Are people really interested in "hoverboards"?

[Bobular]

Also, why is it called a hoverboard? It's not hovering. It's still connected to wheels. If that's what classifies one, then my car is a hoverboard.

You mean hover car. What a time to be alive.

Seriously though they are not hover anything, but it was an ingenious ploy by some marketing team somewhere.

Whenever I see kids on them about town they always collide with someone/something. If I see one coming anywhere near me I'm going to give them a wide berth, I don't think they should be any where near a crowd.

 

[Einspanner]

I think Hoverboards are too dangerous to use. Especially those news I've read that it can explode while using it due to overheating. Just my 2 cents.

That's just a matter of cheap chargers and their batteries (said batteries explode if overcharged, and the cheap charging circuits they tend to use in those things have a habit of not cutting off when they should). Also, said batteries in anything that can wreck is probably a bad idea to begin with, since they are explosive if punctured as well.

This is the closest thing to an actual hoverboard that exists at the moment:


I would say that they're definitely on the right track.

So long as you are fine with being limited to short trips where you only travel over copper coated surfaces. The "engines" are basically pairs of magnets spinning on an axis. It looks like the big improvements they made for the 2.0 are giving it a wider base so it's harder to tip and getting quieter motors to spin the magnets.

This is just a marketing stunt, for a very good technology. This isn't really going to be marketed primarily to hobbyists, but to companies that need to move dense freight in warehouses and that kind of thing. Coat your warehouse floor, and all of your lifts no longer need a giant machine to drive them around, or training to use. Much safer too. You'd only need forklifts for stacking, so you'd probably use a roof-mounted device instead. Safer, more efficient, no internal combustion engine, few moving parts, relatively cheap compared to heavy moving equipment, and that's pretty much where they're going with this.

In the same way that hydrophobic coatings weren't developed so that we could see people throw mustard at their shoes.

 

[LordLundar]

It's a segway without the stick in it.

More accurately it's a segway without the safety systems. No, I'm not joking. To allow for stunts and similar setups they had to tone down or cut out a lot of what makes the segway so rock solid stable. The problem is that those stability functions are there for safety. So even without the exploding issue you still have something that is not very safe to ride on in the first place. It would not surprise me if there are far more injuries from falls taken while riding those than from the exploding batteries.

 

[visiblenoise]

Well, I'm not. I already sit around all day at work. If I get one of these things, I'll be giving up more opportunity to do some walking around, and I won't even look cool.

 

[Schadrach]

This is just a marketing stunt, for a very good technology. This isn't really going to be marketed primarily to hobbyists, but to companies that need to move dense freight in warehouses and that kind of thing. Coat your warehouse floor, and all of your lifts no longer need a giant machine to drive them around, or training to use. Much safer too. You'd only need forklifts for stacking, so you'd probably use a roof-mounted device instead. Safer, more efficient, no internal combustion engine, few moving parts, relatively cheap compared to heavy moving equipment, and that's pretty much where they're going with this.

I think you are overestimating the tech. Capacity vs battery life is going to be a killer to use this in an industrial capacity. Let alone what happens when it fails. Or potential safety risks of electrically conductive floors in a lot of industrial environments.

Forklifts have the advantage of most kinds of failure not dropping the freight, having a comparatively high capacity vs power requirements, and being comparatively cheap to repair if you have a decent mechanic (mostly because failures tend not to damage load bearing parts).

Safer can be resolved by training people properly to run a forklift.
I disagree wildly about efficiency (hint: they never seem to do any long duration demos of these things, or show load capacity, for a reason).
Electric forklifts exist (and have very large, very heavy batteries to supply enough juice for usage, the kinds of batteries your "hover pallet" is going to need to also be carrying to run the hundred+ "hover engines" needed to supply the kind of lift you get from a small forklift for anything resembling a usable duration -- if there's any lift in excess of the weight the batteries would take up for an 8+ hour usage).
Moving parts involve a motor spinning an axle for each "hover engine" as well as several actuators of some variety per "hover engine" if you want it to be steerable.
Price is another thing I'm just going to disagree with you on. Mostly because we're talking about replacing a forklift with paving your entire work area in a conductive material and one or more hover pallets, each made up of a hundred or more hover engines (assuming we're comparing to a very small forklift and assuming that the 2-4 they put on hoverboard demos is around the minimum to lift a person), and at least one overhead crane (because you can't do vertical movement).

Let me demonstrate one obvious problem using a simple and common shipping and receiving task: You need to load a very heavy pallet of materials out of a box truck (say, 2 inch thick steel plates 3' x 3' in size, or anything else heavy enough that individual parts are out of typical manhandling range). It's heavy enough that the driver cannot push it to the very back of the trailer on a pallet jack.

With a forklift, you basically tie a line to the pallet, drag it to the back of the trailer, fork it and go. Unless you have a loading dock, in which case you just drive in and fork it.

With a hover pallet you need to do some voodoo to transport the pallet to the back of the (not specially floored) trailer, *then* load the pallet from the end of the trailer onto your hover pallet, then you can move it. You *could* use that overhead crane you also necessarily have to do the dragging bit like with the forklift, but cranes aren't intended for that kind of use and are harder to control when doing a horizontal tug like that (read: less safe than doing with forklift). It's doable though (until it comes time to *load* a box truck, that is). Then re-rig the pallet with the crane so you have a shorter strap, and set it on the hover pallet. Then stare at the forklift driver for the next truck over who's on his fifth pallet, and start crying.

Loading said box truck is of similar difficulty for the forklift driver, but an order of magnitude worse for our hover pallet operator. Why? Because you can't really push with a crane, and you presumably aren't going to ship the load still on the hover pallet, which means you need to get it off the hover pallet at some point.

 

[MrFalconfly]

This is just a marketing stunt, for a very good technology. This isn't really going to be marketed primarily to hobbyists, but to companies that need to move dense freight in warehouses and that kind of thing. Coat your warehouse floor, and all of your lifts no longer need a giant machine to drive them around, or training to use. Much safer too. You'd only need forklifts for stacking, so you'd probably use a roof-mounted device instead. Safer, more efficient, no internal combustion engine, few moving parts, relatively cheap compared to heavy moving equipment, and that's pretty much where they're going with this.

In the same way that hydrophobic coatings weren't developed so that we could see people throw mustard at their shoes.

Not to be a party-pooper, but I recon the only actually usable tech in that "hover-board" would be the electro-motors.

Fit wheels to the motors instead of magnets you you'll have an infinitely more flexible platform for carrying things.

Hell, Lego in Billund has already fully roboticized their warehouse


Also, if you want altitude, propellers are a lot better than diamagnetism (and they work over all kinds of surfaces, not to mention, propellers give you a source of thrust, which these Hendo diamagnetic "rotators" don't).

So that Hendo Hoverboard, really is just a very inefficient, very expensive, very limited, quadcopter.

 

[Hairless Mammoth]

These self-balancing scooters are just the latest fad product. Even worse is the scooter fad is driven by marketers trying to capitalize on that cool scene from Back to the Future II and the fact that we just past the date in the movie. "Slap a catchy name on it and air a few commercials."

I remember tons and tons of ads for different 90s products that seemed to shoot up overnight and fall into obscurity a couple years (or even months) later. This craze specifically reminds me of those folding inline kick scooters (Razor scooters). Suddenly, a hundred year old design got a modern twist, plus modern materials, and was marketed to hell and back. Every kid wanted one for a while. A few months later, they were mostly forgotten about until someone brought theirs to school or, rarely, dug it out the back of the garage to goof around with friends.

These "hoverboards" might not even be in the public eye for much longer for several reasons. They aren't very stable, thanks to the above mentioned removal of safety parameters. Many videos exist of people falling over while barely moving because the ground wasn't smooth enough. The cheaper scooter brands have a neat auto-immolation feature, which has become famous enough for them to be banned from airplanes (and probably other places) and makes many owners worried about anything flammable (buildings, themselves, etc) around the scooter. Finally, Segway filed patent infringement against several of the manufactures and just got an import ban in the US enacted against those manufacturers until the lawsuits finish. With all of that going on (and the price of them eventually skyrocketing due to supply issues), we'll probably see something else replacing these flaming chariots soon. Besides, novelty drones are still the king of the expensive Li-ion powered toy sector.

 

[Drops a Sweet Katana]

A few people ride those things around on campus and every time they go past, I get the overwhelming urge to just kick them off. They are unbelievably annoying when people ride them on the sidewalk, as well as fucking dangerous.

 

[DudeistBelieve]

These self-balancing scooters are just the latest fad product. Even worse is the scooter fad is driven by marketers trying to capitalize on that cool scene from Back to the Future II and the fact that we just past the date in the movie. "Slap a catchy name on it and air a few commercials."

I remember tons and tons of ads for different 90s products that seemed to shoot up overnight and fall into obscurity a couple years (or even months) later. This craze specifically reminds me of those folding inline kick scooters (Razor scooters). Suddenly, a hundred year old design got a modern twist, plus modern materials, and was marketed to hell and back. Every kid wanted one for a while. A few months later, they were mostly forgotten about until someone brought theirs to school or, rarely, dug it out the back of the garage to goof around with friends.

The Razor scooters actually were a quality product, I used mine for quite awhile in college where I had to park an obscene to the buildings for class. Faster than walking, and a nice compromise instead of a bicycle.

These things though, I don't understand the appeal. It's barely faster than walking. I could see it maybe if you were spending a day walking around New York City, then maybe it be useful but beyond that... it just seems lazy.

 

[Mikeybb]

Is there really a market for these things?

I couldn't believe there was a market for those ridiculously shrunk down motorbikes.
You know the kind.

The sort where when you see a person riding them it's like a cross between someone having mugged a clown in gta and someone having accidentally joined a chapter of hells angels exclusively for garden gnomes.
And yet, despite this, those horrible little knuckle grazing deathtraps were all the rage for a while.

Perhaps it'll be the same for the hoverboards.
Over time the people who are interested in buying them will either have a sudden attack of self preservation fueled common sense or they'll accrue enough injuries that they won't be able to use them any more.

 

[Hairless Mammoth]

The Razor scooters actually were a quality product, I used mine for quite awhile in college where I had to park an obscene to the buildings for class. Faster than walking, and a nice compromise instead of a bicycle.

These things though, I don't understand the appeal. It's barely faster than walking. I could see it maybe if you were spending a day walking around New York City, then maybe it be useful but beyond that... it just seems lazy.

I see the benefits of a Razor scooter, especially over a bike. Cheap, space saving, nimble in tight spaces. (While trying to remember the brand name and searching online, I read they became popular in Japan's crowded streets.) I just don't remember the ads from my youth actually showing anyone riding them for practical use. All I can recall was the typical 90s "Xtreme" marketing, with kids pulling off small tricks or racing each other in the suburbs.

I also do not see these new scooters having much practical use. Even looking past the fire issue, they are more dangerous than the Razor scooters.

 

[FalloutJack]

Why? Seriously, they look absolutely ridiculous, and pretentious as hell.
It's a segway without the stick in it.
Is there really a market for these things?

You just answered your own question. People will buy it because of that, and because of Back to the Future, honestly.

 

[JaKandDaxter]

I rode one before owned by a cousin. Its not that hard to get used to. If your balance is bad, and you get afraid of falling. Then it isn't for you. The self balancing scooter can become second nature with practice. The online videos of people falling are misleading. As they are likely first timers, such as Mike Tyson.

I personally managed to not fall. But you need to understand the slightest movement in your leg muscules is enough to get around. If you lean, then it goes into 60 mph mode. And then that's when people either lose their balance, or get scared. Will it be an electronic that fades into memory? Probably. But I wouldn't mind playing around with it for a while. And it will be more of a novelty item than those Razor scooters someone mentioned earlier.

 

[Zeraki]

I would only be interested in hoverboards if they were the boards from Back To The Future. Those silly spontaneous combustion machines that ride on wheels and don't actually hover are stupid.

 

[LordLundar]

The sort where when you see a person riding them it's like a cross between someone having mugged a clown in gta and someone having accidentally joined a chapter of hells angels exclusively for garden gnomes.

I laughed at this far more than I probably should have.

 

[Mikeybb]

The sort where when you see a person riding them it's like a cross between someone having mugged a clown in gta and someone having accidentally joined a chapter of hells angels exclusively for garden gnomes.

I laughed at this far more than I probably should have.

Just keep it on the quiet.
No one messes with 'the devils anklebiters' and gets away with it...

These guys can just ruin your lawn.

 

[Einspanner]

This is just a marketing stunt, for a very good technology. This isn't really going to be marketed primarily to hobbyists, but to companies that need to move dense freight in warehouses and that kind of thing. Coat your warehouse floor, and all of your lifts no longer need a giant machine to drive them around, or training to use. Much safer too. You'd only need forklifts for stacking, so you'd probably use a roof-mounted device instead. Safer, more efficient, no internal combustion engine, few moving parts, relatively cheap compared to heavy moving equipment, and that's pretty much where they're going with this.

In the same way that hydrophobic coatings weren't developed so that we could see people throw mustard at their shoes.

Not to be a party-pooper, but I recon the only actually usable tech in that "hover-board" would be the electro-motors.

Fit wheels to the motors instead of magnets you you'll have an infinitely more flexible platform for carrying things.

Hell, Lego in Billund has already fully roboticized their warehouse

Lego is huge. Literally and metaphorically, and in terms of how much stuff they produce every day. There are a lot of warehouses around the world that wouldn't benefit from complete automation, but could still use some improvement, or partial automation with humans doing the floor-level work.

Also, if you want altitude, propellers are a lot better than diamagnetism (and they work over all kinds of surfaces, not to mention, propellers give you a source of thrust, which these Hendo diamagnetic "rotators" don't).

So that Hendo Hoverboard, really is just a very inefficient, very expensive, very limited, quadcopter.

Except that you really specifically do NOT want altitude. The entire point of this is that is JUST levitates the load, so that a failure is not catastrophic, or dangerous. It's just an evolution of using an air cushion. As for copters, that is never going to be a way smart way to move freight. Expensive and fast maybe, only for relatively small, light packages. If you want drones delivering freight, ground effect planes or some kind of airship would probably be the way to go.

This is just a marketing stunt, for a very good technology. This isn't really going to be marketed primarily to hobbyists, but to companies that need to move dense freight in warehouses and that kind of thing. Coat your warehouse floor, and all of your lifts no longer need a giant machine to drive them around, or training to use. Much safer too. You'd only need forklifts for stacking, so you'd probably use a roof-mounted device instead. Safer, more efficient, no internal combustion engine, few moving parts, relatively cheap compared to heavy moving equipment, and that's pretty much where they're going with this.

I think you are overestimating the tech. Capacity vs battery life is going to be a killer to use this in an industrial capacity. Let alone what happens when it fails. Or potential safety risks of electrically conductive floors in a lot of industrial environments.

The conductive surface doesn't need to be exposed, and why would you want these to be battery powered only?

Forklifts have the advantage of most kinds of failure not dropping the freight, having a comparatively high capacity vs power requirements, and being comparatively cheap to repair if you have a decent mechanic (mostly because failures tend not to damage load bearing parts).

Cheap repair, sure, but lower capacity than mag lev (by a lot in fact) and this has the benefit that a failure only drops the freight a fraction of an inch. It would obviously not be a total replacement, it would be a way to rapidly and easily allow anyone to move heavy freight at floor level.

Safer can be resolved by training people properly to run a forklift.

CAN, but isn't. Shit happens with a forklift, and you need trained people on site. Neither would be the case with this device. That alone is an argument for it.

I disagree wildly about efficiency (hint: they never seem to do any long duration demos of these things, or show load capacity, for a reason).
Electric forklifts exist (and have very large, very heavy batteries to supply enough juice for usage, the kinds of batteries your "hover pallet" is going to need to also be carrying to run the hundred+ "hover engines" needed to supply the kind of lift you get from a small forklift for anything resembling a usable duration -- if there's any lift in excess of the weight the batteries would take up for an 8+ hour usage).
Moving parts involve a motor spinning an axle for each "hover engine" as well as several actuators of some variety per "hover engine" if you want it to be steerable.
Price is another thing I'm just going to disagree with you on. Mostly because we're talking about replacing a forklift with paving your entire work area in a conductive material and one or more hover pallets, each made up of a hundred or more hover engines (assuming we're comparing to a very small forklift and assuming that the 2-4 they put on hoverboard demos is around the minimum to lift a person), and at least one overhead crane (because you can't do vertical movement).

Again, you're confusing elements of this "Hover Board" demo, and the use to which the underlying technology will be put. It won't be a "Hoverboard" you can ride.

Let me demonstrate one obvious problem using a simple and common shipping and receiving task: You need to load a very heavy pallet of materials out of a box truck (say, 2 inch thick steel plates 3' x 3' in size, or anything else heavy enough that individual parts are out of typical manhandling range). It's heavy enough that the driver cannot push it to the very back of the trailer on a pallet jack.

With a forklift, you basically tie a line to the pallet, drag it to the back of the trailer, fork it and go. Unless you have a loading dock, in which case you just drive in and fork it.

With a hover pallet you need to do some voodoo to transport the pallet to the back of the (not specially floored) trailer, *then* load the pallet from the end of the trailer onto your hover pallet, then you can move it. You *could* use that overhead crane you also necessarily have to do the dragging bit like with the forklift, but cranes aren't intended for that kind of use and are harder to control when doing a horizontal tug like that (read: less safe than doing with forklift). It's doable though (until it comes time to *load* a box truck, that is). Then re-rig the pallet with the crane so you have a shorter strap, and set it on the hover pallet. Then stare at the forklift driver for the next truck over who's on his fifth pallet, and start crying.

Loading said box truck is of similar difficulty for the forklift driver, but an order of magnitude worse for our hover pallet operator. Why? Because you can't really push with a crane, and you presumably aren't going to ship the load still on the hover pallet, which means you need to get it off the hover pallet at some point.

And again, that wouldn't be what you'd use this for. I'm not sure why you see this as an all or nothing proposition. Having access to a hammer doesn't mean that you have to get rid of your screwdrivers.

 

[pookie101]

A few people ride those things around on campus and every time they go past, I get the overwhelming urge to just kick them off. They are unbelievably annoying when people ride them on the sidewalk, as well as fucking dangerous.

when they have an accident make sure you film it. bonus points are awarded if they catch on fire at the same time

 

[Cycloptomese]

There's one thing that these moving platforms can never achieve over standard walking.

Swagger! Yes, pompous walks... Brazen locomotion, baby!