Honda, as you may know, is a big fan of all things robotic. At this year’s Tokyo Motor Show they will display not only their latest humanoid robots like Asimo, they will also bring along what real humans would be driving in the robotic age. They call it the Personal Mobility Device.
The latest PMD by Honda is this penguin- like thingy called the UNI-CUB. It can move forward, backward, side-to-side and diagonally simply by shifting their body weight and leaning towards the intended direction.
This, of course, is not new technology. The UNI-CUB ? is not representing a new technology. What it does is practice a real-world version of the Personal Mobility concept. It allows Honda to study the business feasibility of the device by offering the UNI-CUB ? to other businesses and organisations in Japan through a fee-based leasing program.
The new CUB benefits form improved materials and is designed to be more practical and usable. Powerd by an electric motor that gets its energy from a lithium-ion battery, the 25 kg CUB can travel for three miles at a steady 3 miles an hour. It seems ideal for fat, lazy people to get around the shopping malls without burning any calories.