When considering a design project, I sought to design something that I could use almost on a daily basis. Cycling has been a part of my life since I could walk. Though I didn't have a bike until I was five, I had already been interested for years. For this reason, I chose to design and build a carbon fibre handlebar.

When considering a design for a handlebar, one has to look at all of the products on the market. There are many types of handlebars, but none with any sort of vibration dampening. With this in mind, a set of requirements was formed.

The most important requirement was that of dimensions. It needed to have the standard diameters for a handlebar, which have been set by the industry. With this in mind, there was little room for design freedom. Because many cyclists are superficial, the handlebar had to be appealing. To some cyclists, the appearance may be more important than the actual function of the handlebar.

The handlebar had to be strong and light at the same time. The strength of the handlebar is related to many other requirements. The safety of the rider is always a concern, so the handlebar had to be safe in accidents, as the average cyclist crashes about twice a year. It should be crush resistant at the center so that the handlebar does not fail in a crash or under heavy bumps.

The main requirement of focus was that of vibration dampening. Due to the difficulty of the requirement, it was nearly discarded. Current handlebars have no dampening, but only rely on the material characteristics for this. The design proposed had to deal with this problem in a different way. This is where the internal dampening system was designed.

The internal dampening system is simple in design and is easy to construct. It is made up of three aluminum pieces and two elastomers. When assembled, the aluminum rods would have a higher frequency than the handlebar and cause the vibration to stop quicker. Though simple, this system is effective.

The final product is a carbon fibre handlebar which competes with others in the market in weight, but includes a vibration dampening system. This was done with a low cost budget. The final product materials cost is estimated at $60.00. Mass production would produce a competitive handlebar in both price and performance.