Honda's Riding Assist Prototype motorcycle.
The 2017 CES in Las Vegas jabbed in a lot of fresh tech ready to be unboxed throughout the year. One of the jewels at the expo was Honda’s motorcycling phenomenon that goes beyond normal gyroscopic technology.
It’s Honda’s Riding Assist Prototype. A new range of motorcycles will soon be able to balance themselves without a kickstand. Not only do the bikes stay upright perfectly when stationary, one can ride around the city and stop at a traffic light without needing to put a foot on the ground.
What Honda has done is take its technology from Asimo the Robot and the Uni-Cab stool and stick it in the bike. At speed, it even adds balance by lowering the front fork to keep to its centre of gravity. Other advancements include a self-driving system, with a simple tap of the front fender that makes it follow you from behind (just like an obedient doggie), while checking that it does not bump into anything.
Honda has developed this system to help reduce motorcycle accidents on the road, especially at lower speeds, which can be useful for inexperienced riders. For the more experienced, the system can be switched off at any time, giving the rider more control of the motorcycle.
Unfortunately, this tech might not not see production this year, as it is a prototype. But we will leave you with this video to nibble on in the meantime.