Self-driving mobility scooters could be the next big thing in driverless vehicle technology as the University of Singapore is testing single-seater mobility scooters that can travel at speeds up to 6 km/h on footpaths and intended to curb accidents caused because of overtly phone savvy people.
Key Highlights
- The self driving scooter is intended to drive pedestrians on footpaths
- The self driving mobility scooter can travel at speeds up to 6 km/h
- The self-driving scooter is still in the testing phase
After self-driving cars making it on roads, it could be self-driving mobility scooters that might just turn out to be the next big thing. Researchers in Singapore has come out with self-driving mobility scooters that drive single pedestrians along footpaths. The innovation has emerged out of the need to curb accidents involving phone-obsessed walkers, who are more vulnerable to bump into things due to the lack of attention. That said, it will be of great aid to the elderly too.
So, the one-seater, four-wheel, 50 kg vehicle is capable of travelling at a top speed of 6 km/h and has laser sensors to help navigate around obstacles. It slows down when it detects obstacles up to 4 km/h in front of it and has a 0.2 second response time.
The scooter is developed by the National University of Singapore (NUS), the city-state's latest experiment with driverless vehicles as it pushes ahead with its vision of using autonomous technology to help deal with the challenges of its limited land and labour. The mobility scooter has undergone successful tests on campus and developers said it can help improve mobility for all ages, cut down on the need for cars and also lower accident rates.
NUS Associate Professor and project leader Marcelo Ang Jr said, "I'm sure you have experienced people who just use their handphone while walking, and almost run into you ... so it would be nice if you are just sitting down and checking your emails. "We just give you more choices."
Ang Jr said that the scooter would be able to work in tandem with other driverless vehicles in Singapore, where robo-taxis are being tested and trials are planned for self-driving buses. He said the scooter was meant for use on narrow pathways which larger vehicles cannot access. Currently, the scooter takes a few seconds to calibrate a different route when it nears an obstacle - something Ang Jr said the team was looking to improve.
Users, though, did not seem too bothered by the brief pause. "It goes really smoothly and travels very safely," said student Kevin Xiangyu Hui, who tested the scooter. The project, a collaboration between the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART), and NUS will be further tested and is not for sale. a
