By Andrew Liszewski

Tokyo Times has a small collection of photos of Japanese bikes that are used to deliver soups and other sloshy/spillable food items. On the back of the bikes there’s a counterweighted tray contraption that ensures the food containers always remain perfectly horizontal no matter how haphazardly the driver is navigating the streets. Seems like a simple but clever hack, as long as you like your food shaken, but not stirred.

[ Tokyo Times - Dangerously delivered dinner ] VIA [ Wired Gadget Lab ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Those giant luxury motorhomes (McMotorhomes instead of McMansions?) that come complete with fold-out balconies and retracting flat screen TVs are nice and all, but you’re pretty limited to where you can actually take one. So for true flexibility when it comes to your next ‘camping’ trip you might want to check out the Private Explorer.

It’s basically a two-seater single-engine aircraft that doubles as a miniature cottage. While it doesn’t have anywhere near the luxuries of a bus-sized motorhome, it does manage to include a bed, a dining table, a fridge, a stove, a toilet, a shower, a water pump, and a heater making it considerably more comfortable than your standard tent. And since the Private Explorer comes with the option of adding floats, instead of just visiting the lake, you can use it as your actual runway. Understandably the Private Explorer will set you back about $102,000 ($130,000 CDN) which is pretty much what a well-equipped motorhome would run you. Though I’m not sure which one would have the higher gas bill.

[ Private Explorer ] VIA [ Born Rich ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Yesterday Schwinn unveiled their Tailwind eBike which uses Toshiba’s Super Charge ion Battery technology allowing it to be recharged using a standard residential outlet in just 30 minutes. Now I haven’t really been following the progress of electric bicycles, but Schwinn claims the 30 minute recharge time is about 1/8 the time needed for their competitor’s models, which if true is quite impressive. I also like the fact that if you didn’t know the Tailwind was a so-called eBike, you probably wouldn’t be able to tell if someone rode past you on one. (As long as they were pedaling that is.)

The electric motor is actually housed in the small hub on the front wheel, and the Plug N’ Drive battery pack is located on the rear bike rack making it easy to detach. So instead of having to run an extension cord to where your bike is, you can simply take the battery to the wall outlet. Depending on weather conditions, the wind and your course, the Tailwind is expected to get about 25 to 30 miles on a single charge, but a Shimano Nexus 8-speed internal geared hub allows you to switch over to pedal power should the battery die before you get home. In fact the only downside is the steep $3,199.99 price tag.

[ Schwinn Unveils the Tailwind Electric Bicycle at Interbike ] VIA [ Chip Chick ]

By Evan Ackerman

Finally, a practical reason to go somewhere on a bike. The OHM Personal Energy Device, designed by Xavier Unwin, is a little generator that siphons power from your bike’s wheels to charge your iPod or cell phone or anything else that can suck down 5 volts. All you have to do is clip some magnets to your spokes, align the charger with the magnets, and start to peddle. The unit’s internal 1200 mAh lithium battery gets charged inductively as the magnets move past it, and depending on how insane serious of a cyclist you are, you’ll be able to charge your cell phone in 45 minutes to an hour. This is a much more effective charge rate than some other portable chargers we’ve tested, with the trade-off being that you have to put work into this one. Consequently, it will certainly slow you down a little bit, but if you’re riding a bike, you can’t be in that much of a hurry anyway, right?

The OHM is currently in the concept stage, but I figured that it’s such a simple and straightforward idea that someone is bound to put it into production sometime soon.

VIA [ Yanko Design ]

By Andrew Liszewski

When someone mentions airbags, you usually think of the emergency safety devices that explode from the dashboard of your car when you get in an accident. But for many years now, NASA has been successfully using airbags to land their rovers on Mars. In a manner of speaking, the rovers basically crash onto the planet’s surface after a parachute descent, and it’s those large airbags that ensure they end up in full working order once they’ve touched down. So engineers at Bell Helicopter (makers of the famous Huey and other highly recognizable whirlybirds) figured that similar airbags could do the same thing for choppers forced to make a crash landing.

The airbags (and necessary inflation systems) would be mounted to the underside of the aircraft and would be automatically triggered before the helicopter hit the ground at a high velocity. (I assume the criteria for inflation will be a lot more complex than my brief summary.) And unlike the airbags used in a car which are pretty much useless after they’ve been triggered, the airbags on these helicopters will still be able to re-inflate after the initial deployment so they can serve as flotation devices should the crash occur in the water.

Also, why is it that so many images submitted with patent applications look like they were hand-sketched by Leonardo Da Vinci? You’d think by the time the patent application was submitted that most companies would already have complex 3D models and images already created. I guess it comes down to keeping their IP and what the final product will actually look like a closely guarded secret.

[ Bell Helicopter Patent - Crash Attenuation System For Aircraft ] VIA [ New Scientist Invention Blog ]

By Andrew Liszewski

It’s not uncommon for people who travel across the country in a large RV to tow a smaller car so that they can leave the RV parked at a campsite while still making day trips. The same problem exists for pilots who fly around the country, except that they have no choice but to leave their light planes at the local airport when they want to go into town. But finding a ride can be difficult since most small airports that cater to light planes don’t have car rental facilities. So if you’re a pilot who’s encountered this problem before, you might want to consider the MotoPOD which is basically a cargo pod that allows you to carry a street-legal motorcycle underneath your plane.

The motorcycle is a Yamaha XT225 which was selected because it was both economical and lightweight, and overall the pod and bike add about 500 pounds to an aircraft’s total weight. (Resulting in an airspeed cut of about 9 knots.) The bike does require a bit of assembly before it can be ridden, but the pod is easily lowered with a built-in powered winch and you can apparently be on the road just minutes after landing. The MotoPOD is expected to go on sale later this year with a price tag below $10,000 (including the motorcycle) but you can reserve one now for a fully-refundable $1,000.

[ MotoPOD ] VIA [ Gizmag ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I’ve seen quite a few different variations on the inline skate including the addition of larger wheels for off-road travel and even an electric motor so you don’t have to exercise at all. But the Booster Blades are definitely the most unique, and quite possibly the most dangerous set of inline skates I’ve ever seen. The easiest way to wrap your head around the crazy looking mechanism is to think of the Booster Blades as a cross between a set of inline skates and a bicycle. The rider uses a natural ‘stepping’ or ‘pedaling’ motion which is translated to the rear wheels via gears, sprockets and a chain to propel them forward.

Drive is via a belt over a spiral cam, which turns a 33 tooth sprocket, from which a 6mm pitch chain drives an 11 tooth sprocket on the back axle. The back axle drives the rear wheel through a freewheel, giving forward propulsion geared up 4:1.

Braking is achieved by a specially shaped brake block, which presses on the back tyre when the boot plate is tilted back. This can only be done when the mechanism is in the down position.

Apparently the Booster Blades gives the rider more speed for less effort, but they can also be ‘locked down’ and used as conventional inline skates at the push of a button. And while previous experience with inline skates is a plus, according to their website the Booster Blades still have a bit of a learning curve that’s not unlike learning to ride a bicycle.

[ Booster Blades ] VIA [ TechEBlog ]

By Andrew Liszewski

At first glance you might think that the horse in the above photos is pulling a ridiculously over-designed carriage, but in reality it’s actually a training vehicle designed by Roush Technologies for Turkish-based Kurt Systems who trains race horses and camels. The vehicle provides trainers and veterinarians with a close-up view of the animal while it’s moving and allows them to continually monitor its vital signs at precisely controlled speeds from a walking pace all the way up to 60kph.

The striking and unusual looking machine incorporates a number of innovative and unique vehicle systems, as well as a diesel engine, automatic transmission and a spacious luxury cabin for a crew of three. Weighing in at around 4 tonnes, the vehicle effectively provides a moving enclosure similar to a starting stall, in which the animal can walk, trot or full gallop freely in a controlled environment, whilst being monitored and trained to optimise race performance.

The spacious cabin, which is mounted rearward of the horse, includes a centrally mounted driver’s seat, plus additional seats for a trainer and a veterinary specialist. Onboard systems include 12-volt and 240-volt electrical supplies, to power systems such as computerised heart, blood, oxygen and fitness monitoring. The unit also carries a range of precision hydraulically controlled accessories, such as a silicone saddle to simulate jockey weights.

The training vehicle also features electronically controlled reins which ensure that the horse is being steered in the same direction as the vehicle at all times. Since it was custom built for Kurt Systems I can only assume that the Roush Horse Trainer comes with a pretty high price tag, but given how competitive and lucrative horse racing can be, I have to wonder if they’ve signed Roush to an exclusive deal when it comes to the actual design.

[ Autoblog - ROUSH develops vehicle to increase horse power ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I don’t own a car, but apparently those numbers posted at the gas station mean that refueling your vehicle has gotten rather expensive these days. So instead of heading out in the family minivan with the kids, why not go the bike route instead? The Zigo is a modular bicycle that allows you to carry a couple of kids in the ChildPod up front, which makes it easier to keep an eye on them while you’re riding. (As opposed to having the child sitting behind you.) When you get to your destination the ChildPod can be removed and transformed into a stroller in about 30 seconds which then allows the Zigo to be used as a standard 2-wheeled bicycle once you attach the front wheel.

At $995 from MyZigo.com it’s not the cheapest bike or stroller on the market, particularly when you consider it’s something your kids will quickly outgrow. But if it helps avoid a trip to the gas station, I guess it could be worthwhile in the long run.

[ Zigo Leader Carrier Bicycle ] VIA [ YoKiddo! ]