Honda has unveiled their latest technological innovation in the motorcycle space with a self-balancing motorcycle at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, USA. Honda has applied the self-balancing technology that they had developed for the UNI CUB personal mobility device and demonstrated a production prototype.
At the show, the self-balancing motorcycle rolled out after the UNI CUB without a rider on the saddle and managed to stand on its own. BMW had displayed a similar self-balancing motorcycle last year and with Honda joining the bandwagon, we can expect more manufacturers to build similar motorcycles.
With the autonomous driving and connected vehicle technologies developing rapidly, these prototypes tease the inclusion of two-wheelers under their ambit. You could possibly ride to a restaurant, get off the bike and then the motorcycle would ride and park itself. It would also open up commercial applications like bike-taxis in traffic congested areas for short trips.
Gyroscopes would have been an easier way to achieve self-balancing but then it would have added to the bulk and weight of the motorcycle which is a concern especially for the future electric motorcycles. The current technology is compact and hence there is a one in hundred chance of it being applied to the current generation of motorcycles for added riding safety as well.
