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The motorcycle of the future is so safe riders can cruise without helmet—all of the thrills with none of the danger—according to BMW.
The German automaker unveiled on Tuesday its Motorrad Vision Next 100, a sleek, self-balancing prototype the company released as part of its 100th anniversary celebrations.
The zero-emissions bike has self-balancing wheels designed to stand upright even at a complete stop, stability that the company says will allow riders to forgo riding a helmet.
"Its self-balancing system will help protect the rider at any time," said Edgar Heinrich, the design director of BMW's motorcycle division. "Any late reaction from the driver will trigger and the vehicle will balance out."
"In the future, motorcycle riders will be able to enjoy riding without protective gear."
The TRON light cycle is almost here.
(Score: 1) by Francis on Friday October 14 2016, @02:09PM
That's rather unlikely. It's not possible to countersteer when going that slowly. It's impossible to countersteer until you've got sufficient momentum built up to overcome frictional forces on the tire and force you to lean. It's impossible to countersteer a motorcycle if you're going less than about 15mph. Below that you direct steer.
In the case of bicycles, it's doubtful that you're really countersteering there for similar reasons. Most likely the minimal lean you need to turn the bike is coming from a shift in the body weight rather than actual countersteering. The fact that your pedals are anywhere near the ground while turning at such a slow speed indicates that you're not likely to be countersteering at all, you're most likely leaning the bike manually and counterleaning to keep things balanced.
(Score: 1) by Scruffy Beard 2 on Friday October 14 2016, @02:22PM
Yes, that was what I meant to say. My post got mangled.