Mechanical Bike Bell from Hell

Earlier today, Charlie looked at the latest in green cargo bicycle technology. Now, we look at the latest is loud-as-hell bicycle bell technology. Bonus: it's entirely mechanical! The freight here is human—there are Chinese pedicabs, the rickshaw-like carriages that can be seen everywhere from Shanghai to Soho—so making plenty of noise is a requirement.

"Pedicabs need a big bell -- all the momentum they are riding on is hard to stop quickly. These guys in Suzhou had a cool set of bells using a old gear to more than one bell, which were struck by an armature in the center turned by the rotation of the front wheel It made a great big ring! Very cool."

This is clearly the work of a dedicated individual—a hacker, in other words—who was clearly not impressed with the bell technology state of affairs. It's a shame we can't hear it, but I'm thinking it's only the beginning of what's possible.

Big Loud Bike Bell for Tricycle [Kevin Kelly via BoingBoing]