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Control your Murata Boy bicycling robot via Bluetooth
Taken your new Segway over any sweet jumps (in reverse) lately? While it's highly improbable that you have (at least intentionally), you can satisfy your cravings for ascending inclines in a safer, less direct fashion with Murata's not-so-sheepishly named Murata Boy. The robotic bicycler has made quite a few strides in performance since last year, and thanks to improved balance, gyro, and shock sensors, can now handle slopes and even thinner balancing beams with ease. Plus, it received a whopping 9% speed increase, bringing the top-end up to a mind-numbing 1.34 miles per hour -- though apparently it feels a helmet is still a necessity at that pace (gotta be a role model for the kiddies, you know). The real thrill comes from controlling the Tour de France-trainee via your cellphone; sporting a built-in Bluetooth module in its backpack, the Murata Boy wheels wherever you direct it, so long as it can handle the terrain. Sure to be just as popular in Japan as the Tickle Me Elmo eXtreme should be in America this holiday season, the Murata Boy will be released to the masses on October 3rd for an undisclosed price.[Via Impress]
Dekra D-Drive bike trades the chain for direct-drive
Anyone who's ever gotten clothing caught in their bicycle gears and been sent tumbling to the ground with a shredded pant leg will surely appreciate a new bike that ditches the derailleur in favor of a safer, cleaner, lower-maintenance direct-drive system. Just introduced Stateside by importer Dynacraft, the Dekra D-Drive bike uses a drive shaft to transfer power from your pedal-pumping legs to the back wheel, and includes a fully enclosed bevel gear system from Shimano to ease your load on those uphill climbs. Of course, with only three gears (changeable through a twist of the handlebar), this model will never be seen cruising victoriously down the cobbled surface of the Champs-Elysées at the end of a Tour de France, but at $300 it seems like a reasonably-priced way to roll around town hassle-free.[Via Gizmag]
GyroBike flywheel helps bicycles self-steady
Besides learning to use the toilet properly, the ability to ride a bicycle is one of the most important early-childhood accomplishments, but unfortunately, the current use of training wheels for practice does little to prepare kids for life on two wheels. Well a start-up using technology developed at Dartmouth College is aiming to eliminate the rolling crutches that are training wheels, and replace them with a gyroscopic flywheel that attaches to the front wheel and helps a bike steady itself whenever the rider loses his/her balance. Expected to retail for around $40 when it hits the market, the GyroBike by the company of the same name works by spinning in conjunction with the wheel it's attached to, using natural physical properties to turn the handlebars towards the direction of an impending fall. GyroBike also claims to be in talks with the top six manufacturers of kids' bikes, so you may soon be able to buy a model with this technology built-in instead of retrofitting one you already own.[Via Cnet]
