The Ducati singles were single cylinder motorcycles, made by Ducati from 1950 to 1974. Chief Engineer Fabio Taglioni developed a desmodromic valve system in these years, a system that opens and closes the valves using the camshaft, without the need for valve springs. This valve system has become a trademark feature of Ducati motorcycles.
In 1926, the brothers Adriano and Marcello Ducati founded Societa Scientifica Radio Brevetti Ducati, a company in Bologna producing tubes, condensers and other radio components.[1] On June 1, 1935, the cornerstone of a factory in Borgo Panigale was laid. By 1940, the company was engaged in the manufacture of electronic equipment for the military, making the factory a target for Allied bombing. The Ducati factory at Borgo Panigale was hit badly more than once, but maintained production.[2]