Focus Design's SBU self-balancing unicycle: because you didn't look dumb enough on a Segway

The world of personal transportation, with few exceptions, has littered the earth with embarrassing paraphernalia. In-line skates, pogo sticks, the recumbent bike -- all disasters to personal style. Mix in electricity and you get the Segway, or alternatively, Focus Design's SBU electric self-balancing unicycle. The SBU can be steered by leaning left to right (like a regular unicycle) and uses Segway-style gyroscopes to power your lazy ass forwards and backwards. Not a new idea by any stretch, but Focus Design is actually crazy enough to be working on bringing this thing to market. Focus hopes to do a limited run of ten SBUs next month, at $1,500 a month. Peep the video after break to see if you can handle the shame.

[Via Hack a Day]

[TMC Posted Oct 19th 2008 9:22AM]

But does it come with a monkey suit? Cause then I'd get one!

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 19th 2008 3:40PM]

The role-call of ugly, embarrassing and all-together impractical personal transport solutions wouldn't be complete without the Sinclair C5 (see Wikipedia here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinclair_C5) which actually shipped, and was used in the UK!!!

[Cpsheehan Posted Oct 19th 2008 8:36PM]

notice none of the pictures on wikipedia have people sitting in them.. wonder why? :)

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 19th 2008 2:49PM]

Just because you can... ...Doesn't mean you should.

This really is a pathetic product.

Please tell me it is a joke.

Even if it isn't.

Tell me it is.

Seriously.

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 19th 2008 4:18PM]

i'm sure the inventors don't have speed bumps or holes in the roads or wrongly placed sewer covers in their city.
good for them.

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 19th 2008 4:24PM]

Sweat-free, relatively cheap, lightweight personal transport. Why is this such a stupid idea? Come on, are you really saying that it is a bad idea because someone might fall off it? Really? Sounds like something someone would have said about bikes before everyone had one. I used to rollerblade from 14th and 1st in NYC up to Times Square every day, and that gradual uphill meant I was full of sweat when I got to work. This would have solved it, and unlike the Segway, it would have stored next to my desk at work.

The real questions in my mind are how fast can it go and does it have enough range to get me to work and back in a close-in urban environment (about 10-15miles total between charges sounds right).

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 25th 2008 11:38AM]

Not terribly practical but it looks like it would be fun to play around on. $1500 for a unicycle though?

I agree with LarryX3, Give me something with some speed. I have a bicycle for short commutes and I'd get a regular unicycle if I wanted to play in the parking lot. Designer Tommy Forsgren created the Hermes in 2002 as a design exercise. This is what the next iteration of the Segway should be. It would have a special place in my garage right next to the Speed Triple...

http://www.toyfon.com/html/dc_hermes.htm

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 19th 2008 10:43PM]

Sponsored ads: Lumbar Spine Surgery. Hmm...

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 19th 2008 10:45PM]

Something similar has been around for a while;
http://tlb.org/eunicycle.html

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 19th 2008 10:46PM]

Unicycle seats are not the most comfortable things on the planet. My man parts hurt just thinking about riding it for any kind of distance and over any kinds of bumps. Still it might be fun though. I might try to build one when I get some free time.

[BrentK Posted Oct 20th 2008 12:03AM]

What do unicycles and fat girls have in common?


They're both fun to ride... until you're friends see you.

[BrentK Posted Oct 20th 2008 12:25AM]

So an edit feature would be kinda nice so I didn't look like a dumbass. Until YOUR friends see you that is.

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 20th 2008 12:26AM]

Oh come on... that's pretty damn awesome!

[(Unverified) Posted Oct 20th 2008 5:16PM]

To be fair this has been described before by Trevor Blackwell.
There is also a great Youtube video from Slovenia of the "Enicycle" which adds one key advance to this concept, it has an effective steering mechanism which allows you to learn to ride (and steer ) it pretty quickly. There is a video here of the inventor riding it around town, around a shopping mall and into his office.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXim_GPW0xw

John