Bicycle bell
A bicycle bell serves as a signaling device to make a cyclist in traffic acoustically noticeable through acoustic signals or to warn of a danger, like the horn of motor vehicles . Most models are light-toned metal bells and produce their tone with the help of an external mallet or internal gear mechanism.
Traffic law
- Germany
In Germany, the bicycle bell is prescribed by Section 64a of the Road Traffic Licensing Regulations (StVZO): Bicycles and sleds must be equipped with at least one brightly sounding bell; hand sledges are excluded. No other devices for acoustic signals may be attached to these vehicles. Wheel arch bells are also not permitted on bicycles.
- Austria
In Austria, Section 1 of the Bicycle Ordinance only stipulates a device for issuing acoustic warning signals . In addition to a bicycle bell, a horn is also allowed.
audibility
The old standard bells for bicycles and bicycles with auxiliary motors DIN ISO 7636: 1986-02 has been replaced by DIN 33946: 2010-09. It stipulates a sound pressure of at least 85 dB at a distance of 2 meters. Not every bicycle bell meets this requirement. Another problem is the usual sound characteristics of bells. The requirement for a bell that sounds bright is usually interpreted to mean that bright is equated with high frequency. Such bells can be made very small and easily, but more and more people suffer from old age or noise-related hearing loss, so that they can hear very high frequencies poorly. Two-tone bells - both as a clapper variant and multiple striking versions offer a more perceptible, lower-frequency sound spectrum.
Unlike in connection with bicycle bells, however, "bright" can also be interpreted as the opposite of "dull". So there would be a requirement for a sound with strongly pronounced overtones, without any definition of a frequency range. Bells with such properties stand out from the traffic noise due to their overtones, but they also offer low-frequency components if they are of sufficient size.
In order to be heard in closed motor vehicles, the bell should be much louder. The interior noise of modern cars reaches values of up to 65 dB (A) at 50 km / h. If the radio is still on, values between 70 and 75 dB (A) are common. Even with the windows open, a bicycle bell can only be safely recognized in the immediate vicinity. When the windows are closed, outside noises - such as B. the signal of the bicycle bell - attenuated by approx. 15 dB. You can see that a bicycle bell can be used from around 100 to 105 dB.
Conventional handlebar bells - and also wheel arch bells - do not come anywhere near this volume. That could be one of the reasons why there is no legal maximum volume for bicycle bells. The requirement from §30 StVZO Paragraph 1 Point 1 " Vehicles must be built and equipped in such a way that their normal traffic does not harm anyone or endanger, hinder or annoy anyone more than inevitably. " Can be met by adding a commercially available - i.e. quieter - one for pedestrians. Handlebar bell is used.
Otherwise you can still refer to this commentary on traffic law. Two non-legally binding demands are made in the comment: The bicycle bell must not be louder than the horn of the motor vehicle. So 116 dB (A) at a distance of 2 m. And the bicycle bell must not produce different sounds with different basic frequencies. This requirement seems a bit careless, since bells naturally produce different dominant pitches when they are struck and when they fade away. See also bell .
In order to achieve such high volumes, large and therefore heavy bells with an electromechanical hammer mechanism or even a motorized alarm clock are necessary. Such additional weights are only accepted on large cargo bikes or towing bikes in front of large trailers. It's the same as with motor vehicles: only large, heavy trucks have loud signal horns, only large bicycles have bells that bring something.
Handlebar bell
Handlebar bells are mounted on the handlebar or on the handlebar. Models that consist of a small bell and an outer beater attached to a spring are particularly popular. There are also handlebar bells that have an internal mechanism. There are usually two freely supported metal disks that strike the bell. They are set in rotation around a central axis with the help of a gear mechanism and, due to the centrifugal force, hit the bell that surrounds the mechanism several times during a ringing process. The sequence of rapid, frequent impacts creates the typical ringing sound.
The handlebar bells are maintenance-free and suitable for all weather conditions. An electrical power supply is not necessary. There are models in different sizes and designs.
Bicycle bell from 1913
Two-tone bell on the handlebar
Bell on the stem
Brass bell with external mallet
Inside of a (rusted) bicycle bell
Modern bell with an external beater
Wheel arch bell
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Wheel arch bell (storm bell)
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In the case of the wheel arch bell, the ringing mechanism is carried along by the movement of the wheel, similar to the bicycle dynamo , and the bell itself is actuated by a Bowden cable or cord. It creates a loud and steady ringing, similar to that of a tram . The wheel arch bell was banned in the Federal Republic of Germany in 1960 because of the associated "noise pollution". In view of the noise level in road traffic, which was already common at the time, this ban was repeatedly criticized by cyclists, as the cyclist could only make himself audible to the driver with such a bell and the volume of a horn prescribed for a motor vehicle would in any case far exceed that of a storm bell. In 1985, a cyclist from Munich enforced an individual special permit for a storm bell and bright bicycle lights . When the bicycle is stationary, the wheel housing bell, unlike the bicycle bell, cannot be used.
Trivia
Occasionally, bicycle bells are also attached to other objects, so that their owners want to draw special attention to themselves by activating the ringing mechanism. Bicycle bells can be found on hiking sticks , serving boards for alcoholic beverages (especially schnapps) or beer mugs .
Bicycle bells were also used as a musical instrument, e.g. B. You Still Believe in Me by The Beach Boys , Bicycle Race by Queen and several works by PDQ Bach .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ http://www.beuth.de/de/norm/din-33946/133320273 , accessed on November 3, 2015.
- ↑ Olaf Schultz: Audibility of bicycle bells, Bicycle Future, Issue 20, June 2015
- ↑ Road traffic - many bicycle bells are too quiet , Deutschlandfunk , “ Forschung aktuell ” from November 2, 2015
- ↑ Duden | bright | Spelling, meaning, definition, synonyms, origin. Retrieved March 11, 2019 .
- ↑ The loudest and quietest cars: Ranking. Retrieved March 11, 2019 .
- ↑ Werner Full, Wolfgang Möhl, Karl Rüth: Road Traffic Law, Commentary on Road Traffic Act (StVO), Road Traffic Act (StVG), Road Traffic Licensing Regulations (StVZO) and the traffic law provisions from the Criminal Code (StGB) and the Code of Criminal Procedure (StPO) as well as the Liability Act . Reprint 2015 edition. De Gruyter, Berlin, Boston 1980, ISBN 978-3-11-088697-9 ( degruyter.com [accessed March 11, 2019]).
- ↑ Reason according to Verkehrsblatt 1960, 473: "The ban on wheel arch bells, which have been repeatedly misused, is intended to counteract noise pollution." Quoted from Archivlink ( Memento from March 19, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Final judgment of the Bavarian Administrative Court in Munich of January 30, 1985, Az. M 6277 VI 84. In: “Fahrrad” 5/85, p. 48 [Loew85]. Quoted from http://www.enhydralutris.de/Fahrrad/Beluchter.pdf
- ^ Adam Webb: Brian Wilson Presents Pet Sounds Live In London (DVD) Review . BBC. November 7, 2003. Retrieved July 3, 2011.