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The Kaiteki – the future of bicycles?

FTV rides around on “THE-KAITEKI”, a futuristic bicycle designed by Mitsubishi:

The bike’s body is made from a strong lightweight plastic and it has an electric motor that can take over when the cyclist needs some help. The battery can be recharged via solar panels or a docking station.

The second vehicle shown in the clip is a special electric bicycle/wheelchair hybrid aimed at elderly consumers. It is being developed by Yamaha and Nikko City and has safety features such as a brake that automatically stops the bike if it is rolling down a hill.

The last vehicle shown in the clip is GM’s experimental Segway vehicle. The news anchor seems to doubt GM’s claims about the vehicle’s safety.

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12 comments - What do you think? Posted by James - April 9, 2009 at 10:04 am

Categories: Technology Tags: gadgets, tech

Matt

Designed by engineers who never did bicycle. You don’t need solar system and so on, a good bicycle should as light weighted as possible.
doodles

This is the most retarded crap I’ve seen in awhile. When will the Japanese learn…they can’t invent anything from scratch! Only build on a concept already created abroad?
God this is hideous. Make a light weight foldable bike with some kind of safety visor and we’ll talk
Brian

As someone who often rode bicycles in the rain and tried everything from umbrellas to bigger umbrellas (ever ~sailed~ your bike?) to raincoats & pants… your lower feet inevitably get wet and your socks are soaked for the rest of the day. I’d love to have one of these if it weren’t for the inevitable ¥200,000+ price tag.
シェイコラ

I love how she slags off the PUMA without really knowing anything. “They say it’s safe, but I don’t know about that…”

hl

The segway looked way more stable than whatever the first bike was.

Maxim

They should stabilize the front wheel (maybe put in 2 front wheels) and make the top removable.

Or just build a bicycle with a more comfortable seat.
AJ

“they can’t invent anything”
The Economist begs to differ: http://tinyurl.com/dhtx2s
But hey, what do they know . . .
http://www.kilala.nl Cailin Coilleach

Man, that guy can’t steer straight worth his life. Either that, or it’s down to the bike’s design

They could’ve improved the bike a lot by either taking an existing design. Instead of sitting like you’re on a chair they should’ve taken the entire upright position of a normal bike, or the laid back position of a lie-down bike.

Some of features look nice though: the bright LED lighting, the electronic assist, the double rear wheels…

sdasdasda

Maybe he was having fun with it? I wonder can you fell down if you make tight enough turn.

Mark

They all look like the fastest way to go under the wheels of a truck.
http://www.zdwonline.de Haf

I don’t think we’ll see many of those out in the streets…
samuel

looks like “olddudecar”.

http://www.midulsterauctions.com/IMAGES/64_001.jpg

The Kaiteki – the future of bicycles?

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