It's been almost eight years since Kawasaki presented its radical vision of the future at the Tokyo Motor Show, with the Concept J. A new patent from the company has just been made public and shows that the ideas of the time are still in force. development. Here we get a glimpse of a superbike that adopts the Concept J's suspension system and the radical overhaul of the motorcycle's controls that goes with it, with handlebars that follow the movement of the front wheels.
This patent application from Kawasaki suggests that such a machine could be in the pipeline, representing a very high-performance tilting trike that uses front swinging arms in place of a conventional fork, as well as a radical steering system which eliminates connections that could dampen the feedback to the pilot.
Over the past few months, Kawasaki has been behind several patent filings for a three-wheeled motorcycle, but the latest one is the most ambitious and closest to the Concept J in configuration. Each front wheel has its own swingarm that extends forward from a frame attached to the front of the engine. The swingarms are connected by vertical suspension links near their pivot points, with the two front wheels connected by a transverse shock absorber. It's a setup that keeps unsprung mass to a minimum, which is suitable for a dedicated performance machine, and allows for a much lower layout than the conventional fork tilt suspension used on all three wheels like the Yamaha Niken.
The classic problem with using front swingarms is that they introduce complicated steering linkages to connect the handlebars to the front wheel. The risk is that riders accustomed to the reactions and feedback you get with conventional forks will be confused.
Kawasaki's solution to this problem? Connect each half handlebar directly to the front wheels. This is where the new design most obviously replicates the layout of the Concept J, and it means that when cornering, the distance between each handlebar and its respective front wheel never changes. In other words, when the main body of the motorcycle tilts in a right turn, the rider's right hand goes up and the left hand goes down as the suspension moves.
The wheels themselves are connected by steering bars attached to a swivel linkage, so they will turn in harmony despite the handlebars moving up and down independently of each other. On the other hand, there seems to be nothing to insulate the handlebars from vibrations and jolts caused by bumps in the road surface.
Although not present on Kawasaki's patent, the similar steering and suspension system that appeared on the Concept J demonstrated another possible advantage in its layout. A variable, or adaptable, geometry system allowed the distance between the front wheels to be changed – spreading them further apart in certain circumstances to promote stability – and allowed the struts connecting the handlebars to the wheels to change angle, changing the riding position from seated to almost lying down depending on the motorcycle mode.
The patent bears indications that Kawasaki has already built a prototype, not least because instead of a purpose-built frame design, the tilting front end is mounted on a chassis that retains a conventional steering column, although it is not really necessary. It is used as a support for the transverse front shock absorber, but it clearly has similarities with a classic motorcycle, having two wheels, like the Ninja H2 of the brand. The patent itself specifies that the machine is equipped with a combustion engine, without giving further details.
The patent leaves a lot of questions, but it also adds to a growing bank of evidence that Kawasaki wants to develop a tilting three-wheeler. The firm has now designed several of these machines, all revealed by patents, and most share the common theme of being more capable models than those developed by its rivals. It took Kawasaki 5 years to go from patents to confirmation of mass production of the Ninja H2, so we can seriously ask ourselves the following question: when will we see this Superbike on the street?
