Make: Online : Spotted on the Playa - Self-balancing skateboard

Spotted on the Playa - Self-balancing skateboard

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Brady (from O'Reilly) spotted this rad Self-balancing skateboard in the desert during Burning Man, he writes "This was the coolest piece of personal transport that I saw on the playa...It was very easy to ride on. Lots of fun. I met the creator, Justin, on the playa. He calls it an emanual. He promised to post plans in a vague future timeframe. A little googling turned up this video - Link. Here's his site - Link.

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Posted by: jovino on September 12, 2006 at 8:36 PM

I hung out and chatted with him as well. He informed me that there are no gyroscopes in it, but basic tilt sensors. Stepping on it, it takes a moment to balance and regulate. Riding it took a little getting used to. This guy is a genius! And super nice to boot.

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Posted by: SonicReducer on September 13, 2006 at 12:28 AM

what about emanual?

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=emanual

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Posted by: SonicReducer on September 13, 2006 at 12:29 AM

what about emanual?

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=emanual

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Posted by: SonicReducer on September 13, 2006 at 12:33 AM

nevermind. i didn't read it before posting. the pic is different from the emanual.

also, sorry about the double posting. my connection sometimes times out and the post gets through, but usually it doesn't so i reload the page

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Posted by: justin_le on September 13, 2006 at 9:28 AM

Hey, thanks to whoever put this up. Unlike the Emanual, this board _does_ use a MEMS rate gyro and tilt sensor in order to be more robust in harsh environments where the distance sensors can fail. With the large hub wheels and wider wheel base it ended up being significantly easier to ride as well.

I'm working on a thorough project description for this but I lost my camera shortly before burning man, and as a result I don't have any footage of the board in action. If somebody reading this post has photos or video clips of it being riden on the playa then please contact me at: justinle@interchange.ubc.ca
That would make the webpage much more interesting.

Thanks, -Justin

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