If you or someone you know struggles to lift bicycles onto storage hooks, Parkis might interest you. This lift-assist storage system is intended to make vertical bike storage easier by taking the burden off the user.
Parkis is currently seeking funding through Kickstarter and pricing for this wall-mounted storage system starts at £215 / €239 / $269 / AU$363.
How Parkis works
To store the bike, you push the front wheel into the guide. This disengages a locking mechanism, allowing a spring to raise the bicycle while simultaneously triggering a clamp to secure the front rim with a pair of brake pads.
The bike is then stored vertically with the rear wheel resting on the floor.
To remove the bike, you pull the bike down by the saddle. When the bike returns to the floor, the spring-assisted guide locks back in place and releases the front wheel.
Not for every bike
While clever, Parkis is not without limitations. It appears the creators designed Parkis with hybrids and city bikes in mind.
According to Parkis, the guide is designed to work with tire widths from 38 to 51mm / 1.5-2in. This rules out traditional road bikes and nearly all mountain bikes.
In addition to tire width restrictions, wheelsize is limited to 24in rims and larger.
Since Parkis relies on the rear wheel to support some of the bicycle’s weight, it won’t work with bikes with full-coverage fenders either.
Lastly, the spring-assist system has a weight limit of 15kg / 33lb. Perhaps we’ll see a heavy-duty version capable of storing e-bikes, which often weigh in excess of 22kg / 50lb in the future.
Visit http://parkis.eu to learn more.
Watch the Parkis in action
