Bones
04-29-2006, 08:10 PM
Not sure if this should be in this section or another, BUT, since there has been yet MORE bantering back and forth about electronic control systems (dare I say ABS?) and our two wheeled beasts I just had to share this recent two wheeled experience.
I just got back from Disney World with the family. One morning I signed up for a two hour two wheeled experience on the Segway personal transport "thing" that is right out of the Jetsons. Perhaps you have seen them?
You stand on a platform that is about 12" (I am guessing) high and the whole thing looks kind of like a pogo stick with mini motorcycle handle bars. The wheels are just lateral to each of your feet. This thing has ten microprocessors, five gyroscopes and the wheels are turned by servos. The one I used had a speed limiter of 5 mph. To go forward, you very slightly lean forward. All you have to do is put some pressure on your toes. To stop or go in reverse, you do the opposite. To go left, you twist the left grip counterclockwise. To go right, you twist the left grip clockwise.
I got the hang of it in about 5 minutes. If you are an experienced motorcycle rider, there are some things that are a bit counterintuitive, but you quickly get over that. Once you "get it" these things are absolutely amazing and more fun than you can possibly imagine.
They accelerate very quickly and stop, literally, on a dime. Once you get good at it, you can stop very quickly while turning and turn around and go in reverse, kind of like ice skating.
So, here is something interesting. Torque. You know, the motorcycle magazines list all these figures for new bikes. Most modern motocycles are making between 40 lb ft and 90 lb ft of torque, right? This little ditty makes..........300 lb ft of torque .....PER WHEEL! The most fun you can have between 0 and 5 mph, I tell you. The instructor's machines had a limiter at 12 mph, but they can be programmed to go over 20 and probably higher.
Now, with all the banter back and forth about ABS and servos that I missed while I was away, it occured to me while riding this thing that basically, it is a giant ABS/servo, period. What seperates this from all that has been argued in another thread is that this thing is light years more sophisicated than anything used in motorcycles.
The most interesting thing to me was that once you got the hang of it, it became clear that the machine has a better sense of balance than any of us, even if you are a tight rope walker or trapeze artist. It really felt like an extraordinary extension of your body. You just don't fall over on these things because they sense more than what you sense and adjust for it in a way that YOU can process the info and act accordingly.
For example, the speed limiter can't just stop the wheels from going more than 5 mph, because as you would try to go faster, you would lean forward and fall over the front. So, as it gets to 5 mph, it calculates how much pressure you are putting on your toes vs. your heels and the forward lean of the pole, and it starts to lean the pole back towards you, so you CAN'T lean forward beyond your balancing point. It adjusts all the inputs over 1,000 times per second. Seamless and it feels intuitive. Amazing.
So why can't BMW make a speedometer that doesn't crap out after 2,000 miles? Oh, sorry, that was another thread.............
If you ever get a chance to ride one of these, do it. Fantastic.
Jeff
I just got back from Disney World with the family. One morning I signed up for a two hour two wheeled experience on the Segway personal transport "thing" that is right out of the Jetsons. Perhaps you have seen them?
You stand on a platform that is about 12" (I am guessing) high and the whole thing looks kind of like a pogo stick with mini motorcycle handle bars. The wheels are just lateral to each of your feet. This thing has ten microprocessors, five gyroscopes and the wheels are turned by servos. The one I used had a speed limiter of 5 mph. To go forward, you very slightly lean forward. All you have to do is put some pressure on your toes. To stop or go in reverse, you do the opposite. To go left, you twist the left grip counterclockwise. To go right, you twist the left grip clockwise.
I got the hang of it in about 5 minutes. If you are an experienced motorcycle rider, there are some things that are a bit counterintuitive, but you quickly get over that. Once you "get it" these things are absolutely amazing and more fun than you can possibly imagine.
They accelerate very quickly and stop, literally, on a dime. Once you get good at it, you can stop very quickly while turning and turn around and go in reverse, kind of like ice skating.
So, here is something interesting. Torque. You know, the motorcycle magazines list all these figures for new bikes. Most modern motocycles are making between 40 lb ft and 90 lb ft of torque, right? This little ditty makes..........300 lb ft of torque .....PER WHEEL! The most fun you can have between 0 and 5 mph, I tell you. The instructor's machines had a limiter at 12 mph, but they can be programmed to go over 20 and probably higher.
Now, with all the banter back and forth about ABS and servos that I missed while I was away, it occured to me while riding this thing that basically, it is a giant ABS/servo, period. What seperates this from all that has been argued in another thread is that this thing is light years more sophisicated than anything used in motorcycles.
The most interesting thing to me was that once you got the hang of it, it became clear that the machine has a better sense of balance than any of us, even if you are a tight rope walker or trapeze artist. It really felt like an extraordinary extension of your body. You just don't fall over on these things because they sense more than what you sense and adjust for it in a way that YOU can process the info and act accordingly.
For example, the speed limiter can't just stop the wheels from going more than 5 mph, because as you would try to go faster, you would lean forward and fall over the front. So, as it gets to 5 mph, it calculates how much pressure you are putting on your toes vs. your heels and the forward lean of the pole, and it starts to lean the pole back towards you, so you CAN'T lean forward beyond your balancing point. It adjusts all the inputs over 1,000 times per second. Seamless and it feels intuitive. Amazing.
So why can't BMW make a speedometer that doesn't crap out after 2,000 miles? Oh, sorry, that was another thread.............
If you ever get a chance to ride one of these, do it. Fantastic.
Jeff