance. On approaching a car the ramp swings down. The front goes under the wheel of the bike while the back flops on the obstacle, thus creating a ramp the rider can use to jump over the obstacle.
bungston, Nov 07 2012
  

       Now THERE'S an idea. Go post it and we will refine it.   

       I have had some serious Cadillac horns on my motorcycles (+).
normzone, Nov 08 2012
  

       // cyclist //   

       Sp. "target"
8th of 7, Nov 08 2012
  

       You're gonna love my “Cat Riding a Horse-Shaped Bicycle” idea, [8th].
ytk, Nov 08 2012
  

       Children will love that!
spidermother, Nov 09 2012
  

       Sacre bleu! Le entrée est un automaton! Mon dieu, she has bitten le saucier!
Alterother, Nov 10 2012
  

       Perhaps if you built a giant wooden badger … ?
8th of 7, Nov 10 2012
  

       A train horn would be even better.   

       I used to live in Atlit not far from the railway.   

       One night we heard the train horn, a deep: Boooop, Booooop, BoooBooBoooop. Then a roar that sounded like thousands of people yelling hooray.   

       It repeated itself twice. I ran out of the house and saw the train painted in green with green flags and people leaning out the windows and open doors, while the train slowly proceeded towards Haifa.   

       It turns out the town's soccer team fans "bought the train" and where on a triumphant ride home.   

       Seriously... get a vuvuzla or however its spelt.
pashute, Nov 13 2012
  

       A guy came to buy a house in Atlit. There's a beautiful view on one side to the sea and crusader castle, on the other to the Carmel mountains, and from the porch you can see the blowhole. The palm trees from the famous Aronson plantation sway in the wind seen from the bedroom. Its perfect. Just when he decides to buy the house there's a terrible crashing noise sustained for 3 minutes then a loud horn, while the windows tremble. What was that?! he askes. Oh, only the train. But after two weeks you get used to it. OK, the guy says, I'll come back in two weeks.   

       Ahmad was riding the Emeq train from Cairo to Damascus under the Turks before WWI. Suddenly, about half an hour before Afulla station, Abdullah his cousin rides up adjacent to the train with his donkey. How's Fatima and how are the kids? Hamdullah they're all ok. How are you doing? Fine. Listen I'm in a hurry. I have a meeting in 5 minutes in Afula, So I gotta run. He hits the donkey which quickly walks ahead of the train and they are soon lost in the horizon.   

       During WWI the chief Turkish train engineer, Jewish Dr. Meir Gurevich, attached a German war plane motor to a railcar, and they sped faster than any train had gone before. I don't think they had a horn.
pashute, Nov 15 2012
  

       Pretty similar but for motorbikes. [link]
AusCan531, Nov 16 2012
  


 

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