(first posted 1/14/2017) How about an expanding travel trailer? From France, in 1934. Perfect for bowling fanatics. Here’s a few more.
Concerns about protecting pedestrians from cars is hardly new. This ‘people catcher’ device dates to 1924, in Paris.
An early version of navigation.
Looks like it’s from Italy. I could have used it when I was there last without either navigation or a map.
A floating bicycle. Hmmm.
Not automotive, but too good to pass up. A radio built into a hat. presumably the little toy horn is the speaker. It’s sort of the anti-tin foil hat, eh?
A pistol with integrated camera that takes a shot of what gets…shot. Somehow I suspect this didn’t catch on with the criminal element.
This all-terrain vehicle from Great Britain in 1936 can climb or descend 65 degree slopes.
When I saw this, I assumed it was an aerodynamic headpiece for motorcycle riders, or open car riders. It turns out that it’s a protective device for snow storms or blizzards. Really?
This one is described as “bicycle that fits the whole family plus the sewing machine”. Ok.
And of course there’s the famous one-wheel motorcycle. Actually, this one is virtually timeless, as the first one was built way back in 1894, and there’s new ones being built even today. And idea that just won’t go away. This is the 1935 version.
Here’s a brief video of it in action.
The rest of the inventions are here. Although some didn’t take off at all, a number of them did, or at least predicted similar concepts.
Some bizarre inventions back in the day. That one-wheel motorcycle seems “unsafe at any speed” LOL!
Actually, quite interesting design. Usually this mono-cycles just have rigidly mounted hadling bar, and this one have proper steering wheel with a sofisticated mechanism that tilt the wheel to one side or another. But there is always an issue (among others) about the wheel obscuring the forward view for the rider.
Forward view isn’t a serious problem. Emergency stops are the serious problem.
Yup. Neat but a terrible idea.
It needs anti-dive geometry somehow….
Expanding travel trailers (with side slide-outs) have certainly caught on. As for the hat with the built in radio, everyone under 35 in my office has something plugged into his or her ears that is not a Dict-a-phone.
Here was an interesting idea. Mobile (or portable) homes you can tow with a pick up in sections and set up yourself. http://mobilehomeliving.org/fold-up-homes-of-the-1950s/
I would say pistol with camera could be handy for hitman, and it reduced the chance of problems when getting the camera out for pictures.
hehehehe. That is one totally party trailer.
Travelling rope maker ?
Lucy and Desi Arnaz could have made good use of that camper in their movie “The Long Trailer”. Interesting that no one thought of a phone that takes pictures.
The off road truck is the prototype of the Swiss Saurer M6 tactical vehicle. The extra “axles” were really spare wheel carriers which allowed the spares to rotate and so prevented bellying. This feature was not carried on into production versions. Later there was an 8X8 version (the M8) which had 8-wheel steering, here is a vid of it in service. It was very Tatra like with fully independent suspension (although the design was different) and was in service until the late 70s. There was also rear-engined a 4X4 version (4CM) used as an artillery tractor which can also be seen in the vid being driven through a village. When they were pensioned off many found their way into civvy street and purchased by collectors, so that you may come across one in truck shows in Switzerland, Austria and Germany.
When I saw the cones that protect one’s face from the snow, my immediate thought was that the two women in the photo had just had surgery, and this was to prevent them from biting or licking their stitches!
In other words, a human version of the “cone of shame” that is used on dogs… 🙂
That thing would have fogged up in 20 seconds and they’d be walking around blind.
is it just me, or does it look like the expanding travel trailer doesn’t have a tire mounted on the wheel rim?
Crazy stuff, all of them! Though the radio hat saw a rather literal interpretation in the 80’s as the headphones with built in FM radio receivers.
What is the guy in the radio hat smoking?
Playing a Kazoo?
Hmmm. That extra-long trailer maybe might work for hauling 32-foot organ pipes.
Those snowstorm deflectors would be blown off with one good side gust of wind.
Something is a bit wonky at CC lately. The past few days I’ve been getting duplicate images on all articles. The text isn’t duplicated just the images.
Strange days. I kinda feel like Mr. Radiohat with is blunt fired up.
Clearly, NOT a “travel trailer”. That’s a portable French-bread bakery.
You should see the version for making croissants.