Tag: hoverbike

Stompy: The Giant Walking Robot!

Is this likely to be the next wave in robotics? Six-legged walking machines that are capable of carrying heavy freight, towing large payloads, or erecting tall buildings? And let’s not discount the militarized version! Six-legged mechanized warriors stacked with missiles, rail guns, and giant foot pads capable of crushing entire columns of enemy infantry! Seriously, is this the future? Because I’m starting to get a tad nervous…

The people responsible are what is known as Project Hexapod, a teacher-student cooperative working out of Massachusetts’ Artisan Asylum. For almost a year now, they’ve been working towards their goal of creating a walking, rideable robot. Beginning in April of 2012, the group began work on the design, and after four months, they launched a website and began soliciting donations. And of course, they promised plenty of returns for those pledging money.

For those making modest donations, stickers, photos and T-shirts were the common prize. But for those pledging more substantial donations – on the scale of say $200 – they promise to take an object of the donor’s choice and crush it for them. They even promise to post a video of the destruction on YouTube for the world to enjoy. And for those pledging $300 or more, they will get to ride the 18-foot wide steel beast while those giving $1000 will even get to man the controls.  Look out world! The only thing more cool than that would be if you could float a cool $300,000, in which case they will construct one for you!

Much like the Hoverbike, this Project represents a new wave in the field of technological development. Rather than being in the hands of private industry, or dependent on their investment capitol, here we see enterprising individuals going directly to the public to make their inventions a reality. Much like alternative media and indie publishing, we once again see the internet cutting out the middle man and the traditional gatekeepers, and opening up opportunities for those with dreams (and an extensive technical background!).

Check out the video of Stompy’s development below. And if you are one of those rare individuals who can score a ride on this behemoth, let me wish you good luck, and good stomping!

Source: kickstarter.com

The Future is Here: Hoverbike for Sale!

Boy, I’m behind the times here! But that’s what you get when you go away for two weeks and don’t keep up with the latest in trade and tech news. According to Next Big Future, a prototype hoverbike is now available for purchase. Apparently, inventor Chris Malloy, who built the prototype last June, is now offering to custom build one for anyone willing to cough up $84,500 US (or $80,000 Australian).

Powered by ducted fans, mounted at the front and rear, the bike is like something out of Star Wars, except that the science is perfectly sound ;). So far, Malloy has conducted tests with the bike tethered to the ground, which demonstrates that it is capable of hovering just fine. However, he is still working out the kinks when it comes to riding freely.

This is especially true when it comes to turning and rolling, which any biker will tell you is when stability counts for everything. Initially, Malloy was hoping to let the driver turn the vehicle simply by leaning this way and that. However, he soon abandoned that idea in favor of a computerized control system that would ensure stability. This, he has yet to finish, but he’s hopeful that with the right investment capital, he can make it work.

According to his own website, he is eliciting donations to fund the development of his project through to completion. His requested total is 1.1 million dollars to bring the project to fruition and begin commercial production. When he reaches that goal, he will be giving the prototype away for free. Pretty cool of him huh? I recommend people get their names in now and pledge a few dollars. That prototype is not going to be around for long!

In the meantime, check out this video posted by Malloy himself, where he tests the scale model of the bike to show how the fans work.