The Art and Mathematics of Cycling: Using Old Bicycles to Draw Spirograph Patterns
Nick Sayers

Proceedings of Bridges 2020: Mathematics, Art, Music, Architecture, Education, Culture
Pages 361–366
Regular Papers

Abstract

This paper describes a series of drawing machines made from scrap bicycles by the author. The characteristics of these machines are discussed, as are the maths and geometry of the curves that can be drawn with them. These patterns include: hypotrochoid (“spirograph”), harmonograph (aka Lissajous curve or “pintograph”), and epitrochoid (“reverse spirograph”).

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