A team of students at Yale decided to build a spokeless bike for their mechanical design class. One semester later, they had the machine you see here.
The students concentrated on the rear wheel, for reasons of both time and money. The back wheel is where all the work goes on anyway, so if it worked, then the front wheel would be easy.
The back wheel is machined in standard 26-inch size so a stock tire would fit, and inside it you see a belt drive, usually used to replace a chain. The weirdest aspect is that double-crank and double bottom bracket. This was used to get the gearing right: imagine connecting a single crank to that rear wheel and you'll see why. You'd have the lowest granny-gear ever.
It's a single-speed, and as is the law of single speed bikes, we have to discuss the gear ratios. The chainrings both have 53 teeth, and the cog has 13.
We dig the look of the bike, too, especially the low-tech, scrapyard aesthetic. The spokeless wheel offers extra space. Zhaolander, the team-member who posted these photos on Reddit, says that the gap could be used to fit a motor or, even better, a carrying basket that would be in the perfect place to balance its load. The only problem seems to be the handling. Zhaolander says that the big rim supports make things top-heavy.
Spokeless Bicycle [Reddit via Engadget]
