Stateczność pojazdów jednośladowych na kołach pneumatycznych

The pioblem under consideration concerns the side stability of a bicycle equipped with pneumatic wheels. The bicycle and the cyclist constitute a mechanical system with nonholonomic constraints with eight degrees of freedom. Experiments are performed to determine the moments of inertia and side deviation of racing an ,,Ambasador'' bicycle with the cyclist riding on. Calculations are accomplished for the complete set of equations as well as for a simplified model with reduced degrees of freedom. The simplification of the set of equations which reduces the degree of the characteristic equation is not always applicable since it may cause false solutions and their erroneous interpretation.