Honda caused quite a splash a while back with the introduction of the U3-X, a personal mobility robot that’s basically a motorized unicycle (and that our own John Biggs was “impressed” with after taking it for a test drive last year). And now, at the Tokyo Motor Show 2011, Honda took the wraps of a pretty similar robot, the so-called Uni-Cub.

In fact, Honda says it has been working on mobility solutions for single drivers since 1980. Just like with the U3-X, this new model makes it possible for drivers to ride in the direction they want to go by just moving the upper body or operating a joystick (the robot can also handle lateral movements).

360-degree motions are still possible, too, but Honda added another wheel to the robot to make it more stable. To increase driving comfort, the Uni-Cub features armrests (that previous models didn’t have).

According to Honda, the Uni-Cub can reach a top speed of 10km/h and has a battery life of one hour at this point.

Unfortunately, the company is still not sure about when to commercialize the technology. Honda sees the Uni-Cub used by people who want to scoot around places like shopping centers and exhibition halls.

Here’s Honda’s Uni-Cub promotion video:

Honda has been very silent about Asimo, its super-advanced humanoid robot, in recent years. After introducing the first version in 2000, Honda showed several versions through 2005, until the company finally took the wraps off a new version earlier today in Tokyo. This model is the thinnest, fastest, and most “intelligent” Asimo yet.

At 48kg, the Asimo that was shown today is 6kg lighter than the previous model. He now has 57 joints in his body (23 more) and walks at 9km/h (instead of 6km/h).

Honda says that Asimos’s improved “intelligence” makes it possible for the robot to track a conversation between different people, recognizing the faces and voices of everyone involved (even when several people speak simultaneously).

Another plus in the intelligence department: Asimo can now temporarily stop a certain action and resume it after performing a different task in between (for example opening a can of beer and pouring it into a glass – something, which wasn’t possible before either).

If told, Asimo can kick a ball or start hopping now, too – on one or two legs. He can now even hop in a circular pattern.

And that’s not all: according to Honda, the robot “is now capable of predicting the direction a person will walk within the next few seconds based on information from pre-set space sensors and quickly determining to take an alternate path to avoid a collision with the person if the estimated locations of the person and the ASIMO intersect.”

The Robocalypse is near.

Here’s a video (in Japanese, but that doesn’t matter too much in this case):

Asimo serving beer (he opens the can and pours the beer into a glass by himself):

Some new skills shown in slow-motion [ENG/JP]

A handful of hydrogen fuel cell black cabs have already hit the streets in London. Hydrogen fuel cell forklifts are already widely available, and used in warehouse fleets from Wal-Mart to Whole Foods. Fuel cell cars — promised by manufacturers including Toyota, Daimler, GM, Honda, and Hyundai — are not slated for mass market availability until 2015, though. The dominant clean vehicle technology available in the U.S. remains the battery electric vehicle.

Fuel cells cars are said to* produce no greenhouse gas emissions. In actuality, they produce H2O (water vapor is a greenhouse gas) and CO2 depending on the source of the hydrogen used. Most industrial hydrogen is produced from the reformation of hydrocarbons. [Ed's note: Before publishing this post, I was unable to verify from Shell, Toyota or Air Products what the exact source of hydrogen was for this L.A. station, or how carbon intensive its production process might be.]

They have a 130- to 430-mile range (according to Toyota’s statements about its own fuel cell vehicles). Battery electric vehicles, so far, offer a much shorter range, and can only go up to 200 miles before recharging, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. On the other hand, battery electric vehicles can be charged at home, while fuel cell vehicles require special fueling stations at this point.

Among others, Honda is working on a “home energy station” for to generate hydrogen at home for fuel cells. A bevy of electric vehicle chargers are already on the market, however, including from Coulomb, Aerovironment and ECOtality.

As noted on the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) Fuel Cell Test and Evaluation Center (FCTec) website: Sir William Grove developed the first fuel cell in England in 1839, and in the 1950s, NASA and General Electric (GE) scientists developed the “Grubb-Niedrach fuel cell,” which became the first in the world to be used commercially.

Is the U.S. still leading the commercialization of fuel cells, globally? The executive director of the Fuel Cell & Hydrogen Energy Association (FCHEA), Ruth F. Cox, put things in perspective:

“There are somewhere around 600 [highway legal] fuel cell electric vehicles on the road, today. There are probably fewer than 50 different vehicle models in very limited production, now. That’s worldwide. We have about 150 of these vehicles [driving around] in the U.S. We also have twenty some hydrogen fueling stations here, in California.

While the U.S. has led in terms of innovation, here, other countries have taken the lead in terms of building government and industry partnerships that bring together the oil and gas industry, alternative fueling companies, and the auto industry around an orchestrated plan for the deployment of infrastructure to support fuel cell vehicles.

Japan has made a commitment to deliver hundreds of refueling stations by 2015. Germany has committed to delivering thousands of stations by 2020.

As the technology matures, this will improve. Looking at battery electric vehicles, only thousands have been sold in the U.S. so far. It’s simply going to take some time.”

*The passage above was corrected and appended, May 11, 2011, 12:10 ET. A representative of the Fuel Cell & Hydrogen Energy Association referred to fuel cell vehicles as zero emissions vehicles in an interview. That statement was not meant literally, but I repeated the phrase in an earlier edition of this post. I’ve added details to clarify and maintain accuracy at the suggestion of commenter @Ben Kellie.

Honda Japan today said [press release in English] that it will start lease sales of its new electric motorcycle, the so-called EV-neo on December 24. The 50cc scooters are primarily aimed at delivery services or individual businesses, 100 of which will have the chance to test the vehicle until March 2011. General sales will then start in April next year.

Once charged (which takes 30 minutes with a quick charger), the EV-neo’s electric motor allows for a travel range of about 34km – provided you constantly drive at 30km/h. The scooter is powered by a 72V/12.6Ah lithium ion battery and can be loaded with up to 30 kg of cargo.

Honda says that prices for the EV-neo start at $5,100 (for the most basic model). A quick charger will cost another $1,430. The PRO version you see above (on the right) offers a bracket in the front for a basket and a rear carrier.

At a press conference today in Tokyo, Honda president Ito also mentioned that his company is thinking about rolling out the “green” scooter in markets outside Japan, too.

Here are some basic stats and facts:

• ~100mi range
• 90MPH top speed
• Coaxial electric motor provides ~2.0L performance
• 12hr charge at 120V, 6hr charge at 240V
• Compatible with Honda-branded “charging stand”
• Normal, Econ, and Sport drive modes
• Smartphone and computer applications for monitoring battery, assistance, etc.

So the usual. No pricing or anything like that, but it’s supposed to go into production in 2012. More information at Honda.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/world-debut-of-honda-fit-ev-concept-electric-vehicle-and-plug-in-hybrid-platform-at-los-angeles-auto-show-108764604.html

These new lines should start hitting streets in both Japan and the US sometime next year for the 2012 model year. This comes on top of the current plans to introduce a hybrid version of the B-segment Honda Fit later this year. Details about the up-coming electric car wasn’t announced, but a few tantalizing specs concerning the next-gen Honda Civic Hybrid leaked a few weeks back and seem to confirm today’s report. Can we say Prius-killer? Yup.

The biggest advantage the upcoming Civic will have over the Prius is lithium-ion batteries, which have a dramatically better power-to-weight ratio than the Nickel-metal hydride packs currently used in all of Honda’s and Toyota’s hybrids. This is the same sort of battery technology used in the Tesla Roadster and Chevy Volt. Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist system would then assist a 1.5-liter gasoline engine paired to CVT transmission or six-speed gearbox.

The same lithium-ion-powered IMA platform will eventually work its way into Acura vehicles as well, which will likely go head to head against the already-popular Lexus hybrids.

Honda no doubt wants to be known as a major player in the alternative energy car market and are going at it a slightly different way than other car companies. While Toyota is aiming at the top with the up-scale Prius and Lexus line, Honda is starting downmarket with the low-cost Fit, Insight, and the Civic. [Update: Add the CR-Z sports coupe to that list, too] After all, inexpensive cars is where Honda started so it’s rather fitting that the next chapter in its history begins the same way.

Mind-reading devices are nothing really new, but Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) apparently sees a huge potential for that market in the near future. The MIC will join forces with selected private tech companies to develop and commercialize robots and consumer electronics that can be controlled through thought. The project kicks off this fiscal year and is supposed to end by 2020.

The MIC says Japan should use its strength in fields such as brain science and IT to come up with TVs that could be operated without using fingers or cell phones that could send out emails via thought alone, for example. Other potential applications include a car navigation system that automatically displays the nearest restaurants when the driver thinks of having a meal or robots that can come to the rescue when elderly or disabled people are in trouble.

The MIC says it eyes working together with companies such as Toyota, Honda (see picture above) or Hitachi (all of which are experienced in developing brain interface technologies). Partners from the academic sector include Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, Osaka University, and the Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International.

Remember Tsutenkaku, “the world’s biggest” robot? Tsutenkaku, basically a 170cm tall robot that looks like a city tower, recently made the journey from Osaka (where he was made and is supposed to attract tourists) from Tokyo. Needless to say, he first went to Akihabara, Tokyo’s robot geek paradise, and while he was there, Tsutenkaku met Honda’s famous humanoid Asimo, too.

Tsutenkaku looks weird on pictures, but he’s actually much, much weirder on video.

Here’s Tsutenkaku walking around Akihabara and interacting with cute maids in manga cafes (it’s in Japanese, but that’s not too important in this case):

This video shows Tsutenkaku meeting Honda’s Asimo humanoid in more details. It seems both robots want to shake hands, but somehow, that fails:

While we mostly cover electric bicycles and the occasional electric car, there are surely some people waiting for a decent electric motorbike, too. Honda has now announced an e-scooter, and it looks their model, the EV-neo, is quite decent.

The main feature of the green vehicle is that it lets users recharge the battery from ordinary household power outlets. It can then travel up to around 30km on a single charge, depending on your driving behavior. Honda claims the EV-neo will start strong, even when heavily loaded.

The e-scooter will be powered by a newly developed lithium ion battery from Toshiba, which says that with a rapid charger, it takes just about 20 minutes to charge the battery to 80% of capacity (using a 200V power source).

And the battery also won’t catch fire, obviously adding to the safety of the bike. Performance-wise, you can expect a vehicle equivalent to a 50cc gas-powered motorbike.

Honda plans to start selling the EV-neo in Japan from December this year, mainly targeting companies and small business owners.

Here’s a video clip showing the e-scooter in action:

There are many humanoids out there, but Honda’s two-legged, super-advanced Asimo is certainly one of the coolest. And if you’re a hardcore robot geek, you can get it now on your computer desktop via a new Adobe Air app.

The widget can be installed on Windows XP/Vista or 7 PCs as well as Macs with OS X 10.4 or higher on board. Your desktop Asimo then walks around on the screen, jumps, plays soccer, and performs his famous dance (there’s also a memo pad and Google search to make him a bit more useful).

You can download the Asimo widget from here.

Via Akihabara News

Remember the U3-X Mobility Robot from Honda we blogged about last year? Well, the auto-unicycle is still a prototype, but Honda has just released a new (and pretty interesting) promo video on its official YouTube channel. The company says the U3-X can run continuously for one hour on a single (lithium-ion) battery charge and can be recharged via a conventional 120-volt power outlet.

The prototype weighs just 22 pounds, can stand by itself and features a foldable seat and retractable footrests. But its main bullet point is the omni-directional driving wheel system, which, according to Honda, is the only one of its kind. It allows U3-X drivers not only to move forward and back but also sideways and diagonally, setting it apart from vaguely similar products like the Segway or Toyota’s Winglet (which is also still just a prototype).

Here’s the promo video (in English, 3:39 min):

Here’s a U3-X video (made by CNN) from last year:
Embedded video from CNN Video

Via Plastic Pals and Response [JP]

Update: Sorry readers, it looks as if P4 is just being publicly displayed in a museum in Japan, and Honda isn’t planning to manufacture the robot.

Of the two, I think the Honda is more likely to become a reality. The Honda 3R-C is a single person transport, but pulls design cues from a trike instead of a motorcycle. It’s for Honda’s urban commuter concept for zero emission transportation, and uses a lithium ion battery system. Honda is also working on a car in the same vein, which actually has the ability to combine two smaller vehicles into one larger. The EV-N car would have solar panels in the roof, and charge the vehicle while it’s parked.

The Hungarian option however, isn’t quite so promising. Remember after all these are the people who brought you the Yugo. The Antro company is in the process of developing a car that will actually split into to smaller cars, each one capable of going about 12 miles before needing a recharge. That’s actually considered to be fine for a commute, but anything resembling a road trip would be pretty much impossible. Antro plans to be able to deliver this vehicle sometime in 2012.

Bicycle safety wasn’t an issue for me growing up. I lived in a quiet suburban subdivision on a cul-de-sac. Plus, my mom is an insurance agent and so she made sure that I always had the latest safety equipment. (E.g. shin pads, wrist pads, elbow pads, helmet, gloves, and a cup) It’s a damn good thing that Honda didn’t make this bicycle simulator back in the Eighties. She would have shipped the thing in from Japan, and I would have never been able to leave the house.

Safety is the purpose of this contraption. Honda expects to install about 500 of these simulators in Japanese schools, public offices, and other locations where they can be used to educate about bicycle safety.

The system itself is somewhat complex. There are a few different modes that simulates different conditions and the bike can even recognize when the rider dismounts and must walk the bike to complete the course. The post-ride mode allows the user to review the simulate from multiple vantage points and evaluate the ride.

Chances are that if you want to ride one of these things, you’re going to have to plan a trip overseas. It probably won’t find its way stateside anytime soon. Who rides a bike in the US anyway? (joking)

If the pictures of Honda’s little peanut-shaped mobility device weren’t enough for you, well, now you can see it in motion. This demonstration at the Tokyo Motor Show has a rather smug-looking presenter zipping it all over the stage, and not falling down once. I have to say, he looks a little unsure as to what to do with your hands. I’d like to think that if I were in his position, I wouldn’t naturally assume a “WHAT WHAT” stance.

[via Reddit]

This, according to Honda, is the future of personal mobility. (In the future, walking will be seen as passe and uncool.) It’s called the U3-X, and it just debuted in Tokyo. It’s sorta like a Segway, but a little less cumbersome (but just as unusual looking to the layman).

How fast does this bad boy go? Try 3.7 miles per hours—you can go from New York to San Francisco in just 810 hours! That’s about 33 days.

That’s being disingenuous, of course, since the U3-X isn’t made for long-distance travel, but rather urban walkabouts. Going here, going there, that kind of thing.

You probably already guessed this, but it’s designed for the elderly. That’s why we so so much robotics coming out of Japan: it has such a “rapidly” aging society that it has to constantly innovate and invent all these ‘helper’ robots.

It’s just a proof of concept for now, so don’t expect things like price or release date soon (if ever).

Ready for more hybrid vehicles? Sure, why not, right? Honda is set to release two new hybrid vehicles next year: the CR-Z and Fit/Jazz. Both should come equipped with Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) system and further demonstrates that hybrid technology will soon be a standard option on most vehicles.

There isn’t anything real exciting about either of these two new cars besides the hybrid option. The CR-Z will be a standard fastback coupe while the Fit is a wannabe mini-minivan. (ask Biggs, he has one) But both small cars should get a boost in MPG with the hybrid system.

Honda, just like every other major manufacturer, has been developing hybrid technology in personal vehicles since the 90′s. The IMA system has probably progressed enough that it can finally be fitted onto more and more platforms meaning that soon it might become a standard option.

Fundamentally hybrids aren’t that difficult. They just employ a battery-powered electric motor to assist the gasoline engine under certain loads. The electronic acceleration assistance can make for speedy launches and improved fuel economy. Many of the previous issues like battery size and jerky transitions between the motor and engine have been worked out by manufacturers so be prepared to see a lot more hybrid vehicles.

Now, I’m not saying all of these new hybrids, including the two new models released from Honda, will put up Prius-type numbers. Oh no, Honda previously installed an older IMA system in the Accord but Consumer Reports only found it to help by 1 or 2 MPG. But having the hybrid systems installed is a great short-term solution to reach the high CAFE standards.

Congress put the bar high with the new MPG guidelines. By 2011 the majority of new cars will have to reach 30.2 MPG verses today’s standard of 27.5. That 2.7 MPG jump is a big hurdle and hybrid technology is one of the least expensive ways to reach it. Most automakers already have a developed hybrid platform, so now the task is to build it into more vehicles to bump up the average.

We’re finally reaching a plateau in next-gen vehicle purpalson systems; at least for a while. Hybrid is here to stay while extended range plug-ins like the Volt and Fisker Karma test the market. Soon, a hybrid system will be just another box to check on the new car buying sheet just like AC and satellite radio.

As I mentioned earlier, Honda is in town to demo their two walking assist devices for the first time in the US. I was given the opportunity to test both models out in midtown Manhattan this afternoon. The applications for both models are pretty obvious and Honda has been testing the Bodyweight Support Assist at their Saitama factory since November of last year.

They both offer a surprising amount of support while walking, crouching and traversing stairs. The BSA is pretty awkward at first but you get used to it after a few seconds. Yes, I’m staring at my crotch more than usual and duck walking, but it’s a bit strange to have something between your legs while you’re trying to walk.

What you won’t see in the video is how to get the device on. It comes with shoes that are attached to the legs that, you know, you put on. There are two switches on each thigh section of the legs that you switch on and then you pull up the saddle between your legs and off you go. I won’t lie, it’s a little awkward, but you get used to it. It’s also surprisingly lightweight at around 6.5 lbs.

You may or may not notice the similarities between the movement of the device and ASIMO, but it’s no coincidence. That little robot is going to save the world!

The Stride Management Assist is less awkward to maneuver with and you can really feel the support in the lower back and at the points of contact on your hamstring. The motors really whirled when going up the stairs, but wasn’t as noticeable when going down. The engineers behind the assist devices told me that support is very subtle when walking down steps so that your natural movement isn’t thrown off.

Because both models are prototypes there are some limitations on who can use them at the moment. They can accommodate persons of height up to 6’2″, shoe size of 8-11 for men/9.5 – 12.5 for women and weight up to 220 lbs.

I’m still trying to digest what I just went through and I’ll have the presentation from the brains behind the project up shortly as well. The last two slides are very brief overviews of each device. Here’s a little nugget of knowledge about the walking assist devices that you probably didn’t know: over 30 prototypes have been built in the last decade.

Check back soon for the full presentation. And here’s the entire presentation including the Q&A.

[PSGallery=5bh28lp8t4]

We’ve covered Honda’s walking assist devices pretty extensively in the past, but we’ve never had the opportunity to see them in person until now. Hopefully we get that chance next week when Honda demos two prototype devices in Detroit at the 2009 Society of Automtoive Engineers World Congress. Actually, we’re trying out the W.A.D. right now and we’ll have video later today!

With over 130 patents, Honda hopes to help the geriatric and those with impaired leg muscles walk again.

The first device, Stride Management Assist, is a lightweight, wearable device designed for people with weakened leg muscles, but who can still walk on their own. It obtains information about the user’s walking motions from hip angle sensors. Based on the information, the CPU applies cooperative control and calculates the amount and timing of the assistance to be provided. With the device’s assistance, the user’s stride is lengthened compared to their normal stride and the walking pace regulated, thereby making it easier to walk.

The second device, Bodyweight Support Assist, is also designed to help people with weakened leg muscles, but may also be helpful during some physically demanding activities. It supports bodyweight to reduce the load on the user’s legs while walking, going up and down stairs, and while standing in a semi-crouching position. The load on leg muscles and joints (in the hip, knees, and ankles) is reduced. This device has a simple structure consisting of seat, frame, and shoes, and the user can put it on by simply wearing the shoes and lifting the seat into position.

Honda today announced a “brain machine interface” (press release in English), which makes it possible for human beings to control robots by thought and does away with all the button pressing and joystick holding that usually gets on our nerves when we control our robots. The technology was developed jointly with Japanese tech company Shimadzu and Tokyo-based research institute ATR.

The interface is mainly based on two sensors using electroencephalography (better known as EEG), measuring electrical activity along the scalp, and near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to measure changes in cerebral blood flow. All that the user needs to do is to wear a helmet that’s equipped with these sensors and imagine which of four pre-determined robot parts (left hand, right hand, tongue or feet – yes, tongue) he or she wants to see moving.

Honda says that in internal tests, its Asimo humanoid responded correctly to human thoughts in more than 90% of all cases, for example by moving its foot. The company has been working on brain machine interface applications for four years now and tries to find ways to use the technology in other Honda products in the future, meaning all of this is not completely gimmicky.

Via Robot Watch [JP]