Honda U3-X personal transport device concept
Honda U3-X is said to be the newest revolutionary personal transport device. Weighing just under 10kg, roughly one metre tall, 30cm long and 15cm wide – this self-righting unicycle is so small that it can fit into the car door of Honda’s new concept electric car the EV-N, more about the car in future posts though. If you are not planning to get the EV-N as well, it might tuck nicely into the overhead compartment of any car seeing it is so small!
The U3-X boasts about an hour of battery life which admittedly isn’t much and it has a rather slow top speed of just under 10kmp/h meaning this thing obviously isn’t made for driving to work. The key concepts behind the design are simply to make a personal transport device that is easily stored, non-obtrusive if taken on larger public transportation like trains or buses, easy to operate and fun. The highlight feature is HOT Drive! (Honda Omni Traction Drive System) – a mobility system that allows the unit to drive in all directions without the need to turn. All it takes is a subtle lean in the direction you wish to go and the unit will respond. At least that’s what the new release suggests. Who doesn’t want to ride something with HOT Drive branded on?
Don’t expect to see this on shelves any time soon as there is no indication the U3-X will go to mass production but check out the demonstration videos in the meantime. Seems to be great way to travel within large office buildings too or perhaps it is the epitome of laziness…
Honda Develops New Personal Mobility Device: U3-X
HOT Drive System (Honda Omni Traction Drive System)
If you enjoyed this feature, you may want to Subscribe to our weekly newsletter for our latest style updates, giveaways and other juicy stuff.
Featured Contributor: Eric McDonald
Discover More Stylish features below:
3 comments
3 Comments Add your own
1.
Julian James | November 22nd, 2009 at 9:10 pm
Aint the future just grand!!
2.
Eric McDonald | November 28th, 2009 at 2:25 am
I’m still holding out for Honda to send me one in the mail to product test first hand.
3.
Robyn Perham | October 13th, 2010 at 10:12 pm
Congratulations, Hoinda, on providing us with a small miracle!
As a person with mobility disabilities, I would love to see this product developed.
My wheelchair is so cumbersome to use inside, and something like this would “give me back my legs”… certainly a lot of my independence.
PLEASE hurry… make it more sturdy and slightly larger for we who need it the most.
Leave a Comment
Trackback this post | Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed