What goes 80 kph and looks like a Swiss cheese on wheels? An electric motorcycle made from tiny aluminium alloy* particles using a 3-D printer.

    European aeronautics giant Airbus unveiled the Light Rider in Germany on Friday.

    Manufactured by its subsidiary APWorks, a specialist in additive layer manufacturing, the motorcycle uses hollow frame parts that contain the cables and pipes.

    APWorks chief executive Joachim Zettler said the complex, branched hollow structure wouldn’t have been possible with conventional production technologies such as milling or welding.

    The company is taking orders for a limited run of 50 motorbikes, costing US$56,095 each. They’ll have a range of 60 kilometers.

    APWorks used an algorithm* to develop the Light Rider’s optimized* structure to keep weight at a minimum while ensuring the motorcycle’s frame was strong enough to handle the weight loads and stresses of everyday driving.

    It programmed the algorithm to use bionic* structures and natural growth processes and patterns as the basis for developing a strong but lightweight structure.

    The design echoes the form of a conventional* motorcycle but looks like a distant relative of today’s motorbikes.(SD-Agencies)