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Being the first human means of transport to use only two wheels in tandem, the Draisienne, Laufmaschine, or dandy horse, invented by the German Baron Karl von Drais, is regarded as the forerunner of the modern bicycle. It was introduced by Drais to the public in Mannheim in summer 1817 and in Paris in 1818. Its rider sat astride a wooden frame supported by two in-line wheels and pushed the vehicle along with his/her feet while steering the front wheel. 
Michaux’ son on velocipede 1868 
Thomas McCall in 1869 on his velocipede In the early 1860s, Frenchmen Pierre Michaux and Pierre Lallement took bicycle design in a new direction by adding a mechanical crank drive with pedals on an enlarged front wheel (the velocipede). Another French inventor by the name of Douglas Grasso had a failed prototype of Pierre Lallement’s bicycle several years earlier. Several inventions followed using rear wheel drive, the best known being the rod-driven velocipede by Scotsman Thomas McCall in 1869. The French creation, made of iron and wood, developed into the "penny-farthing" (historically known as an "ordinary bicycle", a retronym, since there was then no other kind). It featured a tubular steel frame on which were mounted wire-spoked wheels with solid rubber tires. These bicycles were difficult to ride due to their very high seat and poor weight distribution. In 1868 a Michaux cycle was brought to Coventry, England by Rowley Turner, sales agent of the Coventry Sewing Machine Company (which soon became the Coventry Machinist Company). His uncle, Josiah Turner, together with business partner James Starley used this as a basis for the ’Coventry Model’ in what became Britain’s first cycle factory. 
Bicycle in Plymouth, England at the start of the 20th century The dwarf ordinary addressed some of these faults by reducing the front wheel diameter and setting the seat further back. This necessitated the addition of gearing, effected in a variety of ways, to efficiently use the power available. However, having to both pedal and steer via the front wheel remained a problem. J. K. Starley (nephew of James Starley), J. H. Lawson, and Shergold solved this problem by introducing the chain drive (originated by the unsuccessful "bicyclette" of Englishman Henry Lawson), connecting the frame-mounted cranks to the rear wheel. These models were known as dwarf safeties, or safety bicycles, for their lower seat height and better weight distribution. (Although without pneumatic tires the ride of the smaller wheeled bicycle would be much rougher than that of the larger wheeled variety.) Starley’s 1885 Rover, manufactured in Coventry, England, is usually described as the first recognizably modern bicycle. Soon, the seat tube was added, creating the double-triangle diamond frame of the modern bike. Further innovations increased comfort and ushered in a second bicycle craze, the 1890s’ Golden Age of Bicycles. In 1888, Scotsman John Boyd Dunlop introduced the first practical pneumatic tire, which soon became universal. Soon after, the rear freewheel was developed, enabling the rider to coast. This refinement led to the 1890s invention of coaster brakes. Derailleur gears and hand-operated cable-pull brakes were also developed during these years, but were only slowly adopted by casual riders. By the turn of the century, cycling clubs flourished on both sides of the Atlantic, and touring and racing became widely popular. Bicycles and horse buggies were the two mainstays of private transportation just prior to the automobile, and the grading of smooth roads in the late 19th century was stimulated by the widespread advertising, production, and use of these devices wheelchair is a chair with wheels, designed to be a replacement for walking. The device comes in variations where it is propelled by motors or by the seated occupant turning the rear wheels by hand. Often there are handles behind the seat for someone else to do the pushing. Wheelchairs are used by people for whom walking is difficult or impossible due to illness (physiological or physical), injury, or disability. People with both sitting and walking disability often need to use a wheelbench 
Wheelchair seating in a theater (i.e. giving a dedicated, convenient space left free for a user to position his own wheelchair in the cinema). 
A typical modern battery powered chair. The Gendron Iron Wheel Company was founded in 1872 in Toledo, Ohio by Peter Gendron (born Pierre Gendron 1844-1910). Gendron produced wire wheels for baby carriages originally. In 1890, bicycles, tricycles, invalid chairs, baby carriages, doll carriages, coaster wagons, toy wheelbarrows, etc. children’s diecast toy replica pedal cars up until World War II. 
A modern racing wheelchair Disabled athletes use sport wheelchairs for disabled sports that require speed and agility, such as basketball, rugby, tennis and racing. Each wheelchair sport tends to use specific types of wheelchairs, and these no longer look like their everyday cousins. They are usually non-folding (in order to increase rigidity), with a pronounced negative camber for the wheels (which provides stability during a sharp turn), and made of composite, lightweight materials. Sport wheelchairs are not generally for everyday use, and are often a ’second’ chair specifically for sport use, although some users prefer the sport options for everyday. 
US versus France, FIPFA World Cup, Tokyo, Japan, October 2007.
A new sport has been developed for powerchair users called powerchair football or power soccer. It is the only competitive team sport for powerchair users. The Federation Internationale de Powerchair Football Associations (FIPFA) governs the sport and is located in Paris, France with country affiliates around the world In 1927, Gendron became a subsidiary of American National. American National was formed as a holding company for three companies: Toledo Metal Wheel, National Wheel, and American Wheel. American-National, Toledo, and Gendron products were sold under the trade names of Pioneer, Skippy, Express, Reliance, Hi-Speed, Hi-Way, Speed King, Blue Streak, Sampson, American, Streamline, etc. In the late 1930s, American-National had financial difficulties. In 1941, the assets and all rights to the product line were purchased by a group of Toledo industrialists headed by Walter H. Diemer. Previously, Mr. Diemer was the President of American-National. The new company was incorporated as the Gendron Wheel Company, Perrysburg, Ohio. The company was organized "to manufacture, import, export, buy, sell, and in general deal in wheelchairs, playground equipment, and other juvenile conveniences of every kind". All of American-National plants were closed except the Gendron Perrysburg plant. Due to the war effort, Gendron concentrated its efforts on wheelchairs and hospital stretchers. However, they continued to manufacture wooden wagons and playground equipment. Catalogs from the 1950s and early 1960s show playground equipment and hand car racers with the trade name Howdy Doody. In 1959, Gendron Wheel moved most of its manufacturing to Archbold, Ohio. The Perrysburg plant was closed in 1963. In 1964, the company became a subsidiary of Howmedica. However the Gendron trademark continued. In 1971, Mr. Robert Diemer and Mr. Richard A. Bigelow purchased the company and it became Gendron-Diemer. In 1975, Richard A. Bigelow purchased Mr. Diemer’s interest and the company became Gendron, Inc. In 1997, Mr. Bigelow sold the company to Steven W. Cotter, Thomas A. Dewire, and Frederic W. Strobel. Today, Gendron, Inc. produces mobile patient management systems for transport, trauama treatment, imaging, bariatric, and special 
A mountain bike, a popular multi-use bicycle. 
A European city bike, an example of a bicycle designed for transportation. Also an example of a motorized bicycle. . Bicycles have been and are employed for many uses: 
Working bicycle in Amsterdam, Netherlands 
A man uses a bicycle to carry goods in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso 
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia : Manufacture of bicycles and invalid carriages |
