The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to bicycles:
Bicycle – pedal-driven, human-powered, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist or a bicyclist, and the activity is called cycling. Also known as a bike, push bike or cycle.
What type of thing is a bicycle?
Bicycles can be described as all of the following:
The bicycle has undergone continual adaptation and improvement since its inception. These innovations have continued with the advent of modern materials and computer-aided design, allowing for a proliferation of specialized bicycle types.
Uses
Bicycles have been and are employed for many uses:
Unicycles, tricycles and quadracycles are not strictly bicycles, as they have respectively one, three and four wheels, but are often referred to informally as "bikes".
In its early years, bicycle construction drew on pre-existing technologies. More recently, bicycle technology has in turn contributed ideas in both old and new areas.
A number of formal and industry standards exist for bicycle components to help make spare parts exchangeable and to maintain a minimum product safety.
The International Organization for Standardization, ISO, has a special technical committee for cycles, TC149, that has the following scope: "Standardization in the field of cycles, their components and accessories with particular reference to terminology, testing methods and requirements for performance and safety, and interchangeability."
CEN, European Committee for Standardization, also has a specific Technical Committee, TC333, that defines European standards for cycles. Their mandate states that EN cycle standards shall harmonize with ISO standards. Some CEN cycle standards were developed before ISO published their standards, leading to strong European influences in this area. European cycle standards tend to describe minimum safety requirements, while ISO standards have historically harmonized parts geometry. The TC149 ISO bicycle committee, including the TC149/SC1 ("Cycles and major sub-assemblies") subcommittee, has published the following standards:
ISO 4210 Cycles—Safety requirements for bicycles
ISO 6692 Cycles—Marking of cycle components
ISO 6695 Cycles—Pedal axle and crank assembly with square end fitting—Assembly dimensions
ISO 6696 Cycles—Screw threads used in bottom bracket assemblies
ISO 6697 Cycles—Hubs and freewheels—Assembly dimensions
ISO 6698 Cycles—Screw threads used to assemble freewheels on bicycle hubs
ISO 6699 Cycles—Stem and handlebar bend—Assembly dimensions
ISO 6701 Cycles—External dimensions of spoke nipples
ISO 6742 Cycles—Lighting and retro-reflective devices—Photometric and physical requirements
ISO 8090 Cycles—Terminology (same as BS 6102–4)
ISO 8098 Cycles—Safety requirements for bicycles for young children
ISO 8488 Cycles—Screw threads used to assemble head fittings on bicycle forks
ISO 8562 Cycles—Stem wedge angle
ISO 10230 Cycles—Splined hub and sprocket—Mating dimensions
ISO 11243 Cycles—Luggage carriers for bicycles—Concepts, classification and testing
Other ISO Technical Committees have published various cycle relevant standards, for example:
The Vienna Convention on Road Traffic of the United Nations considers a bicycle to be a vehicle, and a person controlling a bicycle (whether actually riding or not) is considered an operator.