same balancing system used in their ASIMO robots

What comes to mind when you hear the words personal mobility device ?
Do you get visions of wheelchairs or of George Costanza scooting down
the sidewalk being chased by a geriatric biker gang? I, for one, conjure
up mental pictures of the Segway. You remember that one, don t you? Wasn
t it supposed to change the way people got around? Yeah, that worked
out, didn t it? Now, unless you re a mall cop or a tourist you probably
won t ever find yourself on one of those over-hyped gadgets ever. Well,
the ever-inventive folks at Honda have once again attempted to bring us
the next generation of personal mobility devices, the U3-X.
Honda s U3-X is being touted as the next big thing in personal mobility.
Basically, it s a motorized unicycle that lets you travel in just about
any direction. And to make sure you can get around on it without having
any sense of balance, they ve integrated the same balancing system used
in their ASIMO robots. You remember the ASIMO robots for Beck s Hell Yes
video, don t you?
Anyway, the U3-X uses small, in-line motor-controlled wheels connected
to create a single large wheel. Movement of the large wheel allows for
forward and backward motion, while the smaller wheels allow for sideways
movement. If you move both sets of wheels at the same time you get
diagonal movement. Too bad Honda doesn t have a cool name for this
technology. I m just kidding, they do. Honda calls it the Honda Omni
Traction Drive System, or HOT Drive System.
The U3-X weighs in at around 22-lbs and sports a rechargeable Li-ion
battery that provides for up to one hour of operation on a single
charge. Honda will demonstrate the U3-X at the 41st Annual Tokyo Motor
Show scheduled to begin on October 24th.